A STOCKPORT clinical pharmacist and mum-to-be has been chosen to star in a national campaign promoting the NHS App.
Sarah Thompson, based at Stepping Hill Hospital, who is seven months pregnant with her first child, uses the new app to easily keep track of her GP appointments as she fits them around her busy job in a hospital.
She was chosen from nearly 700 NHS staff from across England who applied to be a part of the initiative when it was announced in September last year.
The NHS App provides a simple and secure way for people to access a range of NHS services - including ordering repeat prescriptions, booking and cancelling GP surgery appointments.
It also allows people to access GP medical records, check symptoms and set organ donation preferences - on their smartphone or tablet.
Sarah said: “Early in my pregnancy, I needed my NHS number – it was so useful to be able to go onto the NHS App and find it immediately.
“I now use the app to manage appointments with my GP. It really saves time for me to be able to do all this online, rather than having to ring up.”
The 34-year-old first started using the NHS App last year and as well as using it to manage her GP surgery appointments, she’s found it helpful to see her medical records because she could check instantly when she needed to know whether she’d had a particular vaccination.
She says that being able to see her own records means is more involved in her healthcare. Sarah added: “It makes me feel more in control.
“The app is very secure to access and I’m confident that my information is safe – I use Touch ID to verify my identity. If I lost my phone, even if it was unlocked, I know the details on the app couldn’t be seen by anyone else.”
Sarah has recommended the app to her family, who use it to order repeat prescriptions, cutting out the need to pick up and drop off prescription forms.
Her job as a clinical pharmacist and digital lead at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust also means she can see how beneficial the app could be to patients, as it could help them to continue with regular medication or allow them to see changes in their prescriptions.
Sarah said: “We’ve got access to their medical records, but if the patients are using the app for repeat prescriptions, they can order them from their hospital bed.
“It’s reducing the need for patients to carry round scraps of paper. This also empowers them to be more responsible for their care. It’s better for us and it’s better for them.”
The NHS App can be downloaded on all iOS and Android devices and is available to every patient in England.