How do I send an SMS to a patient from the Phonebar?

You can send a patient an SMS directly with their clinical record open, using the numbers in their Patient Records or an alternative number, or you can send a patient an SMS through Active Patient and Appointments, as well as a group SMS to all patients in that Appointment list

These SMS can be selected from surgery templates, or free typed and you can include NHS condition information

They can be viewed in the patient Contact History and filed to the patient record

See our guide on SMS Charges

This guide will take you through how to send, view and file SMS

Step by step guide

Sending an SMS through Active Patient

With a Patient Record open, click on the Active Patient icon

This will bring up the Active Patient communication window

With the Active Patient window open, click on the SMS icon

Or, hover over the SMS icon for the active patient number options

You can click on the number in the list or type an alternative number into the box and then click the SMS icon

When you have actioned the SMS request the SMS sending window will open

The box in the centre is empty for you to type an ad-hoc message to the patient, or you can select a message template

To choose an SMS template message or select a particular NHS condition, use the dropdown

You can do any of these in combination with each other

Once you are happy with your selection and wording you can choose to file it directly to the patient record by selecting File message

You can also choose to file the message later from the Patient Contact history

Then click SEND

You can reset the message which will clear the text box, click RESET

Or, you can cancel the message completely, which will close the Send SMS message window, click CANCEL

Sending an SMS though Appointments

When your appointments list is loaded, you will see the Patient details listed

With the Appointments window open, click on the SMS icon

Or, hover over the SMS icon for the patient number options

You can click on the number in the list or type an alternative number into the box and then click the SMS icon

When you have actioned the SMS request the SMS sending window will open

The box in the centre is empty for you to type an ad-hoc message to the patient, or you can select a message template

To choose an SMS template message or select a particular NHS condition, use the dropdown

You can do any of these in combination with each other

Once you are happy with your selection and wording you can choose to file it directly to the patient record by selecting File message

You can also choose to file the message later from the Patient Contact history

Then click SEND

You can reset the message which will clear the text box, click RESET

Or, you can cancel the message completely, which will close the Send SMS message window, click CANCEL

Sending an SMS to all patients in the appointments list

When you open an appointment list you will see an SMS ALL PATIENTS button above and to the right of the list of patients scheduled

Click on the SMS ALL PATIENTS button, an SMS window opens

You can select a template from the drop down menu at the top, type an ad hoc message in the SMS message box or do both

When you click Send the message will be sent to all your patients with a mobile phone number in the list the SMS

You can clear the message which will clear the text box, click Clear

You will receive a notification that your message has been delivered, and any problems with delivery will be highlighted

Sending an SMS using hotkeys

To send an SMS to a patient you can use keyboard shortcuts to open the SMS sending window. You MUST have the the patient record open first

Type Ctrl + Shift + S on your keyboard

Note: If you do not have an active patient record open you will receive an error message

This will open up the SMS sending window

The box in the centre is empty for you to type an ad-hoc message to the patient, or you can select a message template

To choose an SMS template message or select a particular NHS condition, use the dropdown

You can do any of these in combination with each other

Once you are happy with your selection and wording you can choose to file it directly to the patient record by selecting File message

You can also choose to file the message later from the Patient Contact history

Then click SEND

You can reset the message which will clear the text box, click RESET

Or, you can cancel the message completely, which will close the Send SMS message window, click CANCEL

Viewing an SMS

Any sent SMS will be available via the patient Contact History for up to 2 months (current month and previous month)

You can access the patient Contact History via the Active Patient or your loaded Appointment list

With a Patient Record open, click on the Active Patient icon

This will bring up the Active Patient communication window

Select the Contact History icon

Or, if you are in Appointments

Select the Contact History icon

When you have selected the Contact History icon, a window of the Contact History not yet filed for that that patient will appear on your screen

To view the SMS sent click on Read SMS

The SMS will display on the contact history window

Filing an SMS

Any sent SMS will be available via the patient Contact History for a period up to 2 months (current month and previous month)

You can access the patient Contact History via the Active Patient or your loaded Appointment list

With a Patient Record open, click on the Active Patient icon

This will bring up the Active Patient communication window

Select the Contact History icon

Or, if you are in Appointments

Select the Contact History icon

When you have selected the Contact History icon, a window of the Contact History not yet filed for that that patient will appear on your screen

You can use the scroll bar on the right hand side to move up and down the list. Calls, call recordings, messages, photo requests and submitted photos will be listed in date order

Select the communications you would like to file to the Patient Record

When you are happy with your selection click on the FILE TO PATIENT RECORD button

Once you have done this the clinical record will update and you will see all the filed communication history from within the patient record

NOTE: Patient communications will stay in the Contact History for up to 2 months (current month and previous month) if not filed to the patient record in your clinical system, photos will stay in the contact history for 28 days only

SMS Templates

Supervisors can create standard SMS templates in the Configuration Console, for everyone to use when sending messages from the practice

Accessing the SMS Templates through the Configuration Console

Select the Configuration Console

Supervisors can use the Configuration Console to change the standard configuration of Groups, Extensions, Voicemail, edit Users, Calendars and the Directory and much more

Don't forget - if you are already logged into a Surgery Connect console, you can navigate to any other console quickly by using the Menu, next to your initials

Or, Click on the arrow in your toolbar to see the hidden icons

Right click on the Surgery Connect Logo and select Launch Consoles. This will open up the selected console in a new window for you

Choose Integrations from the menu on the left hand side menu

Select the SMS Templates view

This will take you to the SMS Templates dashboard

New SMS Template

To add/create a new SMS template select the + New SMS Template button

Give your SMS Template a Name

You can insert fields into your message, so you can address the recipient by name and add a surgery signature

Type the wording of your SMS into the Template box

The Preview box will show you the layout of your template, together with your populated auto prompts

There are NHS conditions which can be added to your templates

To add these to a template choose the condition from the drop down list (scroll alphabetically or type to search) and click Add condition

Once added a NHS information link will be included in your message

When you are happy with your SMS Template, click Save

You will see the green success notification at the top of you screen

Editing an SMS Template

With your SMS Templates dashboard open, you will be able to see all of the SMS Templates that have been created for your surgery

Find the template you would like to change and click on the Edit button

Make changes in the Template box, and preview those changes in the Preview box

When you are happy with your SMS Template, click Save

You will see the green success notification at the top of you screen

Deleting an SMS Template

With your SMS Templates dashboard open, you will be able to see all of the SMS Templates that have been created for your surgery

Find the template you would like to remove and click on the Delete button

You will be asked to CONFIRM the deletion

You will see the green success notification at the top of you screen

The ability to send SMS can be turned On or Off at a User Level via the Service Delivery Console. For more information, see our Editing Users Guide here