Menopause and prostate problems will be among the priorities for the NHS’s new online hospital. The NHS has selected nine common conditions which will be the first to be treated by the NHS Online service, providing faster access to specialist care.
NHS Online will harness digital technology to fundamentally change how people are able to access healthcare, ensuring it is "more personalised, more convenient and more democratic", according to the government. While patients will continue to have the option of in-person appointments, NHS Online aims to help tackle deep rooted inequalities in the healthcare system by ending the postcode lottery of care and help make getting treatment as easy as online banking. The service will allow patients to be seen much more quickly by digitally connecting them to expert clinicians across England, no matter where they are in the country.
NHS Online, which will see its first patients in 2027, is expected to deliver the equivalent of up to 8.5 million virtual appointments and assessments in its first three years – four times more than an average NHS trust. In the first instance, the service will build and scale tried-and-tested innovations already in place across the country such as digital prescriptions and online test results, with millions of patients already accessing virtual appointments and using the NHS App to manage their care.
NHS Online won’t replace traditional care. Patients will always have the choice of face-to-face appointments, and those who need physical examinations or procedures will continue to receive them either at hospital or local hubs nearby.
Women’s health issues including severe menopause symptoms and menstrual problems that can be a sign of endometriosis or fibroids will be among the conditions available for online referrals. Prostate problems like prostate enlargement and a raised prostate specific antigen (PSA) level will also be covered by the service, along with eye conditions including cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration. NHS Online will also provide support for other painful and distressing conditions, such as iron deficiency anaemia and inflammatory bowel disease.
Patients will have the option of using NHS Online when their GP makes a referral for specialist care. Instead of having a physical site, patients will be able to receive care from doctors around the country directly through the NHS App – without leaving their home or having to wait longer for an in-person appointment.
Tests, scans or procedures will continue to take place at healthcare sites closer to patients’ homes, while clinicians will be able to review their notes remotely. This streamlines the process and allows patients to move quickly from referral to treatment to follow-up care.
Professor Stella Vig, National Clinical Director for Elective Care at NHS England, said: “The NHS’s new online hospital will see a huge shift in the way we deliver care, giving patients the option to have an online appointment with a specialist anywhere in England.
“We’ve selected nine common conditions which the NHS Online service will initially provide support for when it launches next year, including some women’s health issues as well as prostate problems.
“We know that these conditions can be painful and difficult to cope with so providing faster, more convenient access to diagnosis and treatments will have a real and positive impact on people’s lives.”
Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: “We’ve already made big changes in the NHS, but building a health service that’s fit for the future requires more than just evolution – it demands revolution. NHS Online will make accessing healthcare as simple as ordering a cab or a takeaway – fundamentally changing how people interact with the NHS for generations to come.
“People with the nine conditions we’re announcing today face some of the longest waits, ensuring they’re seen on time again as we shift the NHS from analogue to digital.”
Digital innovations are already transforming care in parts of the NHS, and NHS Online will take these proven successes and roll them out across England. Moorfields Eye Hospital in London has introduced a single point of access system for eye condition referrals, providing an online service linking GPs and optometrists with eye specialists.
Peter Thomas, Director of Digital Development and Consultant Ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital, said: “With our single point of access service, we’ve been defining how a virtual hospital can support better eye care.
“We’ve used technology to improve the capability and efficiency of the system, and which allows clinicians in the community and hospital services to work more closely together to streamline care. The impact is clear – patients are being seen more quickly in more appropriate settings, and the pressure on NHS services is being reduced.”
At University Hospital Southampton, the gastroenterology team has modernised outpatient care by introducing digital tools which has cut waiting times by 62%. This has included launching virtual follow-ups for patients with low-risk inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) flare-ups. Instead of needing to go to a busy outpatient clinic, patients use digital tools to monitor their symptoms and request a follow-up when needed – which has led to a 66% reduction in follow-up visits and over 80% of patients managed virtually.
