Doctors object to online and smartphone GP consultations

The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) has called on the Government to stop health insurers offering their customers access to doctors by phone or video conference.

Aviva is promoting GP consultations for their members via smartphone while the VHI has teamed up with an online service through which customers can get prescriptions.

The IMO claims such services pose a serious risk to patients and should be stopped.

“These are not medical consultations in any real meaning of the word,” said Dr Ray Walley, chairman of its GP committee.

“There are serious risks of misdiagnosis or prescription errors because there is no proper consultation between patient and doctor and there is no personalised continuity of care or opportunity for a doctor to understand the personal and family medical history of the individual in question.”

Aviva is to provide a GP consultation service over smartphones to new members on 13 of its plans who subscribe before the end of April. It claims research shows two-thirds of adults are interested in using a Skype-type GP service.

“Customers who buy one of these plans can use the benefit for the duration of the policy year or until their three consultations are used within the policy year,” said a spokeswoman, adding that the benefit would be made available to more customers on other plans in the coming months.

Competition among insurers is increasing in the run-up to the introduction of lifetime community rating in May, which will impose penalties on new subscribers who join over the age of 34.

The service from UK-based Babylon Health is available from 8am to 8pm Monday to Saturday. Aviva says all Babylon's GPs are registered with the Medical Council here and work in traditional practices as well.

In the UK, Babylon charges £29 (€39.50) sterling per consultation.