Early morning scramble for GP appointments could go if NHS adopted 'smart' system, say experts

The creation of a “first contact” service that works alongside the existing NHS app would improve patient access to their surgeries and allow a new way of booking appointments, according to the Policy Exchange think tank.

The NHS is trying to clear a massive backlog of patients that built up through the Covid-19 pandemic, with millions of people thought to have experienced delays or who skipped treatment altogether.

Recent data showed more than 750,000 people in England waited more than 28 days for a GP appointment in December last year, with almost seven per cent of appointments in one Yorkshire city taking four weeks to come through.

The Policy Exchange report said there should be an aim to roll out the “smart” new NHS Gateway service across GP surgeries and NHS 111, utilising machine learning and artificial intelligence.

It would allow a new way of booking appointments and checking symptoms, reducing the “8am scramble to book appointments by telephone – currently 86 per cent of GP appointments are booked this way”, the study said.

People would be asked about their symptoms and would be able to order at-home blood tests and kits, such as for urinary tract infections, which account for up to 10m GP appointments every year.

Lead author Dr Sean Phillips said: “There have been growing pressures on general practice for years, but the current situation just isn’t sustainable for GPs or their patients.

“GPs are doing their best, but dissatisfaction is increasing among patients. We need to find ways to work smarter, rather than just demanding that stretched GPs work harder.

“By expanding high-quality digital healthcare, such as video consultation, we can ‘level up’ areas that have fewer GPs and enable GPs to conduct more appointments face to face – particularly those with complex needs.

“Optimising the use of the NHS app can help reduce missed GP appointments, which cost the NHS £216m every year, through simple reminders, and signpost patients to the place their needs are best met.”

Meanwhile, more than 750,000 people in England waited more than four weeks to see a GP in December last year.

There were a total of 25,077,056 GP appointments in England in December 2021, with 784,541 of these (3.1 per cent) taking place more than four weeks after the appointment was made.

In Sheffield, the number was even higher, with one in 15 (6.7 per cent) of people waiting more than a month for an appointment. In the East Riding of Yorkshire, the figure was 5.2 per cent.