160 St Helens Road

Shanti Medical Centre Bolton

BL3 3PH

Tel: 01204 665354

Dr A. Prasad & Dr S. HanifFax: 01204 660053

SHANTI MEDICAL CENTRE GUIDANCE POLICY

SystmOnline Patient Services

Patients of Shanti Medical Centre over the age of 16 can now access their summary record, book, cancel and rebook appointments and send repeat prescription requests online securely using SystmOnline, a web-based module provided by TPP.

You will need to register at the practice for using the system when you will be supplied with a username and first password (which you must change after first log-in).

Please allow 2 hours after registering before you access the system.

Once you have obtained your username and password please visit to activate your account.

There is a short guide to registering and using SystmOnline below. A more in-depth user guide can be found at

Registering for SystmOnline

The registration is simple – you will need to complete a registration form from the reception desk at Shanti Medical Centre.

For security we will need you to bring your registration form with photographic identification to the Practice before we give you a username and first password. Acceptable ID is a photo drivinglicence or a passport.

To ensure confidentiality we are only able to accept

registrations in person – i.e. you cannot give your details to anyone else to registerfor you.

Parents will be able to have a username and password for their children under the age of 16.

The aim of this service is to improve communication with patients and to ease thetelephone congestion that many patients experience.

SystmOnline Usage and Privacy Policy

Please use the system responsibly.

In the case of any abuse of the system,Shanti Medical Centre will prevent you from accessing the service. Examples of irresponsible use of the system include but are not limited to;

■ Booking appointments that you have no intention of attending.

■ Repeatedly booking then cancelling appointments.

■ Repeatedly requesting prescriptions that you do not need.

We are committed to protecting your privacy online. The personal information thatyou enter on the website is strictly controlled. Information entered is available only to

members of staff with appropriate access rights– i.e. those managing appointment bookings and repeat prescribing. Your personal information will not be shared with any third parties.

It is important for you to keep your details up to date especially your mobile contactnumber as we cannot be held responsible if you share your mobile phone or give it

to someone else.

Appointments

It is now possible to book doctor appointments via the online system and you will beable to book appointments 8 weeks in advance.

Please continue to contact thesurgery for nursing and other appointments if the appointments offered online are not

convenient for you. If you are unsure as to whether you need a doctor or a nurseappointment, please contact the surgery.

Shanti Medical Centre has limited the online booking to one future appointment that each user can have at any one time. If you have already reached this limit and need to

book another appointment you should contact the surgery by telephone or in person.

Appointment times are currently set at 10 minutes: if you feel that you need longerwith your doctor please contact the surgery to make an appropriate appointment.

If you subsequently decide that you no longer require the appointment, pleaseensure that it is cancelled to enable the time to be offered to someone else –

Pleasecancel via the online system or by telephoning the surgery. Please cancel theappointment at least 24 hours before the booked start time, otherwise this will be marked as a DNA (did not attend).

Repeat Prescriptions

With the agreement of your GP you can get further supplies of repeat medications without having to be seen by a doctor every time.

You can now use our online repeat prescription service if you are signed up with a username and password (available from reception). To ensure patient safety we do not accept prescription requests by telephone.

Please note that we will require one working day from the day of submission for your prescription to be ready. If we are unable to issue your request prescription (for example if your GP wants to see you before you receive the medication) we will contact you.

Certain medical conditions and medication require regular monitoring. This means you may need to have blood tests taken, blood pressure checks or reviews of your condition on a regular basis to ensure that your medication is still appropriate. We will notify you when a review is due and if you need to see the doctor or nurse before your next prescription can be issued. Please ensure you make this appointment at least 2 weeks before you run out of medication. It is very important to attend your review appointment.

Please remember:

Online requests are picked up until 12.00pm. (Any request made after this time will be actioned the following working day).

Any medication order placed after 12.00pm will be counted as being ordered on the next working day (Monday - Friday) and will be processed accordingly. Medication ordered via the internet after 12.00 pm on Friday will be processed on Monday morning and will therefore be ready for collection on Thursday.

We will only issue 2 month's medication at a time. If you have a very special, one off, reason for asking for more than 2 month's supply please provide details as this will have to be approved by your GP.

Logging in to SystmOnline

Once a member of staff has given you a user name and a random password, wait two hours before trying to log in to the SystmOnline. Shanti Medical Centre has a link on its website, which you can use to access the login page. If our website does not work, you can use the following website to access SystmOnline

Enter your user name and password and click 'Login'. You will then see the SystmOnline Home Page, which shows your details and Shanti Medical Centres contact details at the top.

You can navigate to the online service from here, and can return to the Home Page by clicking 'Home' in the blue menu bar, or by clicking the 'Back' button on any page.

Logging out of SystmOnline

To log out:

1. Click the Logout link on the Home Page or the Logout button on the mainmenu bar.

2. Close your Internet browser.

Note: The SystmOnline website will automatically log you out after a period ofinactivity. Type in your user name and password to log back in.

Booking an Appointment

Click the Book Appointment link on the home page or the Book Appointmentbutton on the main menu bar.

The page displayed shows all of the sessions that are available for online booking.

You will be allowed to book up to 8 weeks in advance. A drop-down list will be available for you to select dates further in the future. Select an option from the list and click Show.

Click View Available Appointments at the end of the row for the session you require.

A list of appointments is displayed showing appointment type, start and end times and duration of the appointment.

Click Book at the end of the row for the appointment you require.

We ask that you enter the reason for your appointment in the Reason box – this will help our practice staff to prepare for your appointment.

To continue without booking the appointment, click Cancel.

To confirm the appointment, click Book Appointment – the appointment is confirmed. To print the details, click Print. Otherwise click Back or any other menu option.

Cancelling an Appointment

Go to the Future Appointments page and click the Cancel Appointment button relating to the appropriate appointment.

Check the appointment details and click Cancel this appointment.

To continue without cancelling the appointment, click Back or any other menu option; otherwise click Close.

Managing prescriptions

For certain medications, you can request a repeat prescription. Click the Current Prescriptions link on the Home Page, or the Current Prescriptions button on the main menu bar.

All current repeat prescriptions are listed with the drug, dosage, quantity, last issue date and status. An empty tick box in the left-hand column means you can ask for a new prescription for this medication.

To request a repeat prescription:

Select the medication by ticking the box in the column. If the item you require is not listed or you need to add further information to your request please contact the surgery.

Click Request Medication. The Medication Order Summary is displayed stating that a request has been sent to the surgery.

Click Return to Current Medication to return to Current Prescriptions page where the status of the drug will show that it has been requested.

Managing Changing your SystmOnline Password

You will initially be given a random password but you can change this to something more memorable. Passwords must be eight or more characters long and must contain at least one number and one non-alphanumeric character e.g. a symbol “!” or “?”

Click the Change Password link on the Home Page.

Enter the current password.

Changing Your Contact Details

To change your address, telephone number(s) or e-mail address.

Click the Change Contact Details link on the Home Page.

Enter your new details then click Submit new contact details.

A message is displayed, showing that your details were sent successfully.

Patient and Practice Benefit

Online access to appointment booking and repeat prescriptions not only saves both time and money for the practice, but also allows reception staff to focus on other key areas and provide a better service to patients. The service has benefits for patients without internet access too - online booking system means that less people will be ringing the surgery, so it makes the practice more accessible over the phone.

The service has proved particularly popular with busy commuters, the elderly and people with disabilities. Families with young children are welcoming the service, as children often become ill at night, and parents can put their minds at rest by booking an appointment straightaway. Then if the child feels better in the morning, the appointment can be cancelled just as easily.