[Email Update] Important Changes for Flu Season

Hi there, as flu season approaches, we're excited to share several significant updates going live today, August 23rd, 2024. While COVID-19, Immunizations, and Flu services have been core components of MedMe for years, we're committed to continuous improvement. Even as we build new features for other use cases, we remain dedicated to enhancing the services you rely on most. These updates ensure that our platform—and your most trusted appointment types—continue to evolve and meet your needs.

Key Enhancements to your Flu, COVID-19 and Immunizations/Injections Modules:

1. [ACTION NEEDED] New COVID-19 Appointment-Types

Based on feedback from pharmacists, we've streamlined the COVID-19 appointment types by removing the need for brand-specific and dose-specific options. The new appointment-types are labelled as COVID-19 Vaccine Adult, Pediatric, and Infant (where applicable). The benefits of these new appointment types include:

Simplified Management: With brand-agnostic appointment types, there are fewer appointment types to maintain.
Removal of Last Dose Date and Brand Fields: Patients often didn't recall their last dose date or brand which made it more difficult to book appointments, this has now been removed.
Updated Patient Questions: Outdated questions, such as those about the previous dose brand and date, have been removed. Patients will now be asked if it has been 3 months since their last vaccine, in line with NACI guidelines.
Patient Preference Field: We've added a field where patients can indicate their preferred vaccine brand, assisting pharmacists in managing supply distribution effectively.
Flu Shot Co-Booking: These appointments can now be co-booked with flu shots for added convenience.

ACTION NEEDED:

Disable the old COVID-19 Appointment Types:
- With the introduction of brand and dose-agnostic COVID-19 appointment types, we recommend turning off the old types.
- The new appointment types include updated forms and no longer require COVID-19 screening.
- The new appointment types will also support future features and enhancements, as the old types will no longer be supported and are set to be deprecated in the next few months
Turn on the NEW COVD-19 Appointment Types:
- COVID-19 Vaccine (Adult), COVID-19 Vaccine (Pediatric), COVID-19 Vaccine (Infant) as applicable to your province
Change the links on your website to the new links (if applicable)

For full setup information visit the link here

2. [ACTION NEEDED] New Immunizations and Injections Appointment Types

We are introducing a new appointment structure that separates specific types for immunizations and injections, instead of having just one general appointment type. The benefits include:

Enhanced Service Visibility: Each immunization and injection type will be distinctly visible, making it easier for patients to understand the services offered.
Targeted Co-Booking Options: Soon, you’ll be able to co-book specific services together (e.g., Flu with Shingles or RSV) while excluding others (e.g., Meningitis) as per your needs.
Streamlined Documentation: Coming soon, MedMe will automatically pre-fill information such as dose, route, and rationale as soon as a product is selected, saving time on documentation.
Improved Appointment Management: Appointments will be more easily identifiable on your schedule, with clear visibility of which specific vaccine or injection has been booked.

ACTION NEEDED:

Disable old Immunizations and Injections (I&I) Appointment Type:
- With the introduction of condition-specific appointment types, we recommend turning off the old appointment-type
- The old I&I appointment type will no longer be supported soon.
- New vaccines, such as MPox, will not be added to the old dropdown. Instead, they will be available as additional appointment types under the I&I group.

Turn on the NEW Immunization/Injection Appointment Types:
- Turn them on based on which ones are offered by your pharmacy
Change the links on your website to the new links (if applicable)

For full setup information visit the link here

3. Updated Flu, COVID, and Immunizations/Injections (I&I) Forms:

It was identified that many provincial/jurisdictional forms were not updated with NACI guidelines. To address this:

Forms for Flu, COVID, and I&I have been created and thoroughly audited by our clinical product team using provincial references.
Patients will now see updated screening questions during appointment booking.
Pharmacists will have access to downloadable, pre-populated forms with all necessary administration information.

Other Enhancements:

We've also made some other platform updates primarily driven by pharmacist feedback - thank you all for continuing to help MedMe become a stronger platform for both patents and pharmacy teams.

1. Removal of COVID-19 Screening

Removed COVID-19 screening from the screening process.
Updated related documentation to reflect this change.

2. Appointment Grouping:

MedMe is introducing a new "Groups" feature.
- Consolidates COVID-19, Flu, and Immunizations/Injections appointment types into respective groups.
- Simplifies and declutters the schedule page for easier navigation.

Thank you for your continued trust in us as we work to enhance your pharmacy's efficiency and patient care. We are committed to providing you with the best tools to navigate this flu season smoothly.