Leading Hertfordshire GPs suggest virtual appointments are here to stay

Since the outbreak of Covid-19, GPs across the county have moved to a mix of telephone triage and virtual appointments, as well as more traditional face to face meetings.

And at a meeting of the Hertfordshire Health and Wellbeing Board on Tuesday (June 22) Stevenage GP Prag Moodley, chair of East and North Herts CCG, suggested the technology may now be here to stay.

“In my patch most practices are doing a triage model first,” he said.

“Patients phone in for appointments, they go on a triage list and either the problem gets solved or they call for a face-to-face appointment, a video consultation or an e-consultation.

“The pandemic has accelerated the use of all of these technologies, which is good.

“I think going forward post-Covid – if there is a post-Covid period – the way we practise will change and hopefully will continue this way, where our patients will have easier access in getting advice and guidance very early on and those that need face to face will get seen much quicker.”

Dr Moodley made the remarks during a discussion on the health and social care response to the Covid-19 emergency.

And they were echoed by Elstree and Bushey Heath GP Dr Nicolas Small, who is chair of the Herts Valleys CCG and deputy chair of the health and wellbeing board.

He said it was really important for people to understand the ‘enormous changes’ that practices have made in the way that they communicate with their patients.

He said a a virtual appointment could be as good – and sometimes better – than a traditional face-to-face.

And – away from the GP surgery – he said virtual appointments are ‘absolutely vital’ in acute and mental health settings, in terms of getting access to medical opinions and advice and treatments.

He stressed he was not under-estimating how important a face-to-face appointment could be and that there were particular instances where GPs would need to see patients.

And he said that while sometimes people may have thought GPs were closed, in fact – with adequate PPE and the right precautions – GPs were continuing to see patients inside their premises.

Dr Moodley and Dr Small made the comments in response to a question from deputy leader of the county council Cllr Teresa Heritage.

She praised her own GP surgery in relation to virtual appointments which she said had been working ‘really well’, had been responsive and gave peace of mind quite quickly by being able to speak to a GP.

However she questioned whether there was consistency across Hertfordshire around the use of virtual appointments – how they are obtained and how they are used.

Representing the voluntary sector Sarah Wren, chief executive of the Hertfordshire Independent Living Service, acknowledged the positive use of technology for many people – but not all.

“Technology has be a really positive thing for many people in Hertfordshire,” she said. “And they are really engaging with it and definitely it’s one of the things we all need to keep.

“But there are people who are not able to engage with technology and also are so fearful of what’s happening that they are not seeking help from any services, which they really need to.”

Ms Wren suggested to the board there was a need to prioritise pro-actively trying to get to these members of the population to ensure they are receiving the help that’s needed.

And she suggested VCSE (that’s voluntary, community and social enterprise) organisations may be a very important part of that.