Trust HQ The Elms RAEI Wigan Lane Wigan WN1 2NN Mr Andrew Foster, Chief Executive Email: Andrew.foster@wwl.nhs.uk Ref: FOI2012/1188 Date Received: 01/03/2012 Response Due: 29/03/2012 28 th March 2012 Dear INFORMATION REQUEST UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000 We are now pleased to respond to your request for information under the Freedom of Information Act. 1. Please provide details of the Trust s current appointment reminder service supplier/system including the reminder methods used i.e. SMS, emails, automated calls or live agents. The Trust s current appointment reminders system has been developed in house within the Rhapsody Integration Engine. Reminders are currently sent by SMS. 2. Please provide when the service was implemented and the specialties included? The following Specialties are live for follow up appointment with the respective start date. Reminders may be sent for appointments booked after the start date. Roll out to other Specialties is planned. Specialties Start Date ANAESTHETICS 05.12.2011 ANAESTHETICS ACUPUNCTURE 14.03.2012 ANAESTHETICS PAIN 05.12.2011 BREAST SURGERY 05.12.2011 CHEMICAL PATHOLOGY 14.03.2012 CARDIOLOGY 05.12.2011 COLO-RECTAL SURGERY 05.12.2011 DERMATOLOGY 29.11.2011 ENDOCRINOLOGY DIAB MEDICINE 14.03.2012
EAR,NOSE,THROAT 29.11.2011 GASTROENTEROLOGY 18.10.2011 GASTROENTEROLOGY SURGICAL 18.10.2011 GENERAL MEDICINE 05.12.2011 GENERAL SURGERY 05.12.2011 HAEMATOLOGY (CLINICAL) 05.12.2011 HEPATOLOGY 14.03.2012 NEPHROLOGY 14.03.2012 ORTHODONTICS 29.11.2011 OPHTHALMOLOGY 29.11.2011 ORAL SURGERY 29.11.2011 PLASTIC SURGERY 05.12.2011 RHEUMATOLOGY 29.11.2011 CARDIOTHORACIC SURGERY 05.12.2011 THORACIC MEDICINE (Respiratory) 05.11.2011 UROLOGY 29.11.2011 VASCULAR SURGERY 05.12.2011 3. If the Trust does not currently have a reminder service in operation please explain why this is the case? 4. Please provide monthly values for the numbers of patients contacted/reminded? Sum of Number of Row Labels Reminders 2011 623 11 51 12 572 2012 5861 1 1862 2 2110 5. Please provide specific details of any aims/targets set of the reminder service and whether these have been achieved? The main target for the Reminder Service is a cumulative reduction in the DNA percentage of 3.5% over three years. Year 1 0.75% reduction Year 2 1.25% reduction Year 3 1.50% reduction Benefit realisation analysis will commence in April 2012.
6. Please provide details of any patient complaints or technical difficulties encountered whilst the service is in operation. There have been a number of cases where the Trust has received calls from people stating that they have incorrectly received text messages. After investigation, these were caused by the Patient providing a family member s mobile contact number without informing them. There has been a technical issue resulting in a complaint whereby the system scheduler failed to stop a process, resulting in text messages being initiated at midnight. A secondary check is now performed within the application to ensure text messages are initiated within sociable hours. 7. Please provide details of the member(s) of staff responsible for the implementation and continued running of the service and their role within the Trust? The technical implementation team consists of - IM&T Project Manager System Development Senior Developer Web Developer User Acceptance Testing PAS System Administrator Outpatient Manager Patient Contact and Reminder Steering Group Head of IM & T Health Care Operations Manager Outpatient Manager Head of Engagement IM&T Project Manager Trust Web Services Coordinator, Corporate Communications Appointment Centre Manager Health Care Administration Manager Associate General Manager, Medicine General Manager, MSK Divisional General Manager, Surgery Outpatients Project Manager IM&T Communications Lead Head of IM&T Production and Modernisation Information Governance Co-ordinator Communications Manager
8. Please provide details of: a. Supplier b. Expected contract length c. Contract review date d. Cost of contract to date No external Supplier. 9. Please provide details of the implementation costs and on-going/support costs? The total cost was 33,000 with no ongoing revenue costs. 10. Please provide details of the processes followed to procure an appointment reminder service? 11. Please provide details of the channels used to publish the notification of procurement, for an appointment reminder service? I trust that this information answers your original request, however if you are not entirely satisfied with this response please do not hesitate to contact the Information Governance Department on 01257 256335. If we do not hear from you within 28 days we will assume that we have been able to accommodate your request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Yours sincerely Andrew Foster Chief Executive PLEASE NOTE: The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. You are free to use it for your own purposes, including any non-commercial research you are doing and for the purposes of news reporting. Any other reuse, for example commercial publication, would require the permission of the copyright holder. You must ensure you gain their permission before reproducing any third party information. If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your request and wish to make a complaint or request a review of our decision, you should write to: Information Governance Department, Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust, Wrightington Hospital, Hall Lane, Appley Bridge, Wigan, WN6 9EP If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure at: The Information Commissioner s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF