How Gleneagles Hospital Penang raised post-discharge response from 23% to 67%

The challenge

Surgical site infections often appear after patients go home, so timely follow-up after discharge matters. Gleneagles Hospital Penang followed patients up by phone, and it was slow: calls went unanswered, landlines failed, and asking a patient to describe a wound across a language barrier was close to impossible. Infections risked being found late.

What they did

The infection control team moved follow-up to SafetyOS post-discharge monitoring. Patients were enrolled at discharge and sent a check-in link at set intervals after surgery, such as days 7, 14 and 30.

• In January, links went by SMS. Messages failed to arrive, some patients suspected a scam, and language was a barrier. 23% responded.
• In February, the team switched to sending the links by WhatsApp, an app patients already trust, added multilingual support, and involved caregivers.

The results

Response rose from 23% to 66% in February and 67% in March, beating the team's target of 60% within three months. Failed deliveries, scam worries and difficulties for older patients fell, helped by caregivers. Clinicians could see how each wound was healing and decide early on interventions.

The team was candid about the study's limits: 142 patients over three months, no comparison group, and self-reported data. Their next steps are to extend the programme to more surgeries and to support older and less tech-confident patients.