NHS told: ‘use apps to put patient in control’

THE health service must undergo a “complete transformation” – ending a “paternalistic” ethos of doctor knows best, the NHS medical director has said. Prof Sir Bruce Keogh claimed that healthcare needed to adapt to meet the expectations of generations used to organising holidays and banking online.

Innovations which allow self-monitoring of health, tracking of symptoms, online consultations and shared access to medical data would allow patients to take more control of their health – and relieve pressures on the NHS, he said.

“Not that long ago, if you wanted to book a holiday you went down to the travel agent, looked at a couple of brochures and stared at the back of a computer screen while somebody else typed stuff in,” Sir Bruce said.

“Now people just go on to their computer online and they can book very complicated trips all over the world and know what seats they are sitting in.

“There is a growing expectation that the same sort of facility should be available in healthcare,” said the former cardiac surgeon, 62, who will stand down as NHS medical director later this year. “The ability to book appointments online, the ability to access your investigations and their results online.

“I see a complete transformation of healthcare – going from a paternalistic delivery system to a knowledge transfer business, which enables people to take greater care of their health and wellbeing.

Ministers have pledged that by the end of next year, every NHS patient should be able to access their medical records and book an appointment with a GP via one app. Under the plans, all patients should be able to book a doctor’s appointment, order a repeat prescription, access NHS 111 or their healthcare record on their smartphone.

But Sir Bruce said the changes were part of a far more significant shift – to hand over more power to patients, and allow them more control over their health, using gadgets and web-based systems. Innovations backed by NHS England include a smartphone gadget which can take a heart reading in just 30 seconds. The mobile heart monitor – called AliveCor – could benefit more than 2.5million people who suffer from an irregular heartbeat, potentially preventing thousands of deaths.