Online booking system benefits patients, doctors in Gauteng
Booking a doctor's appointment has just become easier and queuing at the pharmacy a thing of the past. In a first for South Africa, patients are now able to book appointments with their GP via the internet - with dentists and other health providers to follow shortly. An online booking system has been introduced which allows the patient, or the patient's mother or caregiver, to access real-time schedules and book doctors' appointments at any time.
"The new system is proving to be very popular with our patients," says Hermann Kohloffel, the Managing Director of NHC Limited, which administers NHC Health Centres and the NHC Medical Service Provider Network in Gauteng and Western Cape. "A mother whose baby gets ill during the night no longer has to wait until 8am to call us in order to find out whether a doctor is available to see her baby. She can now make the appointment at 4am and possibly book an appointment for as early as 8am."
"We have also introduced the first pharmacy integration with the electronic scripts processing system. This means that even before the patient has left the doctor's rooms, the script for the medicine has been uploaded and is ready to be received at the pharmacy.
"The pharmacist no longer has to stand in front of the patient deciphering what the doctor prescribed or capturing medical aid details. The integrated patient file system enables automatic access to the patient's medical aid and other relevant records. The script is processed in no time and the patients can get their medication more quickly, not to mention eliminating any potential dispensing errors."
Kohloffel says that at first it was uncertain if the doctors, who have for centuries written scripts on pieces of paper, would adopt the electronic scripts. "We needn't have worried. Our doctors and pharmacists are finding the system easy to use. Feedback from patients includes requests for two queues, where one only focuses on handwritten scripts as those queues are longer."
For more information, visit: www.nhcltd.com
