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With the roll-out of GP Connect HTML: Access Record and Appointment Management products, consumers of GP Connect (such as GP Practices, Hubs, NHS 111) can now view detailed patient records across 97 per cent of the GP estate. These practices can also share appointments allowing patients to be booked into their registered practices and appropriate local hubs.

Plans are in place to bring this functionality to the remaining 3 per cent of practices during 2020. Read more about GP Connect roll-out and supplier progress.

We’re now evaluating how we can develop existing products and introduce new functionality, to extend the benefits of interoperability and real time access to patient data, from the GP practice to wider care settings.

As GP Connect develops, we aim to:

• increase efficiency of clinical consultations across care settings by ensuring clinicians have access to appropriate patient information when they need it
• reduce the burden on admin staff processing updates to clinical records 
• improve digital access to NHS services that help clinicians, patients, and their carers to manage their health 
• develop standards for accessing data held in clinical systems to help meet NHS targets for interoperability and sustainability
• find new ways to support primary care networks

Our team has consulted with a range of stakeholders from primary care and beyond to evaluate options for development. We identified some areas for further evaluation. 

1. Appointment Booking application programming interface (API) to extend booking into care settings other than GP practices. This could include a local pharmacy being able to book a GP appointment for a patient, for example.
2. Update Record to allow care settings to send updates directly back into the patient GP record. 
3. Cross-Organisational Tasks - to allow the sending and receiving of tasks into GP workflow in support of seamless patient care

We’re evaluating the feasibility of these options.

We believe the development options above would offer several benefits.

Patients will experience:

• easier access to care at more convenient times
• consultations informed by real-time access to their health records

Healthcare professionals will have:

• real-time access to patient records across organisational boundaries to aid clinical decision making
• the option to update patient records electronically, saving time and the effort of manual intervention
• improved workflow and process management across organisational boundaries and clinical systems

The wider NHS will benefit from:

• greater interoperability
• improved resource planning as staff are more easily able to work across multiple organisations

Collectively these have the potential to offer safer care, a better experience for patients, and save the NHS both time and money. Further analysis is being undertaken to quantify the benefits of each product.

A business case is being finalised to seek investment in these options. Please revisit this page for updates as this progresses.