AI will tell NHS patients if they need a GP appointment

[dutchman]

Triage service will be built into health service app as part of £10bn investment in technology



Artificial intelligence (AI) will tell patients whether they should see a GP, visit a pharmacy, go to A&E or recover at home under radical NHS reforms.

The move to use AI chatbots as the front door to primary care marks one of the biggest changes to the way patients access family doctors for a generation.

Under the changes, part of a £10bn investment in NHS technology, a new AI triage service will be built into the NHS app.

Patients seeking a GP appointment will first answer a series of questions before being told where they should seek help.

If a GP appointment is recommended, a clinician will decide whether one is needed and how urgently the patient should be seen. In other cases, the AI will recommend alternatives such as pharmacies, self-care or emergency services.

During the trial, every recommendation will be checked by clinicians, who will be able to override the chatbot’s advice retrospectively, calling patients back if they believe a GP appointment or more urgent care is needed.

However, the long-term aim is to remove that safeguard, if the trial shows AI works safely, allowing it to advise millions of patients without clinical back-up.

Sir Jim Mackey [pictured], chief executive of NHS England, said: “The major overhaul of tech we’re making over the next few years will transform services.

“The new AI tool in the NHS app will help get patients to the best service for their needs first time – whether that’s a GP appointment, trip to a pharmacy or advice on caring for themselves at home – so that clinicians can make sure those most in need of a GP appointment can get one sooner.”

However, campaign groups expressed concern that the NHS was embarking on a “dangerous journey” that could put the most vulnerable patients at risk.

Dennis Reed, director of Silver Voices, a pressure group for the over-60s, said: “There are multiple concerns here. Many patients will struggle with this technology, and the greatest risk is to those trying to use it while in pain or confused, potentially describing the wrong symptoms when they need to see a GP. On top of all that there is the simple risk that the AI might be wrong, and we are talking here about a matter of life and death.”

Attempts to introduce digital technology across the NHS have had mixed results, with many patients complaining they have been locked out of GP services because they struggle to use online systems.

NHS guidance says patients should always be able to contact their practice by telephone or in person. However, campaigners say some surgeries continue to steer patients towards online systems instead.