NHS app to be ‘most comprehensive on these islands’, vows SNP

Scots will have the “most comprehensive” NHS app in the UK when a new system goes live in the coming days, the Health Secretary had pledged.

The Scottish Government has previously come under fire for lagging behind England in the use of such technology, but Neil Gray said Scotland’s NHS MyCare app will be “the most comprehensive app on these islands”.

It is expected to go live next week – though the Government said last year the full rollout would “take place in stages” until 2030.

In England, an NHS app which allows patients to book appointments, order prescriptions and see their medical records has been in place since 2019.

Mr Gray said the Scottish NHS MyCare app had been “created in-house, free from dodgy tech giants”.

He spoke about the app as he said technology and innovation will be “at the heart” of SNP plans for the NHS, ahead of the Holyrood election next month.

“Paper prescriptions will make way for digital ones, making it far easier for people to access medicines with a GP to pharmacy end-to-end system,” he said.

“On top of that, we will develop a brand new NHS AI hub to drive safe and ethical solutions for our NHS to support our staff, not replace them.

“When it comes to our NHS we will be bold and embrace the opportunities that technology presents us – that’s how to build a modern health service that works for patients.”

Healthcare has been one of the key issues in the election campaign, with the SNP Government coming under fire over missed waiting times targets.

Scottish Liberal Democrats on Sunday challenged the Government on the number of GPs quitting the NHS early.

A freedom of information request by the party found that of the 2,529 GPs who have retired since 2015, 97% of them – 2,458 doctors – did so before they had reached the state retirement age.

The Liberal Democrats say they would recruit 900 new “multidisciplinary patient-facing staff” for GP practices and community health work, including nurses, physiotherapists, pharmacists and mental health professionals.

They also want pharmacists to be able to do more prescribing for patients, and propose creating dedicated key worker housing – benefitting health workers amongst other groups.

Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “Weighed down by constant workload pressures, GPs have very little incentive to stay on in the profession.

“When almost all of retiring GPs are leaving early, staff shortages build up in the system, making it harder for patients to get the appointments and care they desperately need.

“After 19 years, the SNP cannot be trusted to help staff or patients. This is a party that hired less than one in 10 of the GPs they promised in 2017.

“From hiring more specialist staff to work alongside GPs and manage patient need, to enabling pharmacists to do more prescribing, Scottish Liberal Democrats have got a realistic plan to get everyone the first-rate healthcare they need when they need it.”