GP surgeries in Camden are using a specialist health text messaging service to advise patients who may have H1N1 (swine flu).

The iPLATO Patient Care Messaging service, originally funded by the PCT to improve performance and reduce costs across a range of healthcare areas, is being used to send out swine flu related text messages.

The iPLATO platform has proved to be a responsive and 'personal' aspect of primary care. It allows information to be targeted to specific patient groups, and enables patients to text back a reply that arrives as an e-mail.

The Camden surgeries sent out a text message advising patients on what steps to take if they or a family member appear to have swine flu symptoms. The message encouraged patients to phone a flu pandemic helpline rather than call or visit their surgery, and gave them the address of a relevant website.

Since sending out the message, the surgeries have had fewer H1N1 patients coming into the surgery in person.

iPLATO commented that the system has shown how effective text messaging can be for guiding and educating the public during a pandemic.

For more details, visit www.iplato.net.