Plans to introduce an online consultation system for GPs may not fix workload and waiting time issues in the way the government is hoping, it has been argued.
Research, funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), has suggested there is not enough evidence to say the system will have a positive impact, despite NHS England offering a £45m fund to encourage practitioners to adopt the service.
‘eConsult’ was piloted in 36 GP practices in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire, but research by the University of Bristol found that it was only being used by two in every 1,000 patients.
A total of 38% of the online consultations led to a face-to-face contact, with another 32% leading to a phone consultation.
The company has confirmed that it will take this research into account to improve its services…see more
