Empowering Technology? Issues of Access in Digital Primary Care

In 2019, the NHS Long Term Plan and GP Contract committed doctors to making online their default patient access point by 2023. The widely used NHS app and web-based appointment and repeat prescription systems will be updated to facilitate, e.g. video consultation and remote monitoring. England's provider, NHS Digital, claims these changes will increase capacity and cut costs by reducing physical attendance. Many consumer champions and academic experts have questioned the lack of independent evaluations of the technology, and stress the likelihood that privileging digital access will exacerbate existing healthcare inequalities. The expedited roll-out of these technologies required by the current COVID-19 crisis may heighten such concerns by evidencing a 'digital divide'. A rapid review will bring together current research from academia, the public sector, industry, and third sector. This will demonstrate the current state of digitisation and each group's specific concerns and interests in implementation. Interviews will then concentrate on areas of consensus surrounding best practice, establishing several case studies of leadership. For policymakers, it will set out possible solutions for avoiding the exclusion of patients from specific age, income, or ethnic backgrounds; and draw attention to the possibilities for partnership by highlighting shared interests across stakeholding groups.