v-Consult Implementation Guide

v-Consult Implementation Guide

Welcome to v-Consult implementation guide for GP Practice

Our v-Consult provides a mobile and web-based secure platform enabling online and video consultation solutions in dealing with all your healthcare queries. It enables healthcare professionals to consult patients and proxies online without them having to leave their home. It can be accessed from any smartphone, tablet or PC. It saves critical healthcare staff time and also that of the patients. v-Consult provides a mobile app and a web portal with user centric dashboards to consolidate all relevant information on one screen. The user-friendly design enables the user to complete various requests from medication queries, administrative queries, symptom checking, self help,medical leave certificates, referral and requesting online and video consultations without having to leave home. v-Consult integrates with Systm-one(TPP) and EMIS, thereby integrating all the patient records and details. It therefore not only helps individuals to get more involved in the healthcare process but also ensures all the patient data is easily accessible to the patient.  

Introduction To The Business 

Capri Healthcare is an organization driven by the vision of turning NHS Digital first strategy into reality by bringing digital innovation into the working of NHS and private healthcare organisations. We lead healthcare organisations into the Digital Era by redesigning and developing patient centric online systems (Web & Mobile), reducing burden on staff and NHS. We pride ourselves in offering a range of technology-driven innovative solutions to the healthcare industry driving your digital agenda.  

Benefits of using v-Consult 

v-Consult is a tool for General Practices aimed at implementing a Total Triage model in general practice using online consultations. Its a win win solution for patients as well as practices.


Powered by clinically-proven, easy-to-use, scalable and quick to deploy digital solutions, v-Consult releases immediate value to GP practices, whilst future-proofing the business through : 
  1. Reduction in avoidable appointments.
  2. Automation that impacts nearly half of all administrative work in general practice (GP), and enhance the quality of care and work satisfaction.
  3. Significant annual cost savings for a practice, based on more efficient staff management and reducing unnecessary appointments.
  4. Improvement in referral and prescribing rates
  5. 24/7 access to care for patients through an online platform (configurable)
  6. Capturing high-quality clinical data to enable personal health care planning
  7. Forging a single healthcare system that ensures a seamless; triage-diagnosis-treatment-recover process for the patient 

Key Product Features 

  1. Covid-19 symptoms signposting
  2. Capture of critical illness information
  3. Workflow to identify clinical, prescription and admin tasks
  4. Images and documents submission
  5. Age restrictions control
  6. Integrated with SystmOne & EMIS
  7. Signpost patients to the most appropriate care
  8. GDPR compliant
  9. Post consultation patient survey
  10. Secure and encrypted data transfer for data protection 

Making v-Consult launch successful 

  1. Communicate a clear story for change to engage others in understanding the aims and benefits. 
  2. Allow plenty of time for discussion with staff and patients about the vision, analyse the current patient journey and how the technology and service redesign should translate to your setting, create the psychological safety to share ideas, concerns and assess readiness. Co-design the change process. 
  3. Map out your logic model - what effects do you anticipate online consultations will have for patients and staff, how will it do this and what might be the unintended consequences? It is important to factor in monitoring adverse consequences just as much as the benefits. 
  4. Build a strong change management working group to provide leadership, support champions and work with stakeholders e.g. suppliers, Primary Care Networks, commissioners, staff and patients to establish the new status quo, watching out for signs of backsliding. The working group may include, the practice manager, clinical and administrative change leaders, champions, reception team leader, patient members and PCN lead.
  5. Visualise your workflow, map the patient journey and admin process with an understanding of your demand, activity and capacity to ensure the design does not increase workload or deliver a poor experience. A sample workflow is shown below 
  6. Remove barriers to change - elements of the practice's business processes that conflict with the change need to be addressed.
  7. Avoid a difficult first week - choose a go-live week when there are no absences expected. Have daily team meetings initially to keep staff motivated and share positive feedback. Practices with previously long waiting times may experience a busy first week under the new system; consider bringing in extra cover forthe go-live week.
  8. Maintain momentum and don’t delay deployment - if the first few weeks are managed well, staff should notice their working lives improving. Be aware of the risk of progress stalling; there are likely to be opportunities for further efficiencies. It is helpful to facilitate feedback and the generation of new ideas, sharing comments, impact and usage figures with staff (including network practices) and patients, and driving a continuous cycle of improvement. 

Implementation Steps

We want you to get the most out of TotalTriage. Here’s a guide to get you started with a bang 

Step1: Involve all staff 

Each member of the practice has a crucial part to play in ensuring the success of Total Triage. Therefore, it is vital for your entire team to comprehend the purpose and significance of Total Triage.
We advise everyone to view the demo video and try out the product by submitting medical and administrative test queries. This hands-on experience will help them become acquainted with its functionalities. 

Step2: Update your phone message 

A good way to try and encourage patients to use Total Triage is while they’re waiting on hold to speak to the receptionist, or if they call out of hours. The following is an example of a message you can include in your recording: 
You can now submit non-urgent medical or administrative requests through our website using v-Consult. Please visit [website address] to find out more. 
Here are some examples of where you can add an access point to Total Triage using v-Consult. The more prominent the location, the more likely your patients will discover the Total Triage on their own and choose to contact you online rather than by phoning up the practice. 


