From apps that help us stay physically fit at home to seeking advice directly from therapists, apps have been keeping the country healthy throughout lockdown. As NHS wait times peak these apps represent a vital lifeline for those on the ever-growing waiting lists.

Health and consumer tech providers have risen to meet the challenges of this healthcare capacity crisis. Provision of more patient-focused products such as smartphone apps and wearable technologies and advancements in telemedicine has been integral in keeping the country well.

A long wait

Wait times across the NHS have extended with many people now waiting over a year for routine operations such as hip replacements. NHS England figures show that routine surgery waits are currently the worst they’ve been since 2008.

The vice-president of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Tim Mitchell, said that this ‘daunting’ backlog has left many ‘waiting in limbo. Many will be in considerable pain, others will have restricted mobility and be at risk of isolation and loneliness’.

Getting through these waiting lists is going to be a huge challenge, but there is a lot that can be done while we wait. Some health apps are stepping up to offer support in the interim, providing a way to access health advice and even counselling from our homes:

App-based mental health support

Over lockdown, people across the United Kingdom have increasingly sought out support for their mental health. Being isolated from support networks and removed from usual routines continues to have clear impacts on the mental health of the nation. These are, as we are all regularly told, ‘uncertain times’ and this continued state of uncertainty is taking its toll.

With meditation and mindfulness apps like Headspace and Calm each racking up over 70 million downloads it’s clear that using our phones to look after our mental health is not a new phenomenon.

As the NHS struggles to provide enough clinician time to meet demands, these mental health apps are coming to their rescue. They provide support while patients wait for meetings with clinicians or are even used alongside face-to-face care. Many apps will, if users report severely negative feelings, direct them towards other forms of support.

While we wait

The NHS lists recommended mental health apps on their site, all featuring evidence-based approaches. Some use Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) techniques to challenge negative thought patterns while others function more as mood journals or mindfulness companions.

Some apps, like BlueIce, need to be prescribed by healthcare professionals and are designed to be used alongside face-to-face care. Many are free and covered by the NHS while some have subscription models or offer paid premium features.

For apps that host instant messaging with therapists, such as ieso, meeting the current rise in demand is still challenging. Though, with an estimated wait time of 10 days listed on their site, ieso still sits far above the average NHS wait time. Some of these apps provide their premium features for free to NHS staff – which is a welcome and much-needed gesture that also highlights the current strain NHS staff themselves are under.

Hidden patients

There have been warnings that there are up to 6 million ‘hidden’ patients that may be in need of NHS services after the pandemic. This perhaps comes from people not wanting to overwhelm the NHS so not going to their GPs with things they ordinarily would. They may well still end up needing care further down the line, adding to the backlog of treatments.

Accessing GP advice through apps as opposed to contacting surgeries directly may help ease this backlog and allow some of these patients to seek advice without fear of contributing to overwhelming the NHS.

Every second counts

Apps that make it easier to contact health providers and seek advice are alleviating some of the strain on practices. For example, the app myGP saved the NHS over £60 million in 2020 by improving practice efficiency and cutting down on unnecessary or missed appointments. myGP comprises of a patient-facing app and a practice-facing set of services including messaging, remote consultation, patient survey, care navigation and triage as well as population-wide patient engagement to increase uptake of screening and vaccination. (myGP)

The app will soon be adding a digital vaccine passport known as ‘myGP TICKet’. Alongside EMIS, TPP, eConsult, Echo, and AccuRx they are shifting the way people access primary healthcare to a ‘digital first’ model. Each time a patient uses these apps to request repeat prescriptions or book appointments they are saving time for the practice and themselves.

Any time-saving measure is absolutely vital in the effort to decrease waiting times and practices are continuing to urge patients to cancel unneeded appointments as soon as possible so that they can be given to patients that need them.

Conclusion

Mental health apps are supporting people who are currently on these long waiting lists while GP apps such as myGP are helping to rescue clinician time. Every bit of strain that can be relieved by these tech-based solutions is helping the NHS catch up with their backlog and take one step back from becoming overwhelmed.

These changes in the way people access services and contact their GPs may well be here to stay beyond the pandemic. From easing worry to accessing services when we need them, having reliable and official health advice at our fingertips will continue to make a huge difference to lives across the UK.

*If you are concerned about your mental health or that of a loved one, an NHS list of charities, organisations, and support groups can be found here.

About the Author: Leo Hynett

Leo Hynett is a contributing Features Writer, with a particular interest in Culture, the Arts and LGBTQ+ Politics.