What to change
Describe two routes according to the sender's task. Confirm the referral channel with the team responsible for receiving documents before publishing any destination.
A worked example
Illustrative example
A practice contact page distinguishes ask about an appointment from send a professional referral. The referral route explains its submission process while the patient route provides a way to ask whether a letter is needed.
Put it into practice
Ask reception and the referral team to test the distinction together. A generic contact page can otherwise send important documents to the wrong place while leaving patients confronted with questions intended for professionals.
Give each route a clear introduction before its form begins. This helps a person recognise a wrong turn before entering details into questions intended for a different audience.
What to agree before publishing
Label each route by both audience and purpose before the form begins. A patient asking about appointment availability should not face questions intended for a professional referral, and a referrer should not guess which general inbox accepts documents. Ask both receiving teams to review the distinction using fictional examples. Keep receipt and next-step explanations appropriate to each route. A clear choice at the beginning can prevent sensitive or important material being sent through an unsuitable channel while making ordinary enquiries feel less complicated.
How to check the result
Each audience can choose a route without reading instructions intended for someone with a different role.
A mistake to avoid
Do not publish a generic email address for sensitive documents merely because it already handles ordinary appointment questions.
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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