He pledged to push ahead with electronic school report cards, online GP appointment booking, neighbourhood "crime mapping" and video identification of suspects.

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Fast-growing appointment booking site ZocDoc does not disclose the number of doctors who use its service, but it is believed to be less than 30, 000.

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Meanwhile, online appointment booking is at least two years away and some of the most innovative ideas deployed in other countries are but a distant dream.

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He said that as a result, there would be "a number of changes", including beginning a project to improve end-of-life care and implementing a new system of appointment booking to deal with a backlog of operations.

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The report, Great Expectations, says the key to good customer focus is happy staff and that changes such as easier appointment booking systems, clearer information about treatment and better bedside manner can make all the difference to patient experience.

BBC: Good bedside manner can improve patient satisfaction