The five texts #
Each one copies as plain text, ready to paste into your booking system’s message settings or a phone. Type over the brackets, then check the count: with a clinic name of about 16 characters and a full phone number, every one of them fits in a single text.
Click anything in brackets to type over it, then copy, print or download the result. Nothing you type leaves this page.
[Clinic name]: booked with [clinician], [Tue 21 Oct] at [2:30pm]. To cancel or move it, call [phone number] [24 hours] ahead. Policy: [short link]
Click anything in brackets to type over it, then copy, print or download the result. Nothing you type leaves this page.
[Clinic name]: a reminder of your appointment with [clinician] on [Tue 21 Oct] at [2:30pm]. Can't make it? Call [phone number] to cancel or move it.
Click anything in brackets to type over it, then copy, print or download the result. Nothing you type leaves this page.
[Clinic name]: see you [Tue 21 Oct] at [2:30pm]. Missing it without [24 hours'] notice costs [£0.00] under our policy. To cancel or move it, call [phone number]
Click anything in brackets to type over it, then copy, print or download the result. Nothing you type leaves this page.
[Clinic name]: sorry we missed you today at [2:30pm]. We hope all is well. To book again, call [phone number] or go to [booking link]
Click anything in brackets to type over it, then copy, print or download the result. Nothing you type leaves this page.
[Clinic name]: an appointment has come up with [clinician] on [Tue 21 Oct] at [2:30pm]. Reply YES by [11am] or call [phone number] to take it. First reply gets it.
Text 3 only works for private appointments with a fee in a policy the patient saw before booking. The no show policy template sets out what makes that fee fair. Its letters cover the step after text 4.
What the one UK wording trial found #
The systematic reviews behind most reminder advice show that sending one helps. The trials Hallsworth and colleagues ran at an NHS trust in England, published in PLOS ONE on 14 September 2015, asked whether the words help. Outpatients were sent one of four texts five days before their appointment, about 10,000 patients in each trial.
| What the text added | Did not attend | Compared with |
|---|---|---|
| The specific cost of a missed appointment to the NHS (Trial One) | 8.4% | 11.1% for the trust’s existing text |
| The same, repeated (Trial Two) | 8.2% | The cost in general terms: 9.9% |
| The phone number to cancel, in the text itself (Trial One) | No significant effect | 11.1% for the existing text |
| That most people attend (Trial One) | No significant effect on non-attendance | More cancellations: 10.5% against 8.8% |
Two things carry over to a clinic. A specific figure did better than the same idea in general terms. And a text that leads to a cancellation is not a failure: the authors point out that a cancellation is one route to avoiding a missed appointment. It also gives the time back while it can still be offered to somebody else.
Fitting it in one text #
A standard text holds 160 characters, spaces included. GOV.UK Notify’s pricing page sets out how longer messages are counted:
| Length | Counts as |
|---|---|
| Up to 160 characters | 1 text |
| Up to 306 characters | 2 texts |
| Up to 459 characters | 3 texts |
Two things push a short text over. Square brackets, curly brackets and the euro sign count as two characters each, so take out every bracket when you fill a template in. And a non-standard character, such as some Welsh letters, cuts the limit to 70 characters for the whole message.
Two rules a reminder sits under #
It is a service message, so keep offers out
The ICO’s guide to PECR says routine customer service messages, giving people information they need about a current contract, do not count as direct marketing. A reminder of an appointment the patient booked is exactly that. If it carries significant promotional material, such as an offer on another treatment, it includes marketing and the PECR rules apply to it.
It can be health data, so leave the treatment out
The ICO’s guidance on special category data says health data can include appointment details, reminders and invoices which tell you something about a person’s health. It gives a list of appointments at an osteopath clinic as an example. A text is read on a lock screen, sometimes by somebody else. These templates give the time and the clinician and stop there. The patient data page covers what that means for the practice as controller.
How to use them well #
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Send the confirmation at booking
It is the moment the patient sees how to cancel and where the policy is, which is what makes a fee fair later.
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Pick one reminder and one timing
The trials sent theirs five days ahead. Whatever you choose, send every reminder on the same rule so you can see whether it works.
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Count what comes back
Cancellations, moves and missed appointments, month by month. A reminder that brings in more cancellations is doing its job if the slots get refilled.
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Only promise a reply you will read
Text 5 asks for a reply. Use it only if somebody owns the inbox, or take the line out and leave the phone number.
What happens to them by hand #
The wording is the easy part. The appointment reminders guide explains why reminders stop going out when the front desk is busy. The work around these five texts follows the same rules every time.
Runs on rules
- Sending the confirmation and the reminder, which is a date and a template
- Spotting a patient with no mobile number on file
- Sending text 4 when an appointment has no arrival recorded
- Offering a cancelled slot to the waiting list in order
Needs a person
- Reading a reply that says more than yes or no
- Deciding whether a missed appointment is a clinical worry
- Deciding whether to charge
What the published figures say about how often patients miss is on patient no shows. Filling a slot at short notice is on cancellations and rebooking. The missed calls calculator puts a number on the calls that reach the clinic while nobody can answer.