£150K to provide online GP consultations?

Pulse Today reported yesterday that a private health insurer is claiming that GPs could earn up to £150,000 per year working from home, by delivering an online consultation service.

Vitality – formerly PruHealth – is seeking 10 UK-based GPs to staff the online GP service offered to all of its health insurance customers.

The GPs would have to undertake 20 hours of training, within a fortnight, after which the health insurer is promising pay GPs £60 per hour.

Other insurance firms are also offering an online consultation service that is provided by private GPs, although they have been criticised as ‘Martini medicine’ by GP leaders.

GPs will provide 15-minute GP consultations via webcam and authorise electronic private prescriptions.

Following the completion of the desired training course, which includes online modules as well as a face-to-face IT system training session, GPs can book in for ‘flexible’ shifts during Monday to Friday 8am-7pm and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays when the service is available.
The news comes as Pulse reported last month on a new online service offering patients 10-minute online GP consultations via video link for £25 per session. The new service – called Push Doctor – has a network of more than 7,000 GPs who are available from 6am to 10pm for appointments, and works via a downloadable app.