Explaining "GP online services"

[joejuliernhs]

What

Provide guidance about how to talk about the online services GPs offer to allow patients to book appointments, see their medical records etc.

Why

We recently tested content explaining how to get in touch with your doctor during the coronavirus outbreak (screenshot attached). We tested with 6 family members and friends of NHS Digital employees. We found that in our context none of them understood what an 'online service' was, despite at least two of them having a GP app on their phone.

2 participants visited the GP online services page our content linked to (https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/nhs-services/gps/gp-online-services/). This highlighted an issue with our use of the word 'providers' to talk about companies who have built apps as neither participant understood what the list of providers was, or what providers were either.

![Uploading drafts.nhswebsite-staging.nhs.uk_conditionstonsillitis (1) 2.png…]()

@sarawilcox - let me know if there's more information you'd like me to add.

[joejuliernhs]

[OliviaThornton]

In the NHS App we use "GP online services" as the collective term for services like appointment booking, repeat prescription orders and medical record access. We also use "GP surgery's online services".

Informed by content crit of NHS App Q&As 13 June 2019 with Kirsty Brown and Emma James. "GP online services" is the agreed term across nhs.uk.

@sarawilcox is this one we can bring forward?

[sarawilcox]

I've contacted NHSE to see if they can supply any user insight into their use of GP online services as in:

• GP online services easy read: Patient Guide
• Giving another person access to your GP online services: Patient Guide

[sarawilcox]

I think we can bring this to the May Style Council meeting. It follows on from our recent issue GP system suppliers' - adding a new entry to the A to Z.

[sarawilcox]

Hi @OliviaThornton, just checking a few things:

• do you want to recommend that we use "GP online services" as the collective term for online services like appointment booking, repeat prescription orders and medical record access but that we also say that teams can use "GP surgery's online services" if they find that's clearer for their users?
• it occurs to me that we should perhaps add the word "online" to our section about "GP system supplier names and patient-facing services". Should it be "patient-facing online services"?

I haven't had a reply from NHS England.

[sarawilcox]

No response from NHSE but they have used the phrase for a long time across a range of materials: https://www.england.nhs.uk/gp-online-services/support/.

[sarawilcox]

At May Style Council, we agreed a new entry in the A to Z of NHS health writing as follows:

We use "GP online services" as the collective term for online services like appointment booking, repeat prescription orders and medical record access.

Or you can use "GP surgery's online services" if this is clearer for your users.

There was a question in the meeting about how this fits with the NHS website page about Online health and prescription services but this was not seen as a blocker. Also a question about how the term would fit with profiles work about NHS services but we can always review the term in light of profiles work if it becomes an issue later. Not a blocker.

[sarawilcox]

Approved and published.

[georginaplatt]

Update from NHSEI Digital First Primary Care team: -

The problem Online Services is a term that is used on GP websites to mean different things in different places. It can be: • Used to label a 3rd party systems/platforms that provide patients with access to Online prescription services, access to their patient record and access to some (limited) appointments (e.g. screening test appointments). E.g. Patient Access or SystmOne • A term that describes SOME tasks you can do online (repeat prescriptions, get an appt, view your patient record), often via different providers. • A term that describes a choice of suppliers/tools/apps a patient has in order to do health related tasks online (it replaced ‘providers’).

It doesn’t currently mean ‘any GP related task you can do online’, as it doesn’t include things like Online consultation forms, getting test results, booking covid related tests and appointments,.

‘Online Services are defined internally in different ways: NHS England https://www.england.nhs.uk/gp-online-services/about-the-prog/ nhs.uk https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/online-services/ https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/gps/online-health-and-prescription-services/ NHS Digital Service Manual https://service-manual.nhs.uk/content/a-to-z-of-nhs-health-writing#G

What do we know? We asked 44 participants with mid to low language and digital confidence what they thought ‘Online Services’ meant. • Most people thought this meant anything you could do online with the NHS, e.g. looking up health advice, getting an appointment, getting blood test results, repeat prescriptions. • No one mentioned Patient Access/SystmOne or the NHS app.

What we are considering We feel this is a complicated situation that needs upicking. It feels like an NHS system that’s being used on GP websites and creating confusion.

We think this term could be removed from use. We would like an alternative way of categorising and explaining the tasks that can be done on these GP Online Services suppliers.