After a patient submits an online consultation, their GP practice can review the request and decide on the most appropriate care. This might be: If a patient submits an eConsult on Friday, the response time will be Monday. If the patient submits and eConsult on Sunday the response time is Tuesday. A practice in Cornwall sent 100 texts to their asthmatic patients during ‘QOF season’. In less than one week they received 96 completed asthma eConsult review questionnaires. This cohort of patients had previously been sent letters by the practice inviting them for their annual review but they had ignored them. Texting the direct link makes it much easier for patients to complete. You will be offered an appointment that day – this will either be with a GP or an Advanced Nurse Practitioner and appointments will continue to be spread throughout the day to try and give you some degree of choice of a time that suits you best. More urgent issues will generally be offered earlier appointments. The practice may respond in a variety of ways, based on the advised next steps or the urgency of the information you have provided:

Patients that use NHS login from the practice that they are actually registered at will not be asked to confirm that this is their registered practice. The service will make interacting with your GP more convenient – you may not have to come into the practice to get help, meaning you don’t have to take unnecessary days off from work or can stay at home if you feel poorly. You should follow the same process as you currently do to identify which patients on your clinical system are due a regular review.

eConsult

Please submit your blood pressure readings via eConsult https://bit.ly/2PUbl6n so that we can monitor your condition and advise if you need an appointment. You can submit your own eConsult once you are 16 years old. If you are below 16 and wish to discuss an issue that your parents are not aware of, please phone the surgery to speak to reception. You can tell your GP about your health using a smartphone, tablet or computer. The type of online consultation you have depends on your GP surgery. Many GP surgeries use a questionnaire or an online form. eConsult should not be used for emergencies. Should you report symptoms that our clinical governance team have deemed to require more urgent help than your GP practice may be able to provide, your eConsult will be stopped. You will be advised that your eConsult will not be sent to your practice and that you should seek advice from the relevant urgent care service (e.g. A&E, Urgent Care Centre or NHS 111 helpline). Patients using NHS login will be marked as verified on their eConsult submission, and their NHS number will appear on the eConsult report. This will also make it easier for you to match patients’ eConsults to their record.

eConsultis the most widely used digital and online triage tool in NHS primary care, built by NHS GPs for NHS patients, designed to enhance patient access, improve practice efficiencies and signpost patients to the right place at the right time for their care. Live in over 3,200 NHS practices, eConsult gives millions of patients access to their own GP online." - eConsult EConsult at Roseneath Medical PracticePractices manage significant numbers of patients with long term conditions (LTCs e.g. asthma, contraceptive pill review, COPD, medication review etc). These patients are required to be reviewed on a periodic basis to ensure their conditions are being managed, and that they are not deteriorating.

You will be offered an appointment at a future date – this is most likely if there is a particular GP that you normally see who is not available that day to deal with your consultation. Once you have identified your group of patients, you can now send them an invitation to complete an online review via the appropriate eConsult questionnaire. You are due an asthma review. Please complete the asthma questionnaire via eConsult https://bit.ly/33qnK5Y . Having your information upfront will allow us to understand how you are managing your condition and, if you need an appointment, what type of appointment this should be. If the doctor or nurse decides they really need to see you in person, they will suggest you come in for a face-to-face appointment. In our experience, around 4 in 5 patients can be helped without them going into the practice for an in-person consultation. Limiting face-to-face appointments to those who really need them is very important, especially during COVID-19, as people might not show any signs of being ill. Your doctors or nurse can dedicate more time to helping you When you call your practice asking for an appointment, the first challenge is often waiting to speak to a person. Once you manage to get through the telephone queue, the receptionist will often ask what symptoms you have or why you feel you need the appointment.You will need your ‘Practice Message id’ and your ‘eConsult id’– These are case sensitive (see image below) You may be offered an appointment, either on the day or for a later date. This may not be with your GP, but may be with an Advanced Nurse Practitioner or other health professional at the practice, depending on your query. You can find these on any eConsult PDF you have been sent. They will both be in the top right of any report. eConsult allows you to seek advice from your GP or to help yourself to manage your condition or symptoms at all hours of the day, from wherever you are. This may be the same GP at the same practice that you have been to for years, meaning they are familiar with your medical history and can continue to treat you. You may receive a phone call for you to speak to a health professional at the practice, this is because you may not need a face-to-face appointment to resolve your query. This will save you from having to come into the practice.