Irish start-up Spryt is partnering with North Central London Integrated Care Board and the Islington GP Federation to pilot a new appointment scheduling system that uses WhatsApp combined with AI, the first time WhatsApp and AI have been approved by the NHS for appointment scheduling.
Pulse+IT can also exclusively reveal that the company is currently in talks with the HSE to pilot the system in Ireland.
The AI receptionist tool, Asa, allows patients to book, reschedule and cancel appointments, as well as ask questions via WhatsApp. Asa incorporates behavioural science and generative AI to tailor language and messaging to different patient groups.
The app can can also send voice messages in patients’ recorded language to improve uptake in patients with low English language literacy.
It also leverages AI to predict no-shows, providing clinical staff with actionable insights on which patients are likely to miss their appointments.
The system is overseen by a lead nurse and an administrative team, aiming to address three key challenges for cervical screening in North Central London: low uptake of screening appointments, low engagement amongst some patient population segments, and non-attendance in primary care.
The system is also expected to free up administrative time, reduce the demand on phone lines and allowing staff to focus on other tasks.
The Asa appointment scheduling system is being deployed across 26 GP practices in north London over the next 12 months before being expanded across north central London and wider London. The University of Surrey is set to evaluate the pilot this summer.
Spryt CEO and co-founder Daragh Donohoe, said the aim was to make appointment booking simple for patients while also increasing attendance at preventative healthcare appointments.
“WhatsApp is the communication tool of choice for a large part of the population,” Mr Donohoe said. “Not only does it improve convenience for patients, but it also significantly reduces the burden on primary care teams.”
“We are in discussions with senior executives from the HSE and hope to do a pilot in Ireland very soon,” he told Pulse+IT.
Spryt recently beat the US-Israeli Briya platform to scoop the top award in the category of revolutionising workflows with automation at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Europe Startup Pitchfest competition in Rome.
Commenting on the win, Mr Donohoe said: “It shines a light on the need for patient centric technology that leverages everyday tools like WhatsApp. We believe our solution will help facilitate early disease detection and reduce costs for healthcare systems globally.”
