What to change
Offer a route for general enquiries on another person's behalf. Explain that the team may need to complete further checks before discussing an existing appointment or personal information.
A worked example
Illustrative example
A daughter can ask whether a branch has an appropriate appointment route for her father. The page explains that discussing his existing booking may require the team to follow additional checks.
Put it into practice
Ask reception to review the wording against its usual process. A welcoming page helps someone offer support while preserving the distinction between asking about a service and acting on another person's behalf.
Keep the invitation to ask general questions warm and clear. Explain any further checks at the point they become relevant, rather than making the initial service enquiry sound inaccessible to family support.
What to agree before publishing
Keep general service enquiries distinct from requests about an identifiable person's existing booking. A relative may ask about a branch or appointment route without needing access to someone's records. Explain how further checks are handled when the conversation concerns personal information, using the practice's approved process. Ask reception to review the tone so the route stays welcoming to carers and families. The page should help them offer practical support without promising that knowing a patient's name authorises every appointment change or disclosure.
How to check the result
The general enquiry remains understandable without promising disclosure of another person's appointment details.
A mistake to avoid
Avoid making broad claims that relatives can manage any appointment merely because they know the patient's name.
Turn reading into a next step
Your action checklist
Work through these checks with your team or supplier. Tick the ones you have resolved and leave unknowns open.
Record what you know, what is still missing and the answer you need from your team or supplier.
Use project decisions only, without personal, patient or confidential details. Entries stay in this page and are not submitted to Kay & Co. Copy or download before leaving; this page does not save your notes.
Further reading
These sources provide background for the topic. The practice examples and checklist are illustrative planning suggestions from Kay & Co.
Related guides
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