The Canary Islands Health Service will notify you ten days in advance of your appointment
If you receive a text message on your phone, it could be a reminder for your medical appointment with the Canary Islands Health Service. This initiative aims to provide patients with the option to confirm, cancel, or reschedule their appointment in case they are unable to attend.
Patients will receive the SMS ten days prior to their appointment, allowing them to confirm their attendance or indicate the need to reschedule if they cannot make it.
As part of this system, patients will receive a text message containing a personalised link to access specific details of their appointment, including the location, service, and time, along with options to confirm, cancel, or change the appointment.
The Director of the Canary Islands Health Service, Adasat Goya, held a meeting today with the Director of the Health Area of Fuerteventura, Tomás Pérez, and the Manager of the Health Services on the island, María Luisa Naranjo, to discuss the implementation of the project.
The reminder management system is an interactive communication project via SMS, directing users to a simple application that allows patients to confirm, cancel, or request a date change for their appointment if they are unable to attend.
Patients receive the SMS ten days in advance of their appointment, providing them the option to confirm or indicate the need for rescheduling. The text message will include a personalised link to access their appointment specifics, including the location, service, and time, alongside options for confirmation, cancellation, or changes.
Developed by the SCS, this application is in collaboration with the Information and Telephone Assistance service 012, and for the first time allows patients to interact with the system regarding hospital consultations, a previously unavailable option.
During the meeting, Adasat Goya emphasised that this application addresses the need to assist patients with minimal delays, aiming to improve consultation management and reduce waiting lists in this area.
“This new tool enhances communication between the Fuerteventura hospital and its users, optimising consultation activities by allowing rescheduling of cancelled appointments, thereby preventing gaps in scheduling due to no-shows,” Goya stated.
Pilot Project
The pilot project for this system commenced last May at the Nuestra Señora de Candelaria University Hospital in Tenerife and at the La Palma University Hospital. It has also been launched in the Health Services of the La Gomera Health Area and at the Insular-Materno Infantil University Hospital Complex. The system will be gradually extended to other hospitals in the Canary Islands to enhance appointment management with medical specialists and improve patient accessibility to scheduled consultations.
This application replaces any previously developed active solutions by certain centres that had started creating similar systems. In this manner, the SCS provides a uniform tool across all centres, giving all patients equal opportunities regardless of the reference hospital they attend based on their health card.
Telephone Support
If there is no response to the message, the appointment reminder manager will activate a call protocol. An operator will attempt to contact the patient via a phone call to maximise the chances of reaching them and to record confirmation, cancellation, or request for appointment changes.
Similarly, if the patient does not use mobile phones, they will receive a call to their landline for the same purpose.
With this project, the SCS takes a step further in enhancing patient care, optimising resources, and reducing missed appointments, moving towards a more modern, agile, accessible, and efficient healthcare model.
Access to the Service
Users are reminded that to access this SMS system, they must have their health card details updated.
Participation of 012
This project is being conducted in collaboration with the Information and Telephone Assistance service 012 of the Government of the Canary Islands, which will also provide information and support regarding the new service upon user request. They have strengthened their workforce with over four hundred professionals.
