To drive further cost savings for our customers, we switched on the ‘unread documents reminder’ functionality in April.
It means that, if a letter sent electronically via PKB is not read after 1 day, we will automatically send a reminder email prompting the patient to view the correspondence. This allows our customers to not only save money by not posting letters needlessly in the first place, but also provides the reassurance that letters were in fact read by their patients – something that a physically posted letter can never do.
We have discovered that a further 7% of letters are read in total due to this feature which potentially translates to big cost savings. Furthermore, we believe this leads to a reduction in DNAs (Did Not Attend), better health outcomes and increased engagement as patients more effectively interact with their healthcare information such as appointment letters, discharge summaries and other important clinical correspondence.
Analysing this data further (in conjunction with our Business Intelligence dashboard), evidence suggests this equates to a significant increase in the percentage of documents read. For example:
- Prior to this reminder being implemented, 70% of letters sent via PKB were being read by registered patients within 2 days.
- After this feature was activated, 77% of letters sent via PKB are now being read by registered patients within 2 days.
- This 7% overall increase equates to big savings for our customers as well as higher patient engagement.
- This change equates to 23% of previously unread letters now being read (30-23) / 30 * 100 = 23%.
These reports are available to all our customers. If you’re a customer, take a look to learn more about the impact this has made on your organisation.
If you are interested in learning more about switching to digital correspondence with PKB, please contact help@patientsknowbest.com.