
How does eConsult work?
eConsult is easy for patients and practices
01
Set-up
- We designed eConsult to be as simple as possible: just add a banner to your existing practice website
- We share our extensive experience of best practices to tailor eConsult to your needs. We are fully interoperable with your clinical system
- The more your patients use it, the bigger the benefits you’ll see
02
Your patients’ eConsult experience
- Patients can choose self-help or pharmacy advice for their condition, and send through an admin request online or self-refer to local services
- If patients want advice from their doctor, they can submit a short form and photograph (if relevant) about their symptoms or condition which is sent to the practice
- eConsult captures over 100 common clinical conditions, with built-in red flags to highlight critical symptoms that may require immediate or urgent intervention
03
You receive the patient’s eConsult
- eConsult reports are sent securely as a short PDF directly into the clinical system, to be triaged by your staff as appropriate
- Standardised questions mean nothing is missed, and allows GPs to familiarise themselves with the reports
- Having a patient history up front means you can quickly decide on the next steps, with only around 30% patients needing a face-to-face follow up
How to use econsult
Patient Benefits of eConsult
eConsult delivers full compliance and state-of-the-art security
CLINICAL GOVERNANCE
Our Clinical Governance board comprises of NHS GPs, clinicians and specialists. The board meets regularly to undertake content reviews and ensure that eConsult always adheres to the latest guidance and the highest safety standards.
Our Clinical Governance Lead and Information Governance Lead meet monthly to maintain our hazard logs and safety case, and identify any new potential risks or Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) requirements.
Following the MHRA guidance on medical devices, we have appointed a Medical Safety Officer, and applied the standards defined in DCB0129/DCB0160 and will continue to do so.
We are proud winners and finalists of several Patient Safety Awards.
DATA SECURITY
- We encrypt patient details for their entire journey into your practice
- We do not store any patient-identifiable medical information
- Built on top of a secure framework, our platform has protection against typical website attacks (e.g. XSS, SQL and HTML injections)
- We score highly on regular pen tests with independent, external providers
- All interactions with the website are via a secure connection, using up-to-date encryption techniques (TLS v1.2, strong key exchange and strong cypher)
CISSP-certified architect configured infrastructure
COMPLIANCE
- We use consent as our lawful basis for processing patient data
- We have written our privacy notice in plain English, and made clear the legal rights of the patient
- We have appointed a Data Protection Officer, in line with our responsibilities for handling sensitive data
NHS compliance:
- We are DSP Toolkit compliant (for all mandatory sections and all optional sections)
- We comply with the National Data Guardian recommendations
- Our platform is hosted in a Tier 3, ISO 27001 Data Centre, behind HSCN
- We are ITK compliant and certified to send data to the GPSoC providers over MESH
MEDICAL INDEMNITY
Medical Indemnity
The Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice (CNSGP) covers activities which are commissioned under a GMS, PMS or APMS contract (or related enhanced primary care elements under an NHS Standard Contract), and where a provider provides services directly or under a sub-contracat.
The scheme coverage extends to nurses/ANPs and other practice staff who are carrying out activities in connection with the delivery of primary medical services. The location of the services being provided and whether they are digital or face-to-face will not affect the cover.
The services/consultations must be being provided via a GMS/PMS/APMS contract and the consultations themselves must be connected to the diagnosis, care or treatment of a patient.
Guidance of relevance from other bodies:
RCGP: Key principles for intimate clinical assessments undertaken remotely in response to COVID-19 (July 2019)
Why use eConsult
and GP practice online, for free, from anywhere.

Community

Reassurance

Speed/Access
eConsult FAQs
What is eConsult?
Where can I get help in using eConsult?
Is it easy to use eConsult?
Does eConsult mean I won’t see my GP?
Do I need an account and password?
How can I use eConsult when I don’t have a computer, tablet or smartphone?
eConsult is only available online, but you can still telephone the GP surgery in the same way you always have. Practice receptionists will talk you through a questionnaire and complete an eConsult on your behalf if you do not have online access.
Do I need to be registered to the GP surgery I send an eConsult to?
How much does eConsult cost me to use?
Can I submit an eConsult out of GP surgery opening hours?
How does self-referral work?
Certain categories of illness such as joint/muscle pain, sexual health and mental health are linked to local services that you can self refer to without going through your GP. You need to click your symptom e.g. anxiety, and one of the options offered to you will be a self referral to a local service. Click on that and you are taken to their services and support options.
What happens if I submit a medical request through the administrative eConsult form?
What can I do if I can't find my condition on the list?
Can I provide feedback to my Practice for eConsult?
reports with your anonymous feedback. eConsult and your GP use this feedback to improve the service.
Is my personal medical data secure with eConsult?
Are eConsults safe?
Clinical Governance feedback is monitored 24/7. Any clinical incidents receive a full investigation by the Clinical team, the investigation is shared with the GP practice involved as we believe in an open, honest and transparent process.