More online GP appointments are to be welcomed but face-to-face appointments need to continue
The pandemic has changed many aspects of daily life and has made technology more ubiquitous than ever before. Yet there is still a feeling that the healthcare sector is to catch up with developments.
At a time when all parts of the NHS are under strain, it should be a given that the health service embraces technology wherever it can. Not least when it comes to patient appointments.
But the fact that one in 20 GP appointments in England in August were carried out by video or online – the highest proportion since current records began - is to be welcomed, it is still a low figure.
The proportion of GP appointments delivered by video or online passed 1 per cent in May 2023, 2 per cent in August and 3 per cent in December. It hit 4 per cent in March 2024 and went over 5 per cent for the first time this August.
A lot of GPs have switched to a hybrid model of face-to-face appointments and telephone appointments. But a video appointment would at least give more patients an opportunity to be seen by their GP and for the doctors to diagnose issues better.
While technology can play a part in lifting the NHS from the doldrums, it is not a magic pill that will cure the health service of all its ills.
The underlying problem in the GP service, as highlighted by the Rebuild General Practice campaign group, is the lack of GPs to begin with.
It is an issue that will take the Government time to address.
The health service also needs to be cognisant of the fact that elderly people may not have access to technology or that some patients may not feel comfortable communicating online.