Transforming Private GP Care Through Secure, Efficient Digital Access
Dr Arpit Srivastava, an experienced NHS GP and Clinical Director in North Swindon, has dedicated nearly a decade to both primary care and clinical governance, with additional contributions to NICE’s Technology Appraisals Committee. Alongside his NHS role, Dr Srivastava and his wife regularly found themselves providing informal medical advice to friends and family. This familiar scenario sparked an idea: what if everyone could access timely, trustworthy medical guidance, without needing a doctor in their contacts? Thus, MessageGP.com was born.
Initially conceived as a simple solution for accessible healthcare guidance, MessageGP.com has evolved into a robust, secure private GP service offering online consultations and home visits. Dr Srivastava recognised early on that informal messaging was not clinically safe, and he was committed to building a service that prioritised governance and patient safety. Over time, supported by reliable clinical systems, MessageGP.com has grown “from strength to strength”, delivering high-quality care efficiently and securely.
Today, MessageGP.com supports 20–40 patients weekly, with consultations covering everything from minor ailments to complex medical histories. Some patients seek more time to discuss long-standing health issues, while others book in for specialised weight-loss consultations, a particular area of interest for Dr Srivastava, who has witnessed significant, positive outcomes for his patients.
A consistent challenge in private practice is accessing comprehensive, up-to-date clinical information quickly enough to ensure safe, effective consultations. Patients do their best to complete medical questionnaires, but important details can be missed, especially in complex cases involving multiple NHS interactions. Without fast access to relevant background, consultation time can be lost to piecing together a patient’s history.
ORB Connect has become central to solving this challenge at MessageGP.com. Dr Srivastava describes how seamless access to a patient’s medical history, medication list, investigations, and clinic correspondence – before the appointment – transforms the quality and pace of consultations. He often makes a brief call ahead of time to clarify the patient’s main concerns, then uses ORB Connect to review relevant records while the patient is still on the line. As a result, he enters each appointment fully prepared, allowing consultation time to be used where it matters most: focused on the patient.
This preparation goes beyond efficiency; it fundamentally enhances the patient experience. When patients feel their concerns are understood and addressed from the outset, satisfaction and trust increase. For complex cases, Dr Srivastava can devote the full 30–40 minutes to meaningful conversation and planning, rather than “deciphering and digging” through fragmented records.
Safety is paramount at MessageGP.com. ORB Connect enables evidence-based prescribing by providing instant access to current medications, underlying conditions, and recent test results, such as kidney and liver function. For example, when a patient enquired about propranolol for anxiety, Dr Srivastava quickly identified a past history of asthma in the patient’s records, a detail the patient did not mention because they thought it seemed irrelevant. This timely insight allowed him to avoid an inappropriate prescription and guide the conversation towards safer alternatives.
Access to live, continually updated NHS records is another significant advantage. Traditional approaches often require patients to request printed summaries from their GP, leading to delays and out-of-date information. ORB Connect eliminates these bottlenecks, reducing the risk of relying on outdated data and lightening the load on busy NHS practice staff.
For Dr Srivastava, ORB Connect has become indispensable. He estimates it saves 10–20 minutes per patient, particularly for complex cases and weight-loss consultations, delivering what he calls a “massive time save every day”. He can’t imagine running his private practice without it.
The impact is clear: before a recent weight-loss consultation, ORB Connect revealed that a patient was taking a hormonal contraceptive, allowing Dr Srivastava to tailor the conversation and ensure informed, patient-centred care. For him, this is the essence of better healthcare – using technology to prepare thoroughly, prescribe safely, and dedicate quality time to patients.
ORB Connect empowers Dr Srivastava and his team at MessageGP.com to deliver faster, safer, and more personalised care.
Leave a Reply