NHS App: Features, Purpose, Strengths, Limitations

This article provides an overview of the NHS App, a mobile app developed for online consultation and medical care. It discusses the purpose, key features, strengths, and limitations of the app. The article also highlights the cost of the app and its benefits for both practices and patients. Additionally, it mentions the importance of data privacy and the need for proper regulation and approval.

Principles of Health
Informatics

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
You need to identify and evaluate the mobile app i.e. NHS APP).............................................3
Purpose of the NHS APP.............................................................................................................3
Key features of NHS APP...........................................................................................................4
Cost of NHS APP........................................................................................................................5
Strengths of NHS APP.................................................................................................................5
Limitations of NHS APP.............................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
NHS app is developed for online consultation in order to practice eConsult. This app helps
in triaging patients through an online consultation system. In in this critical period of coronavirus
pandemic, this app is used by the NHS organisation to you make it easy and convenient for
people to get medical care at home are book an appointment for medical evaluation (Leigh, and
Flatt, 2015). This is a service which request GP advice and provides appointment to patients.
eConsult is the first supplier for providing online consultation services within the NHS app. The
NHS app is available to people on Apple app stores or Google Play Store. The medical app is
important for helping the people to take effective care and service by sitting at home. The app is
useful for people in order to take appointments easily from various GP. The NHS mobile app is
used by different individuals by using the GPS system and locating to the nearest GP practise
registered in England. This provides help to people to take efficient care and service within less
time. The mobile app is most effective way that can be used by people for taking care of their
health. It is very easy to use the mobile app. People can download this app and register
themselves with the health service providers of NHS.
You need to identify and evaluate the mobile app i.e. NHS APP)
All practices across England will be connected to the NHS app by the end of July. This mobile
app can be used by both Android as well as iOS users. There are following three steps for
preparing NHS app
 Brief your staff about this new app
 Prepare systems within PCS and laptops
 Inform your patience
Purpose of the NHS APP
The NHS app is developed for people in order to check their symptoms using the health A-Z on
the website of NHS. This app is helpful to people in finding out what they can do in need of
emergency using the NHS 111 online help. people can register as an organ donor by using this
app. Different people can know how this organisation uses their data for research and planning.

 This app is useful for the organisation as patients can register themselves on this
application and get medical aid as soon as possible. Patients can order their repeat
prescriptions and they are able to view and change their nominated pharmacy
(Armstrong, 2018). Patients can also view their GP medical record secure and protected
within the organisation.
 Patients can message the GP surgery or call their doctor or health professional through
online medium. Patients can consult any health professional by using and online form
which is provided in this app and they get an instant reply. This mobile app is used for
accessing health services on behalf of an individual they care for. People can view
important and useful links provided by health professionals for doctors which provide
information to patients and several individuals.
 There are different GP practices in England which are associated with NHS app. Because
of this, every individual of 13 years of age can register himself or herself with a GP
practice in England for getting medical help. There are a lot of digital tools available
alongside the NHS app and this provides people to have important choice for how they
can access GP services through online medium.
Key features of NHS APP
Provides information about GP practices - in order to provide patients a positive experience, the
NHS app is allowing practices to visit guidance. Different practices have to do this whether they
are clinical system or patient facing services. The guidance of this app is specially designed for
helping following practices –
 Check as well as update settings within the IT system and analyse the impact upon
patients while using this app.
 This app is used for briefing staff so that it is easy to support patients.
 GP practices have to promote the app to patients by using a range of materials and
templates.
Information for clinical commissioning groups
NHS app is key part of National health service. This app is useful for NHS to the response of
coronavirus pandemic (Kmietowicz, 2012). This is helping a lot of people to excess NHS

services remotely as well as helping them to reduce face to face interaction and use telephone
contact with staff.
Information for suppliers
The NHS app is a platform for innovation for other digital health and care services.
This app is working with several organisations which are providing digital health and care
services in order to integrate the products into NHS app. This is useful for developing integration
process and guidance for the suppliers.
Cost of NHS APP
This is a free app that can be installed by people of England anytime. This is cost free. This
mobile app is basically made for helping patients in order to have medical facilities in hand.
Strengths of NHS APP
Benefits to practices
 Staff of NHS has to spend less time in dealing with request for booking appointments and
ordering prescriptions for patients
 Patients can cancel their appointments easily and so there are minimised DNA which is
did not attends
 Patients can easily verify their identity by using NHS login which save practice time.
Benefits to patients
 There are having 24 hour access of service from anywhere
 There will be less time wasted as there is no fixation of appointment through phone
 It is easy to cancel appointments and order prescriptions
 It is easier for accessing information regarding medications, treatment and conditions
Limitations of NHS APP
This is a service which request GP advice and provides appointment to patients. eConsult is the
first supplier for providing online consultation services within the NHS app This app have
following limitations –
Data privacy – Patients have to provide information about themselves on this app and there can
be chances of data leak.

Lack of regulation and approval – There is need for the mobile app that there is proper adoption
of laws and regulations for managing the operations properly.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Leigh, S. and Flatt, S., 2015. App-based psychological interventions: friend or foe?. Evidence-
based mental health, 18(4), pp.97-99.
Armstrong, S., 2018. The apps attempting to transfer NHS 111 online. Bmj, 360.
Kmietowicz, Z., 2012. Mobile phone app from NHS “hack day” is set to transform handovers
and task lists.