Radiotherapy centres: booking sessions for relatives

Let patients' relatives and carers book a place in group information sessions online: an evening session on how radiotherapy works day to day, a visit of the department for families, a video session for relatives who live far away. Create one service per type of session, set places to the room and the format, and say in the description what the session covers, who leads it and whether patients can come too. Relatives get answers to practical questions in one go, the team gives the same information once to a group instead of repeating it call after call, and you know how many people to expect.

A tour of the department for families and a video session on practical support don't need the same room or format. On Book, each service has a name, a price and an optional description shown on your public page, and each slot belongs to one service, sits within one day and has its own capacity.

Durations and places are examples: set your own. The price field is optional; leave it empty if sessions are free.

Set places to what the room and the format allow: fewer for a visit of the treatment area, more for a talk with questions. When a session is full, it leaves your page, so relatives choose the next date instead of turning up to a full room. Each online booking takes one place, so two relatives of the same patient book twice, or one books and adds the other's name in the note if the centre allows it.

Say in the description what the session covers and who leads it, such as a radiation therapist with a specialist nurse or a social worker, according to how the centre works. Topics can include:

Say clearly that the session doesn't cover any individual patient's medical situation, which stays between the patient and their doctor.

Relatives who work may only be free in the evening. Open sessions at those times on set days; slots repeat each week on the weekdays you choose until an end date. For relatives who live far away, create a video service. Book doesn't create video links: send the meeting link by email after booking.

The booking form takes first name, last name, email and phone, plus an optional note that reaches you in the new booking email and appears in the booker's calendar file. Since the note appears in the calendar file, ask relatives not to write the patient's health details there. Ask only for practical needs, such as accessibility or an interpreter, and any question they'd like covered in general terms.

Children of patients may have their own questions. A separate session for children and their parents, with simple explanations and a short visit, can help them feel included. Ask the parent to book with their own name and add the children's first names and ages in the note.

Give patients a card with the booking link to pass on to their family, put it in the welcome booklet and on the centre's website. Relatives can then book without calling the centre during treatment hours, and choose a date that fits around their own work and visits.

Relatives can't move or cancel bookings online: they call the centre, and you move them to another session from your bookings list. Rescheduling works across services, so a relative can switch from an in-person session to a video session. If a session is cancelled, tell each person yourself, since Book doesn't email clients about changes. Bookings sync with Google, iPhone or Mac calendars. Book costs €5/month, everything included: unlimited services and bookings, no commission, no contract.