Video link clinics vision of future

Staff at the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust have been running ‘virtual’ clinics, so they can keep in contact with patients without them having to visit the hospital in person.

Using the video platform Visionable, staff across the trust are able to meet their patients remotely, allowing everyone to follow social distancing guidelines while reducing the number of patients and staff on the hospital site.

Dr Marc Atkin, of the RUH’S Department of Diabetes and Endocrinology, said: “We have been using Visionable to contact our patients at home, many of whom are self-isolating and unable to come into the hospital.

“This has had advantages for our patients who can talk to a specialist from the comfort of their own home, while staying safe.

“For the healthcare staff it has been very helpful to ‘see’ our patients; there are many things that can be done over Visionable that cannot be done by phone.”

He added: “This will be a big part of how we do things from now on.”