All GP consultations should be done remotely by default unless there is a reason a patient needs to be seen in person, Matt Hancock has said in a speech setting out what he sees as the lessons for the NHS and care sector from the coronavirus pandemic.
The health secretary argued that while some errors were inevitably made, “so many things went right” in the response to Covid-19, and new ways of working forged in the crisis should continue.
One of these was the huge increase in web-based GP consultations, he told the Royal College of Physicians in London, saying that in the four weeks to mid-April this year, 71% of routine appointments were done remotely, against 25% in the same period a year before.
Outlining what he said was the ways the pandemic had demonstrated the need for greater uses of technology in healthcare, Hancock said that before the coronavirus, “there was a view advanced by some which held that anyone over the age of 25 simply could not cope with anything other than a face-to-face appointment”.
He said: “Of course there always has to be a system for people who can’t log on. But we shouldn’t patronise older people by saying they don’t do tech.”
The rise in online consultations had been welcome, he argued, especially in rural areas. “So from now on, all consultations should be tele-consultations unless there’s a compelling clinical reason not to,” Hancock said.
”Of course, if there’s an emergency, the NHS will be ready and waiting to see you in person – just as it always has been. But if they are able to, patients should get in contact first – via the web or by calling in advance.”
In a lengthy speech, Hancock said the coronavirus outbreak had “tested every single part of our infrastructure” on health, likening it to “sheet lightning on a dark night” in revealing what worked and what did not.
“We must learn from how the NHS and social care worked during the peak,” he said. “Both about what we must change. And critically, because so many things went right, we’ve got to bottle the best.”
Other lessons Hancock outlined included giving more responsibility to all staff, cutting away “the barnacle-like encrustation of rules and regulations”, and better cooperation between different parts of the NHS.
Hancock, who did not mention data released on Thursday that showed England had the highest levels of excess deaths in Europe in the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic, also highlighted what he said was the vital role of preventative health.
In the past week, the government has launched a campaign intended to tackle obesity, and plans to help more people walk and cycle, thus becoming more active.
“Our NHS is a place where miracles are an everyday occurrence. But they cannot, must not, shoulder the whole burden of keeping the nation well,” Hancock said.
“The best evidence we have suggests that only about a quarter of what leads to a longer, healthier life is the result of what happens within a healthcare system. Prevention matters, as the pandemic has vividly shown.
“That sheet lightning revealed that your chances of dying with coronavirus are tragically markedly higher in more deprived areas, much higher for the obese, and much higher for people from an ethnic minority. This should be a wake up call for us all.”
The UK went into the coronavirus crisis “in worse health than some of our peers”, he said, adding: “This is not the only factor that explains our relatively high mortality rates during the pandemic, far from it. But nor is it a factor that any responsible government could just ignore.”