Waitematā patients book outpatient appointments online

NEWS - eHealthNews.nz editor Rebecca McBeth

Waitematā DHB has introduced an online service for cardiology patients to book and manage their clinic appointments and is rolling it out across the DHB this year.

The new system, delivered by Aceso and built on Pinga by Sorsix, allows patient to book, reschedule and cancel their outpatient appointments online and Waitematā is the first DHB to use it in New Zealand.

The DHB is already offering the service for cardiology clinics and is planning a staged wider roll-out between April and December 2022 across most outpatient clinics.

Dale Bramley, Waitematā DHB chief executive, says the solution is an example of the organisation realising its ‘better, best, brilliant’ organisational value.

“This is a demonstration of our goal to always seek continuous improvement in everything we do and demonstrate being a leader in health care delivery,” he says.

Over recent years, the DHB has worked on an extensive email validation project to confirm email addresses and seek permission from patients for their use.

With over 840,000 verified email addresses, the DHB sent first offers to experience the new online booking system to 10 patients on 24 February. All patients booked their appointment within four days of receiving the offer.

The first patient to use the service, Malcolm Stoneman, says the system was very easy to understand and use.

“After the invitation email arrived, it took a few clicks of the mouse to show available appointment options,” he says.

“I chose the day and time I wanted and received a confirmation all within minutes.”

Bramley says the new system has the potential for a huge positive impact on all users and support staff, as well as patients, who can fit appointments in with work, holidays and other commitments.

“It will also reduce the time required to manage appointments, freeing-up staff time to focus on improving the quality and efficiency of the DHB’s outpatient systems,” he says.

Will Barnett, founder and COO at Aceso Health, says the company is proud to work under Waitematā’ DHB’s leadership to improve access and reduce inequities for the people they care for.

“Making health work better for both patients and providers of care is a fundamental challenge that we need to overcome as a country,” he says.

“We believe this begins with delivering more convenient, accessible and timely care for all.”



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