Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effect of (a) remote and (b) telephone GP appointments on patient well-being.

NHS England and NHS Improvement are currently carrying out an evaluation of online and video consultations in general practice to understand their impact. They are also working collaboratively with patients and a number of research organisations who are conducting studies on digital access. This work will improve NHS England and NHS Improvement’s view of patient impact and experience, which will be used in work with suppliers to improve the design and accessibility of digital systems to better meet patient needs.