Innovations and New Ways of Working
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The only constant in the NHS is change. You can’t replace the human side of medicine, but current workload and workforce pressures are forcing us to look to innovation and new ways of working, in order to continue to deliver a safe, sustainable general practice. Wessex LMCs are working in conjunction with Wessex Academic Health Science Network to bring together innovations and improvements to support General Practice. |
This list is by no means exhaustive and does not constitute a recommendation by inclusion or omission.
We recommend practices undertake their own due diligence before engaging any company/entering into an agreement.
Wessex LMCs is not responsible for the advice or services provided by those listed and therefore cannot accept responsibility or liability for the use of this information
Automation of Admin Tasks
BetterLetter automates letter coding using a combination of AI and clinical oversight, helping practices process letters faster with higher accuracy. The process streamlines workflow, automates coding and highlights areas for clinical checking, resulting in richer patient records.
GP Automate loves the mundane, repetitive tasks you don’t. Whether its new patient registrations, removing the need for human input when processing normal lab reports, or helping you meet QOF targets and save hours of practice time, GP Automate can help. Already in over 50 practices and PCNs GP Automate is helping to address workload pressures through automating routine administrative tasks, within parameters set by the practice.
Healthtech1 automates back-office admin tasks. Their number one solution is automating patient registrations which reduces costs and errors and frees up valuable practice time. It also enables personalised patient care and improved QOF points from capturing new patients health details in full at registration, ensuring they are on the correct recall registers.
Dispensing
Ed Kennedy, Managing Partner at the Wickham Surgery explains how their dispensing machine has benefited both the practice & patients by:
- Freeing up staff time
- Enhancing patient experience
- Expanding the practice dispensing reach
Messaging & Communication
AccuRx self-book allows users to invite patients to specific appointments, either individually or in a batch for vaccinations, long term condition screening etc. It improves patient access to appointments, they choose an appointment time that suits them, and an external evaluation has shown this helps some people access appointments they might not otherwise have rung up for (e.g. For smear tests). Practices using it extensively have demonstrated a reduction in phone traffic and an increased uptake of LTC appointments, and resulting QOF points.
DALL.E.2 is an AI system that can create realistic images and art from a description in natural language.
Redmoor Health provide practices with high quality patient social media communication, without the burden and pressures associated with managing social media accounts.
Online Triage & Care Navigation
Anima is a complete clinical operating system that improves access to care and patient outcomes by allowing frictionless collaboration between teams across primary, secondary and community care. It integrates with your existing electronic health record, and manages patient on line requests through auto-assignment and self-book. It automatically generates all the patient communications, clinical notes, admin requests, and paperwork that you deal with every day. Anima is built to support any team’s workflow, from supporting individual practices getting started with online consultation, to supporting network-wide working across a whole ICS.
Klinik online triage and patient flow management software releases GP capacity, improves patient access and creates an intelligent healthcare network. With a mission to remove the burden from accessing and delivering healthcare, Klinik offer clinically designed solutions powered by medical AI that enable more accurate and enhanced patient care & flow.
Rotas / Staff Organisation and Locum Management
Tempo- E-Rostering with demand and capacity planning for Primary Care. Set up by an NHS Primary Care Network in Lewes this system enables PCNs to plan staffing, locums, rooms and rotas all with one system designed by GPs. It also calculates costs enabling you to find the most cost effective way of filling gaps. Ideal for multi-site and cross organisational working. This is really valuable for PMs especially for those who run more than a single site practice.
Support for Innovation
Academic Health Science Networks (AHSNs) are effectively the innovation arm of the NHS, paid for by the NHS. They act as honest brokers between innovators and the health system, connecting people, setting up trials and evaluations, sharing good practice and helping to spread innovation. ASHNs initiatives are designed to advance the uptake and spread of all types of innovation within the NHS and social care, from new technologies to ways of working and service improvements. The ASHNs covering Wessex LMCs area are Wessex AHSN and Kent Surrey and Sussex AHSN.
The Innovation checklist, designed for the Primary Care Innovation conference by Wessex and KSS AHSNs, helps you work out if innovation is right for your practice.
Other websites which cover innovation in primary care you may find useful:
National Association of Primary Care
NHS Futures – e.g. Digital Primary Care, PCNs and Practices Support Hub
Q from the Health Foundation
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