Prostate and eyecare patients among the first to benefit from new online hospital
Nine specialist areas of care will fall under the remit of NHS Online when it launches in England in 2027, the government has announced.
Nine specialist areas of care will fall under the remit of NHS Online when it launches in England in 2027, the government has announced.
Those suffering from prostate problems and debilitating eye conditions will be among the first to benefit from a new “online hospital” launching in England in 2027, the government has announced.
NHS Online is being developed in a bid to modernise the NHS, cut waiting lists and provide patients in England with quicker, more convenient access to specialist care from the comfort of their homes.
Initially it will treat patients in nine areas of care, including prostate problems such as prostate enlargement and a raised prostate specific antigen (PSA) level.
Those with eye conditions including cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration will also be able to use the online service.
They will be able to access remote consultations with specialists and access their test results without the need to travel to a bricks-and-mortar hospital.
The remaining conditions in the first wave to be covered by NHS Online are iron deficiency anaemia and inflammatory bowel disease, as well as women-specific health issues, including severe menopause symptoms and menstrual problems that can be a sign of endometriosis or fibroids.
Announcing the plans, health officials say the initiative will ensure healthcare is more democratic by ending the postcode lottery of care and “help make getting treatment as easy as online banking”.
“The service will allow patients to be seen much more quickly by digitally connecting them to expert clinicians across England, no matter where they are in the country,” says the Department of Health announcement, stressing that patients will retain the option of in-person appointments if they prefer and those who need physical examinations or procedures will continue to receive them either at hospital or at local health hubs.
NHS Online, which will see its first patients in 2027, is forecast to deliver the equivalent of up to 8.5 million virtual appointments and assessments in its first three years – four times more than an average NHS trust.
Patients will have the option of using NHS Online when their GP makes a referral for specialist care. Instead of being tied to a physical location, patients will be able to receive care from doctors around the country via the NHS App – without leaving their home or having to wait longer for an in-person appointment.
Tests, scans or procedures will continue to take place at healthcare sites closer to patients’ homes, while clinicians will be able to review their notes remotely.
It is hoped this will radically streamline the process and allow patients to move quickly from referral to treatment to follow-up care.
“The NHS’s new online hospital will see a huge shift in the way we deliver care, giving patients the option to have an online appointment with a specialist anywhere in England,” says Professor Stella Vig, national clinical director for elective care at NHS England.
“We’ve selected nine common conditions which the NHS Online service will initially provide support for when it launches. We know that these conditions can be painful and difficult to cope with so providing faster, more convenient access to diagnosis and treatments will have a real and positive impact on people’s lives.”
Speaking about the plans during a radio interview, Wes Streeting, secretary of state for health and social care, dismissed concerns about a potential negative impact on face-to-face care and whether sufficient resources are in place to support it.
“NHS online is bringing the NHS into the 21st century, helping us cut waiting lists to make sure people get the right care at the right time, giving patients more choice over their care and, crucially, making sure that where we have capacity across the country, we’re using that capacity intelligently to cut waiting lists,” Streeting says.
“With £100m investment over the next 3 years, NHS online will help patients to be seen faster, getting access to a specialist quicker because they will be able to choose whether to wait to see someone face-to-face locally or whether to see someone online where it’s clinically appropriate and safe to do so.
“The beauty of that is if you are seeing a specialist faster online and they determine you need a diagnostic test and scan, you’ll be able to get that at a local diagnostic scan or hospital. Or if you need a prescription, it will pop up in your NHS app and you’ll be able to collect that locally.”
Streeting explains that an extra £29bn is going into the NHS during the current spending review period (which lasts until 2029).
“I don’t pretend there aren’t still financial challenges and that’s why I’m driving really hard at improving productivity in the NHS,” he says.
“So, there’s investment and modernisation.
“The beauty of NHS online is that for anyone who wants to see someone face-to-face not via a screen, someone like me choosing to see the specialist online gets me out of the queue of someone who is waiting to see someone in person,” Streeting added.
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