Question: I ordered a Holter monitoring procedure for a rural patient, and the procedure still hasn't been scheduled - why?
Context: Urban sites often have a separate cardiology department with administrative/booking resources available to call patients directly to schedule their Holter monitoring appointments. However, most rural sites do not have these resources, and their Holter procedures are typically performed by Lab or Diagnostic Imaging staff, and so patients must call or present in person at their local site to book their appointment on their own. This remains unchanged with the implementation of Connect Care.
Answer: In most rural health centres, Holter monitoring appointments are self-scheduled by the patient. These procedures are typically performed by Lab or Diagnostic Imaging staff, and patients must call or present in person at their local site to book their appointment. If you are placing an order for a Holter monitoring procedure to be performed at a rural site, to support your patient:
- Clearly explain the next steps to them when placing the order.
- Consider including instructions in the "Order Comment" box OR use the "Patient Other Instructions" section to include next steps.
- If your clinic has been booking on the patient’s behalf, please continue to do so.
Around the end of summer 2025, updates will be made to the After Visit Summary (AVS) to include clearer instructions for rural site Holter orders.