Amended Copy - Under
Strict Embargo until 00:01 9 November 2010 - Internet is First
Choice for Health Advice
More patients than
ever before are going online to find health information and
self-diagnose, saving the NHS millions of pounds a year, according
to separate reports published today.
A report shows the NHS website received over a 100 million visits
in the last year, while a separate study from Imperial College
found a third of those logging onto www.nhs.uk avoided booking a GP
appointment afterwards, potentially saving the NHS £44 million a year.
The NHS Choices 2010 Annual Report published today shows there
has been a 10 per cent increase in the number of visits to the NHS
website in 2010 compared to 2009, taking the number of times
people logged on to the site to well over 100 million.
Separately, Imperial College research found 70 per cent of
patients use the internet to search for health information, with a
third deciding not to visit their GP afterwards as they were able
to find the information they were looking for.
Health Minister Simon Burns said:
"Every day we use the internet and technology to
organise our lives, and increasingly when it comes to our health.
For example, more and more people are taking the information they
have found online with them when they consult their GP. It is
important they can find accurate, trusted information from sources
such as NHS Choices.
"It is vital that every penny spent on the NHS counts,
and the Imperial College research shows that tools like NHS
Choices can help deliver savings."
NHS Choices recently topped a Which? investigation into medical
websites, saying the site 'excelled for its breadth of
information' and that the site contained
'medically robust information'.
Bristol GP Knut Schroeder said:
"The internet is a great resource for health-related
information as long as people can use sources they can trust and
rely on. Indeed, many of my patients now use websites such as NHS
Choices to look up health related information, such as symptoms or
medical conditions. As a result, they are often better informed
and are in a better position to use health services more appropriately."
The 2010 NHS Choices annual report published today also found:
* There were on average 200,000 visits a day to NHS Choices;
* 19 million people turned to NHS Choices to find information on
swine flu during the height of the pandemic;
* Over 40,000 patients posted comments about hospitals and GP
practices;
* NHS Choices partnered with over 170 external organisations,
such as patientopinion.org.uk and mumsnet, to allow patients to
access reliable health information across the board. This led to
25 million people viewing information on NHS Choices via partner websites.
The Government recently launched a consultation how information
and technology can help people take more control of their health
and make the best choices for themselves and their families.
Notes to Editors: 1. The NHS Choices and
Imperial reports can be found at: www.nhs.uk/annualreport
2. NHS Choices (www.nhs.uk)
is the official website of the NHS. In addition to providing
thousands of pages of NHS accredited content on conditions,
treatments and healthy living, it allows the public to compare and
comment on the performance of hospitals, GPs and many other NHS
services. The site is now the biggest health information site in
Europe, regularly attracting 9 million users a month.
Contacts:
Department of Health
Phone: 020 7210 5221
NDS.DH@coi.gsi.gov.uk