This year, we’ve introduced some exciting updates to make your clinic’s workflow even more seamless. Whether you’re an experienced user or new to Ocean’s platform, we’ve got you covered with easy-to-follow guides and best practices to set up your flu shot clinics. 

Streamline the Scheduling with Online Booking

Offering Online Booking is one of the simplest ways to manage patient flow without overloading administrative staff with manual bookings. With Ocean’s powerful rules and restrictions, clinics can easily tailor their flu-shot bookings to meet their exact needs. Key features and considerations include:

• Create custom flu-shot appointment types with specific parameters (e.g. 5-min time-slot)
• Integrate with existing and/or purpose-built EMR schedules
• Automate chart-creation for new patients (learn more)

You can follow this guide for quick and easy instructions to get started: 

New! Explore same-day booking restrictions

Whether you’re looking to manage walk-in clinics or last-minute appointments, Ocean’s new same-day booking feature offers exciting new opportunities by allowing patients to ONLY book time slots on the day the same day. To learn more about the feature, check out our support article: Configuring a booking schedule to only accept same-day appointments. 

Automate Admin with Patient Reminders

Once patients are booked for their flu shot, the next job is making sure they arrive at their appointments! Automating appointment reminders is an effective way to reduce no-show rates and alleviate the manual burden on clinic staff. By sending timely email or SMS reminders, you can ensure patients don’t forget their scheduled visit, all without follow-up calls or manual outreach.

If you already have Ocean Online Booking, our Patient Reminders solution is included in your licence. To add a new reminder rule for flu shot visits, take a look at this guide.

Promote to Your Patients!

Boost immunization rates with targeted invitations

While flu shots are top of mind in the fall, sending personalized invitations can further boost immunization rates. With Ocean’s Patient Messages and Reminders tool, clinics can easily send a Flu Shot form that collects key details like the patient’s interest in getting vaccinated, whether they’ve already received the shot, and more. For high-risk patient groups, this form is especially valuable for screening and tracking as part of program monitoring. 

Drive patient engagement with in-office displays

While patients are in your waiting room, take advantage of this downtime by offering a convenient way to book their next visit. Clinics can print posters with a QR code linking directly to the booking portal, allowing patients to quickly scan and book. For clinics with a TV or display, displaying a message about flu shot availability is another simple way to encourage vaccinations.

For useful clinic resources including a free QR code generator, visit our Brand Assets resource hub.