Step4: Update your Security and Privacy page with the following content 

The data held into the v-Consult system is secure following Data Protection guidelines and governance standards. We take security seriously, so we have Strong Authentication, Access Management, Data protection, Consent management, Data encryption and Quality management security guidelines. 

How secure is the v-consult product? 

Capri Healthcare is NHS DSP Toolkit assessed and is also Cyber Essentials Plus certified. Our Data centers are UK based and conform to ISO27001:2017 standards. We endeavor to meet all relevant NHS Digital Interoperability standards. 
  1. v-Consult product has passed the Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA).  DPIA is a process to help you identify and minimise the data protection risks of a project.
  2. We are certified with Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus. 
  3. The product also passed the Penetration test. 

What is the online consultation privacy policy? 

By law, all organisations that use personal information (personal data) must provide a clear description of how it is used and also provide any related information to ensure the processing is carried out lawfully and fairly. Your GPs main Privacy Notice is available on their website. The additional information provided below describes only the use of your information when you use your GPs online consultation service. 

Please ensure you read your GPs main Privacy Policy and if you wish to use their online consultation service here, please also read the supplementary information below: 
our GP Practice has engaged a specialised online consultation supplier which is approved to NHS England technical standards and has gone through stringent scrutiny and achieved all necessary requirements to provide Online Consultations. NHS England, on behalf of your GP, contracts with the supplier and acts as a Joint Controller with your GP for this system. However, NHS England will not receive any of your personal information, so your GP remains responsible for your data and will ensure that any data you provide to use this service is used for the online consultation purposes only. 

The name of the organisation we have engaged to provide this service is Capri Healthcare Ltd. (v-Consult), who will act as a Processor of your personal data under GDPR. 

What are the purposes of the processing? 

Online consultations allow the GP’s patients to contact the Practice without having to wait on the phone or take time to come into the practice in person especially if a patient is not sure whether they need a face to face consultation. Online consultations enable patients to use a secure online system to ask questions, report symptoms and we can then respond by signposting patients to the right person e.g. a Doctor or to appropriate service or support. 

Step5: Inform your patients 

Inform your patients about the new wa Update y to reach you a week prior to the go-live date. Practices have employed various methods for this purpose, such as: 
  1. Sending SMS or email notifications to patients regarding the launch date. 
  2. Updating the practice website with relevant information.
  3. Making announcements on social media platforms.
  4. Notifying the patient participation group about the upcoming changes.

What support are given to the GP centres who are using the v-Consult? 

We provide email/ticketing, telephone and web chat support. Users can manage the status and priority of support tickets. 

Support Methods 

  1. Email or ticketing support: support@caprihealthcare.co.uk  
  2. Phone support: 0330 133 4047 
  3. WhatsApp support: 07739125435 
  4. Onsite Support: available at an extra cost 

Support hours 

  1. 9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
  2. Weekend support only available with a prior agreement and only for mission-critical issues. 

Support response times 

  1. Priority 1: Within 1 hour
  2. Priority 2: Within 4 hours 

Support levels 

  1. 1st line of support - general to product and procedure  
  2. 2nd line of support - technical support 
  3. 3rd line of support - back end support and changes to current functionality

Onboarding and Offboarding Support 

We provide very comprehensive and Robust onboarding services as part of our Go-Live activities. We provide training to the customer team including clinical and admin staff. We also offer training to members and anybody else using v-CONSULT. Additionally, we provide marketing materials such as Banner, Posters, leaflets and letterhead. 

Appendix 1: Sample patient communication 

The following template can be used to inform patients about the implementation one week before the launch date. 

Coming Soon: Introducing v-Consult 

We're thrilled to inform you about our upcoming launch of v-Consult, a convenient service tailored for our patients. Soon, you'll have access to this service directly through our practice website. v-Consult enables you to seek advice regarding your health concerns, symptoms, or request documents like sick notes, GP letters, and fit notes – all online. What makes v-Consult even more accessible is its availability round the clock, including evenings, weekends, and even during the night. 

To utilise this service, simply visit our practice website and click on the 'Consult our doctors online' button. Share your health query or concern by filling out a brief online form. Afterward, our team will respond to you by [the end of the next working day or your specified deadline] with the necessary guidance. This innovative approach means you can receive medical support without having to visit the surgery in person, unless a face-to-face appointment is essential. Be on the lookout for a call, email, or text from our practice detailing the next steps or informing you that your prescription is ready for collection. 

Appendix 2: Sample SMS requesting to complete v-Consult form 

Dear {{PATIENT_NAME}}, 

 In regard to your recent call to your GP surgery, please use the following link https://m85063.thevconsult.net/ and complete the online v-Consult (Online consultation) form.  

This request will be reviewed by a clinician and we'll get in touch with you by the end of the next working day. Please ensure you are reachable at your main contact number. 

 Thanks 

{{PRACTICE_NAME}} 


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