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AI patient recall for opticians, and how the automation actually runs
Your recall list shouldn't depend on someone finding an hour to work through it. At Winstanley & Son, patients who are due get up to 24 short texts and emails before their eye test falls due. It stops the moment they book, and anyone still overdue lands on a call list the next morning.
Gavin explains
“My team only rings the patients who need a call, and the rest of the morning goes on the people in the shop.”
Watch it run
One morning's recall, from the queue to a booking.
Illustration with sample data
TimeNo recall list to print, split between staff and work through. Our estimate: about 25 hours a month of recall admin
Illustration with sample data
MoneyOne varifocal patient who rebooks covers the whole month's fee. Every patient after that is margin.
How it works
Three things happen every morning.
- It reads the due dateEvery morning at 09:30 it checks who is coming up for an eye test. Your practice management software stays the record. Nothing clinical is copied.
- It sends up to 24 touchesShort texts and emails over the months before the due date. It skips anyone booked, anyone who asked not to be contacted, and anyone on do-not-disturb.
- It stops, or hands overA booking or a reply stops the sequence. A reply that needs a person goes to your team. Anyone still overdue goes on the daily call list.
Illustration with sample data
When texts aren't enough
A daily call list for the ones who didn't reply.
Patients who are due and haven't answered go on a short list for your team to ring. A patient leaves the list when they book, when someone marks them "will call in" or "gone elsewhere", or when a safety rule applies. Households that share one number get one call, not five.
TimeYour team rings the patients who need a call, and nobody else.
In detail
Questions practice owners ask about recall.
The detail behind the pictures, including what your data needs before the first text goes out.
Why is recall where the money sits?
A patient who is overdue for a test generates nothing until they come back through the door, and every month they stay overdue is a month another practice might see them instead. Recall automation stops that drift being invisible. Instead of a paper list nobody owns, an overdue patient enters a queue automatically and stays in it until a person or a clear rule takes them out.
How does the call list work?
Overdue patients enter a calling queue automatically. Once in, a patient is re-queued for another attempt every three days. There are two ways out: a member of staff moves the patient's card, for example to "will call in", "don't want to be tested" or "gone elsewhere", or a safety condition applies, such as the patient having already booked or being marked do-not-contact.
Households that share one phone number are handled as one record carrying everyone's recall dates, so a single call reaches everyone who is due.
What about patients who lapsed years ago?
For patients who lapsed three years or more ago, a phone call is often the wrong first touch. Winstanley & Son uses a slow text campaign instead, sent in small daily batches in working hours so the practice's number is never flagged for sending too much too fast. Each message names the practice, uses the patient's first name and carries an opt-out. If opt-outs on any day pass a set threshold, the campaign pauses itself until someone reviews it.
What does a practice need in place first?
A reliable recall-due date on every patient record, a working phone number, and an accurate do-not-contact list carried over from however the practice manages consent today. Because this reaches real patients, every list is checked when it's built and again immediately before anything sends.
Will patients get bombarded with calls and texts?
No. Each touch is spaced out, every message carries an opt-out, and the sequence stops the moment a patient books or replies. Anyone marked do-not-contact or do-not-disturb is skipped.
Does Crewley decide who to text?
The list and the wording are approved by the practice before anything sends. Nothing patient-facing goes out until the owner gives an explicit go-ahead on the exact words.
What happens to patients who reply STOP?
They are marked do-not-contact and excluded from the call list and every future text, not only the sequence they replied to.
Can a patient book straight from a recall text?
Yes. A reply is handled by the same texting assistant used for everyday bookings, so "mornings" can turn straight into an offered appointment. See appointment booking.
Does this replace my practice management system's recall?
It sits alongside it. Your practice management system stays the record of each patient's clinical history and recall date. Crewley's job is turning that date into a booking.
When do recall reminders stop?
The sequence checks for an existing booking before every send. Once a new appointment is in the diary, the remaining reminders stop. A reply that needs a person is handed to the team with the conversation attached.
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