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NHS Near Me to hold ‘try it out’ sessions for Caithness and Sutherland residents


By Staff Reporter- NOSN

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Patients in the far north are to have the opportunity to take part in "try it out" sessions for NHS Highland’s innovative NHS Near Me video-consulting system from their own homes.

This Friday afternoon (May 3) residents of Caithness and Sutherland are being invited to call in via the service’s app on the NHS Near Me website between 1pm and 4pm.

The idea of the "try it out" sessions is to support members of the public to see how the system works before they actually have a real video appointment with a consultant.

NHS Highland says the system is simple to use. All the user needs is a reliable internet connection and a device in their home – a smartphone, laptop or tablet – that can make video calls (such as Skype or Facetime).

If the Friday afternoon sessions prove a success then the NHS Near Me team plan to expand them across Highland and Argyll and Bute.

NHS Highland’s NHS Near Me lead, Clare Morrison, said: “The plan is to invite any member of the public to call in via link on the NHS Near Me website on Friday afternoons between 1pm and 4pm.

Clare Morrison, NHS Highland’s NHS Near Me lead.
Clare Morrison, NHS Highland’s NHS Near Me lead.

“The Near Me team will answer the call – people won’t be connected to a clinician, it is just to try out the system with the Near Me team. If the patient is happy to provide their name, address and date of birth we will record on the NHS Highland system that they are 'Near Me checked' so their specialist will be able to see that future appointments could be held by NHS Near Me, providing it was clinically appropriate.

“The aim is to do this every Friday from now on, as it’s the time when clinics are quietest.

“We know some people are cautious about using NHS Near Me because it’s new, or they are nervous about using technology. So we hope that once people have tried it out in this more relaxed way, they will be more confident about using it for an actual appointment.

“Knowing how to use the service on the website in advance will just help to take the pressure off when patients have an appointment.”

We hope that once people have tried it out in this more relaxed way, they will be more confident about using it for an actual appointment

Clare explains that she and her team have no idea what volume of activity the sessions may cause, which is why they are starting with Caithness and Sutherland residents first.

“We have no idea what the level of engagement will be. So I hope people will understand – we will answer as many calls as we can, as quickly as we can, but if we are absolutely inundated, we apologise in advance if we don’t get to everyone," she said.

“We will know from next week if we need more people to answer the 'try it out' calls. However, please be assured that we always have lists of patients with appointments so answering their calls will be prioritised above the 'try it out' ones. No patient will miss an actual Near Me appointment due to the introduction of the 'try it out' sessions.”

To take part in the "try it out" sessions this Friday, go to the NHS Highland website then follow the instructions on the web page. There are two leaflets on the website – one which gives general information about NHS Near Me, and one which is a step-by-step guide about how to make an NHS Near Me call.

Once on the NHS Near Me website just click on the "start video call" button and then click on the "start video call" box. You will then be taken to the "NHS Highland Reception waiting area" where callers, if they wish, can give the receptionist their names, addresses and date of birth so they can be logged onto the system.


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