Tips on Sending an SMS to Patients

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(If you’re hesitant to use your mobile, read this article first or consider a separate eSIM) 

You’ve decided to send a link to your questionnaire by SMS. Now you need to find an efficient way of doing this. 

What should I say?

It’s always a good idea to start by saying who you are and what you need the patient to do. For example, you might say something like:

“Hello – this is Dr Gasman, the Anaesthetist for your procedure with Dr [Surgeon’s Name]. Please complete my pre-op health questionnaire at anaestheticgroup.com.au/gasman as soon as possible. This will assist me in planning the safest anaesthetic for your surgery. Kind regards, Dr Gasman.”

Or for your Patient Experience Survey (PES):

“I hope you’ve had a pleasant experience with your recent surgery and you are recovering well. When you have a moment, I would appreciate it if you could please complete my Patient Experience Survey at anaestheticgroup.com.au/gasman Kind regards, Dr Gasman”

How do I use keyboard shortcuts to save time?

Keyboard shortcuts with text replacement are one of our favourite tools. Although this isn’t a new feature on our phones, it’s one people tend to forget about. Below, we’ve given instructions for setting this up on an iPhone. Android users should be able to achieve the same results by following similar steps.

  1. Type out the text you wish to send to your patients (your SMS template) and copy it
  2. Access your phone’s “Settings”
    • For iPhone (Text Replacement), see the video below:
      • Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement.
      • Tap the “+” sign
    • For Samsung Galaxy (Text Shortcuts):
      • Open Settings > General management > Samsung Keyboard settings > Text shortcuts.
      • Tap the “+” sign
  3. Into ‘Phrase’ – Paste the SMS template you have copied
  4. Into ‘Shortcut’ – Enter your shortcut eg. ‘poq’ for patient questionnaire
  5. Tap ‘Save’ or ‘Add’
  6. Now test that it works: open your Messages app and start a new SMS. Type only the shortcut (eg. poq)
  7. Press Return and the full phrase should appear
  8. Repeat for any other messages. See more examples below.

Video: keyboard shortcuts

Examples of keyboard shortcuts:

Now that you know how to create shortcuts, you can build a range of SMS templates. We recommend creating one for each surgeon’s name, and an alternative template for parents when your patient is a child.

  • ‘poq‘ can expand to: Hello – this is Dr YourName, your Anaesthetist for your procedure with Dr [Surgeon Name]. Please complete my pre-op health questionnaire at anaestheticgroup.com.au/yourshortlink ASAP to assist me in planning the safest anaesthetic for your surgery. Kind regards, Dr YourName
  • ‘poqab‘ for a surgeon with the initials AB etc. Hello – this is Dr YourName, your Anaesthetist for your procedure with Dr Alpha Bet. Please complete my pre-op health questionnaire at anaestheticgroup.com.au/yourshortlink ASAP to assist me in planning the safest anaesthetic for your surgery. Kind regards, Dr YourName
  • ‘ppoq‘ for a paediatric version: Hello – this is Dr YourName, the Anaesthetist for your child’s procedure with Dr [Surgeon Name]. Please complete my pre-op health questionnaire at anaestheticgroup.com.au/yourshortlink ASAP to assist me in planning the safest anaesthetic for your child’s surgery. Kind regards, Dr YourName
  • ‘pesf‘ expands to: Hello, I hope you’ve had a pleasant experience with your recent surgery and you are recovering well. When you have a moment, I would appreciate it if you could please complete my Patient Experience Survey at anaestheticgroup.com.au/yourshortlink Kind regards, Dr YourName

Other handy examples:

  • Your address eg. ‘123R’ = 123 Reserve Road, St Leonards NSW 2065
  • Your email eg. ‘laral’ = [email protected]
  • Your AG shortlink, eg. ‘agme’ = anaestheticgroup.com.au/yourshortlink
  • .. Or anything else that is tedious to write, or is critical to get correct

Can I send these messages from my computer or iPad?

Yes, you can. If you have a Mac or an iPad, you can use iMessage on these devices instead of your iPhone. Apple allows Macs and iPads to send and receive SMS, even for messages to and from non-Apple devices.

To set this up:

  1. Make sure iMessage is correctly set up on both devices
  2. On your iPhone, go to Settings → Messages → Text Message Forwarding
  3. Ensure your Mac or iPad is listed there and toggle it on
  4. From your computer or iPad, send a test iMessage (to your partner, a friend, or even your Anaesthetic Group account manager’s mobile number)
  5. Check that the test iMessage appears on your iPhone. If it does, you’re all set.

How do I SMS patients without sharing my number?

Another option is to use an eSIM to send texts to your patients. This lets you message patients directly from your phone without using your personal mobile number. An eSIM gives you a separate number that you can switch on or off whenever you like.

Many of our members find this the perfect balance between maintaining direct patient contact (read this article to learn why this matters) and having the flexibility to choose when and how they communicate. If you’re going on holidays or just want some time off, you can turn off the eSIM at any time.

eSIMs are now very affordable, with simple pay-as-you-go options available from providers such as ALDI Mobile, Boost Mobile, and Amaysim.

Can Anaesthetic Group send the SMS to patients for me?

Yes! We’re often asked if we can send the messages for you. This is an add-on service we offer our members. Simply let us know you’d like this service, then send us the patients’ mobile numbers and the message you’d like us to send. We’ll handle the rest. It costs $1 per message, with no setup required, and we’ll invoice you.

However, if you do have time to send the messages yourself, you may find that using a separate eSIM attached to your phone with a pay-as-you-go mobile provider is the much more affordable option.