Digital triage provider eConsult Health has acquired video consultation and SMS platform Q doctor.
The deal combines online triage, video, telephony and SMS in one joined-up solution for GP surgeries and hospitals.
eConsult secured a £7 million investment from Gresham House Ventures and Calculus Capital in October 2020 to fuel expansion into the secondary care market.
It allows patients to submit their symptoms or requests to their own GP electronically and offers round-the-clock NHS self-help information, signposting to services, and a symptom checker.
eConsult is trusted by 3,330 GP surgeries and has been used to complete over 13m online consultations. Its eTriage platform, purpose-built for urgent and emergency care, is also growing in popularity and is currently in use at nine hospitals including Worthing & St Richards in Western Sussex.
Q doctor has designed and built a market leading platform to bring doctors and patients together using video and SMS, as well as a virtual desktop application for health practitioners to increase efficiency.
The first video platform to gain NHS approval in 2018, Q doctor has built a strong reputation in the primary healthcare market, supplying nearly 500 GP surgeries. It has also gained a foothold in both urgent and emergency care and out-patients at sites across the UK, including the STP wide contract in Lincolnshire.
eConsult’s digital triage prioritises patient requests based on their symptoms and Q doctor’s functionality enables safe, secure remote communications between patient and GP.
Access is extended to people who struggle to visit the surgery during the working week while ensuring that in-person appointments are available for those who need them most.
Dr Murray Ellender, CEO of eConsult, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Chris and the Q doctor team into the eConsult family.
“By extending our offer to include video and SMS we are continuing to deliver on our mission to support the UK’s hard-working GPs who are under great pressure at the same time as improving access for patients across the country.”
Both companies are based in London and were founded by NHS doctors who are deeply committed to the NHS and the principle of high-quality, safe and effective care.
Q doctor’s founder and CEO Dr Chris Whittle has been appointed to its executive leadership team and his team will officially become part of eConsult, which is based in Canary Wharf, London.
Dr Whittle commented: “After nearly two years of successfully partnering with eConsult to deliver our combined service to GP surgeries across the country, this decision was a natural and exciting one – as it gives our customers a much stronger, combined offering.
“Murray and the team share our core values and our determination to transform digital healthcare.”