The NHS and The Current Climate of Weight Management 

In a nation where over 60% of adults are grappling with excess weight and a quarter are battling severe obesity, the call for action in NHS weight management has never been more urgent (NHS Digital, 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic has only intensified this imperative, shedding light on the heightened risks faced by those who are overweight. With every increment in body mass index (BMI), the stakes rise – underscoring the critical need for effective weight management strategies.

Enter the NHS Weight Management Enhanced Service, a beacon of hope in the fight against obesity. With £7.2 million in funding allocated for 2024/25, practices are poised to receive £11.50 per referral, reaffirming the pivotal role of general practice in tackling this health crisis head-on. The government’s commitment to allocating £100 million annually for the next three years, as outlined in the Spending Review 2021, signals a clear directive: enhance services, streamline pathways, and offer unwavering support to those in need.

Amidst these challenges, there lies an opportunity for transformation. Silicon Practice’s BMI form emerges as a catalyst for change – empowering healthcare providers with the tools needed that enables your practice to gather the information you need to make the referral such as ethnicity, current BMI and consent as well as gather invaluable insights, and navigate the complexities of weight management with precision. By embracing a data-driven approach, practices can unlock new avenues for intervention, driving positive outcomes and fostering healthier communities.

Simplifying the BMI Recording and Reporting

Silicon Practice’s BMI form is improving optimisation for GPs and practice managers seeking to streamline their workflow. Here’s how it works:

• Streamline Referrals: Our BMI form simplifies the referral process, enabling healthcare professionals to easily refer patients to the NHS Weight Management Service with just a few clicks. This ensures that practices have the necessary information to make the referral and subsequently evidence it for payment claims.

• Data-Driven Approach: Harness the power of data to drive better outcomes. Our advanced dashboard provides patient verification, complete digital triage, Quick Responses and Automatic Acknowledgements, and SMS text messaging alerts to patients empowering GPs and practice managers to make informed decisions and tailor interventions effectively.

• Seamless Integration: Whether it’s integrated into your practice’s website or part of your FootFall, our BMI form seamlessly blends into your existing workflow, ensuring a smooth and hassle-free user experience for both staff and patients.

This means that when a patient/service user shares information in confidence it must not be disclosed without some form of legal authority or justification.

In practice, personal information cannot be legally disclosed without their consent unless there are exceptional reasons; a key part of maintaining patient privacy. 

Day to day handling of NHS data

All organisations with access to NHS patient data and systems must use the Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) to assess their performance and ensure they achieve at least ‘Standards Met’ from the assessment.

Each organisation is asssessed against the National Data Guardian’s 10 data security standards. The NDG is an independent champion for patients and the public, overseeing matters of their confidential health and care information.

GPs must be diligent in completing this toolkit, as it serves as a comprehensive measure of their commitment to maintaining the highest standards of data security.

Teamwork maintains patient privacy standards

As DSPT requirements applies to suppliers to the NHS, as well as GP surgeries, providers such as Silicon Practice are also required to assess themselves.

Of course, it doesn’t stop there. NHS data handlers and service providers must meet various requirements to be included on the latest NHS procurement framework, including being Cyber Essentials and ISO 27001 certified.

More about how Silicon Practice meets standards can be found on our security page.

Carrot and stick approach to building trust over patient privacy

Always fragile, trust between patients and the NHS can be easily damaged; any security breaches would be headline news in a world where pressure is building to increase use of digital resources.

Certainly this is taken seriously by the Government as punishments for failing to comply with data protection legislation can be severe.

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) can impose fines of up to £17m, or 4% of global turnover, for the most serious breaches.

Need for streamlining will only increase

There’s no doubt that push towards going digital is not going to go away.

Between mid-2021 and mid-2036, the UK population is projected to grow by 6.6 million people (9.9%). 

At the same time the population is continuing to age. During the next 15 years the size of the UK population aged 85 years and over is projected to increase from 1.6 million (2.5% of the total population) to 2.6 million (3.5%).

To cope with these demands any streamlining of secure communication between practice and patient is going to be essential, as the NHS seeks to maximise value for money.

With this in mind GP surgeries will be looking to find digital solutions, such as FootFall, which enable patients to contact their practice without the need to phone for every enquiry, with the frustration of sitting in a queue and, potentially, delaying someone whose need to speak to a member of staff may be essential.

The FootFall dashboard is becoming ever-more user-friendly to practice admin staff and clinicians as well.

Clinicians can respond to patients directly, using pre-set practice responses or free text replies, with the ability to attach documents or leaflets to enrich communication.

With EHR Integration enabled the practice can:

• • Send an episode directly to the patient record

• • Send SNOMED-CT coded data into the clinical system

• • Send attachments such as images into the clinical system

• • Look up previous requests for a patient has sent in other requests through FootFall

• • Use EMIS to open the current patient open in the FootFall Dashboard and look at their EHR

Conclusion

Transparent communication builds trust and fosters a cooperative relationship between healthcare providers and patients.

Protecting sensitive health information is paramount if patients are to continue to adopt and adapt to the growing digital nature of healthcare, which depends on increasing efficiency as the UK experiences an ageing population with growing demands.

Get in touch to see how Silicon Practice can help your practice or ICB.