Our best defence against coronavirus isn’t what you think

This measure will keep vulnerable people at home and allow self-isolating doctors to help them, writes Harriet Bradley

Donated blood and plasma samples are checked if they can used for the production of therapeutic plasma to treat seriously ill coronavirus patients in Germany (Reuters)

It is no exaggeration to say that digital healthcare will save many lives in the coming months. For whilst it is clear how brilliantly our frontline colleagues are responding to unprecedented demand, our NHS is under immense strain.

Intensive care units are at risk of becoming full and already we are reading reports of ventilators being rationed. NHS 111 has been deluged with calls, a burden we at LIVI are working to help manage. LIVI is an NHS service that allows GPs and other healthcare professionals to care for people at home via digital consultations.

I have a long professional history in the NHS. Prior to working at LIVI, I worked as a GP in North Yorkshire, within community services in Staffordshire and at a busy London hospital, so I am well-placed to understand some of the challenges we are facing.

I believe that digitising healthcare wherever possible is the number one frontline defence against Covid-19. Put simply, video consultations will keep vulnerable patients at home. And with one in four NHS doctors off work because they are sick or in isolation, digital healthcare may allow them to continue to help patients – and right now, the NHS needs all the help it can get.

Our work so far caring for thousands of people with Covid-19 has shown that for the majority, easy access to a video GP via a smartphone or tablet is a safe way to help patients manage symptoms at home. But just as importantly, we also provide digital healthcare to patients without Covid-19, but with other acute or chronic conditions, many of whom are the most at risk from Covid-19.

So for anyone worried about accessing healthcare whilst you’re social distancing or self-isolating: don’t be. The NHS is doing everything it can to fast forward access to digital healthcare in the UK. At LIVI, we’re working round the clock to adapt our service, create new products and ensure our NHS GPs are trained in the latest Covid-19 advice.

These digital services are not just for millennials. Fifty per cent of our patients are over 40; our oldest is 94. It’s very important to us at LIVI that our services are easy to use and accessible to everyone.

Over the coming weeks, local surgeries across the country will start offering video consultations. For many patients, this will be their first. We hope that this will instigate a long-term change, as we believe that when many discover that digital healthcare is an accessible and safe part of general practice, they will continue using it after this pandemic.

Digital healthcare will keep people at home and therefore save lives. Ultimately, I believe, it will lead to a revolution in healthcare.

Harriet Bradley is the medical director of LIVI