Appointment reminders mistaken for ‘scam’

A Scottish scheme using automated calling to contact patients and remind them of their hospital appointments has been withdrawn after just two days because patients thought the calls were a scam.

The project in NHS Dumfries and Galloway used an automated system to phone patients the night before their appointment and leave a recorded message asking if they could still attend.

The service is to be relaunched this week after a publicity campaign to inform the local public about the introduction of automated reminder calls in Dumfries and Galloway.

Patients were asked to confirm their identity by entering a number and their date of birth on the keypad of the phone before being reminded about their hospital appointment.

According to a report in the Scotsman, patients instead hung up as soon as they heard the electronic voice because they mistook it for a telephone scam where they are connected to a premium-rate line that can rack up hefty bills.

Health chiefs at NHS Dumfries and Galloway, who were piloting the scheme, were left red-faced when they were forced to pull the service just two days after launching it.

The Scotsman report quotes Stewart Culley, information manager at the health board, who said worried patients had contacted the health board after receiving the call to ask if they had just been the victim of a premium-rate telephone con.

The health board has said it will now launch a leaflet campaign to ensure patients were aware of the service.

"The electronic reminder service is still in its early days, so it is difficult to tell what impact it will have," said Culley. "We decided to halt the service for a week so we could issue letters to patients informing them about the service."

Missed hospital appointments are estimated to cost the Scottish NHS around £21m a year.