The first frontline NHS staff members have been selected to promote the NHS App to patients, and are the first nine to become the “Faces’ of the campaign.
In September 2019 the initiative was announced by Chief Nursing Officer, Ruth May and nearly 700 NHS staff from across the country applied to be part of the programme.
An initial nine NHS staff were chosen from those applications by a panel of senior clinical leaders. These chosen were revealed one by one every day by the NHSX and NHS digital on social media over the Christmas period.
The NHS App is being promoted by using the chosen “Faces”, and these representatives will appear in leaflets, posters, social media posts, videos and various other marketing platforms. The App already has more than 230,000 users and is sure to grow with this initiative.
More NHS appointments are being made digitally than ever before, and the NHS app makes it easy for patients to access a range of NHS services securely on their tablet or smartphones. The App is available on android and IOS and allows you to make appointments and manage repeat prescriptions at your GP surgery.
Dr Nikki Kanani, medical director for primary care at NHS England and NHS Improvement and a London GP, said:
“The NHS App is another way that our primary care staff are helping patients get convenient care as part of the NHS Long Term Plan to roll out more digital services so people can manage their own care at home or at work.
“It’s great to see our frontline staff adopting the NHS App to manage their own health and wellbeing too, alongside sharing their experience with their patients and the public and getting more people to use the app.”
Tara Donnelly, NHSX Chief Digital Officer said:
“NHS frontline staff are ideally placed to help patients across England to benefit from the NHS App, which is one of a growing range of digital tools available as part of our NHS Long Term Plan.
“The App is one of many online tools providing patients with a choice of how they wish to access NHS services digitally, allowing people simply, safely and securely to do things like order repeat prescriptions, manage appointments, check symptoms and view their GP medical record.”
Ian Phoenix, Director of Technology for Citizen Health at NHS Digital said:
“Patients want to be able to take control of their own health in their own way and this group of front line staff who use the NHS App can demonstrate from their personal experiences how it is of benefit to them and how it could benefit others.
“Our staff are patients too and will be great advocates for using digital tools such as the NHS App. We’re excited about working with them over the coming months.”
Lauren Pickup, a midwife from Leeds and one of our ‘Faces of the App’, said:
“I use the NHS App to book GP appointments and order my repeat prescriptions to help manage my kidney condition.”
Sarah Thompson, a pharmacist and mum-to-be from Stockport, also a ‘Face of the App’, says the app makes it easier for her to manage her pregnancy:
“I recently needed to know my NHS number so it’s been useful to use the NHS App to access my record and manage my appointments rather than spending ages on the phone.”
Article source: https://digital.nhs.uk/news-and-events/latest-news/nhs-unveils-faces-of-the-nhs-app
