Thread by @HarryAEvans

The findings from the pilot of the NHS app was released today. It was tested with 3,000 users and the followed up with surveys and interviews with staff and patients. Thread follows. digital.nhs.uk/services/nhs-a…

The first thing is to say: "yes, yes, yes". We need more rapid testing like this in tech, with staff and patients. The report chronicles the findings and what the team is acting on as a result.

It's great to see this happening. It's great to see it published. And while I'm sure people will want to see it written up in a gold-plated, peer-reviewed journal, our services would be so much better if every team did this on a regular basis.

On the data - there is a little insight. Repeat prescriptions look very popular (and this is backed up by the user research), and appointment booking and cancellations don't look overly high (though hard to know how to benchmark).

In terms of users, it looks like a mix of age groups are using this. Particularly popular among 25-54s, but noticeable that over 75s have barely used the app. This is not surprising, but needs to be remembered.

Text messaging prompts seem pretty effective at encouraging uptake. But - and this is particularly interesting - two thirds of App users had never used a GP online service before.

This suggests a couple of things to me:
A. there's lots of people out there that would like to try online services that haven't
B. having a single front door for online services probably has its merits in terms of encouraging uptake

On usability, users seemed to find the two-step authentication frustrating (it doesn't compare well with expectations from online banking for example). The team added biometric verficiation as a result.

People were put off by there not being enough GP appointments available. I've said it before but this is CRUCIAL - if people download the app and can't find any appointments, it loses so much value for them.

Changes in the GP contract mean that from July there will be 25% of GP appointments made available online. But people are downloading and using this *today*.

Similarly with medical record access - many people were not seeing the information they needed and so switching off.

People loved ordering repeat prescriptions - and people find it easy and convenient doing so online. Great to see such positive comments on this.

On working with staff, it seems to have been broadly positively received. However, there's lots in there about the support that needs to be provided to explain the app and what it means. Can the NHS app team deliver this successfully to every practice?

That's a tall order. I know that many practices will be concerned about what this means for them, so there needs to be quite intensive work to support GPs as the app continues roll out.

I'd also like to see more analysis of individual-level data. The appointment booking and cancelling thing is particularly important. Why and how are patients using the app to access services?

The other thing I'd dearly like to see is an analysis of inequalities. What work is being done to make sure the app is useable by a whole spectrum of patients? App use is growing with some disadvantged groups, but not others. And who benefits if appts are made available online?

But while there are many implications of the App we still have yet to understand, you can't fault this report as a starting point for understanding patients/staff experience and acting on that. /Thread.