NHS Shetland is opening up its new website to gain public feedback ahead of its official launch later in spring.
While still under development, the website’s modern design should help the community find information on healthcare services with just a few clicks.
During recent months, work has been ongoing to develop and populate the new site but there is still some way to go, and user feedback is still very much being sought, so further improvements can be made.
The new website - www.nhsshetland.scot – will run as a Beta site alongside the current site - https://www.shb.scot.nhs.uk/index.asp - as work progresses over the next couple of months.
Carolyn Hand, Corporate Services Manager, said: “It is important that the community can find information quickly and easily regarding our healthcare services and this new website provides this central point.
“We have chosen to open up our new website at this early stage as we want more user feedback, so we can identify where people cannot find what they need.
Today, is very much a soft launch as the website’s development in terms of content, is still at the beginning, but we will continue to evolve and adapt the site over the coming months and years.
“Rather than refresh our older site, we decided to start from scratch and design a new, modern site with fresh and up-to-date content. We also feel the new site is user-friendly and the design is much more intuitive.
“As part of the design process, we knew we needed to improve access to our main website as people use smart phones and tablets much more than they once did. This change, along with the user journey, have been important factors and with this in mind, the site has been optimised for use on phones, tablets, and computers.”
Michael Dickson, Chief Executive, said: “As a board we recognised that our older site is dated and it was due for an upgrade, this is why we have chosen to invest in this new website.
“I am absolutely delighted to see the progress that has been made on the new site and while there is still some way to go, I am sure the people of Shetland and beyond will find it to be a useful place for information on healthcare services in the isles.
“As a board, we believe the investment and commitment to deliver this project was well-spent and I’m sure the new site will enable the community to find information quickly and easily, whilst also being able to keep up-to-date with the latest developments, vacancies and healthcare news in Shetland.”
NHS Shetland’s Health Improvement team will also be launching a new Healthy Shetland website later this year. The site is currently under development and will be tested with professionals and patients over the coming weeks. More information about the new site will be shared when it is launched. Visit the new site here: Healthy Shetland (scot.nhs.uk)