The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has adopted a digital-by-default approach to outpatient appointment letters to reduce environmental impact.

From February, patients who use MY CARE, the service that gives patients a view of their medical information and appointments in one place, will receive their outpatient appointment information through MY CARE and not through the post.

The change comes in response to patient feedback through PALS and the MY CARE helpdesk. Patients said they want to receive appointment information through MY CARE and not through the post.

Existing paper methods will still exist for those who need it.

Every year, the Trust sends about 2 million letters to patients. It is estimated that the new approach will save £967,000 over two years.

Phil Luke, director of transformation said: "There will be huge benefits to giving patients choice about how they want communications about their care.

"By switching to digital letters through MY CARE we can dramatically reduce the amount of paper waste and cut down on carbon emissions, which will lessen our environmental impact and is a step towards our goal to achieve net zero carbon emissions."