Patients signing up for an NHS-backed on-line GP service do not always realise they are being deregistered from their local practice, it has been claimed.

The Sunday Times reported yesterday (15 April 2018) that patients signing up for NHS-backed GP at Hand – an online service that promises to connect people with an NHS doctor within minutes – have later discovered they are unable to access their usual GP services.

Instead they are registered to a practice in west London.

GP surgeries say they have received complaints from their former patients, who were unaware that signing up to the app would subsequently deregister them.

And a report last year by the Hammersmith and Fulham clinical commissioning group concluded that GP at Hand had not provided “adequate clarity” to potential patients that they could be deregistered from their usual GP service.

Babylon Health, which launched the app, says anyone signing up is made aware through a “prominent disclaimer” during sign-up. However, critics say that the disclaimer is easily missed.

Dr Jackie Applebee, of Tower Hamlets local medical committee, told the newspaper that the app had increased the burden, rather than eased the pressure, on family GPs.

“Surgeries like my own are getting lots of calls from angry patients who didn’t realise that by using GP at Hand they were deregistering from their usual surgery,” she said.

“Patients often want to reregister, which is inconvenient for the patient and onerous for the practice.”

GP at Hand said it had attracted 40,000 patients since it launched six months ago and had received four and five-star reviews from 90% of the users who had rated it.

“Every GP at Hand member receives very clear information upon sign-up that they will be deregistering from their current NHS practice, because of the way NHS GP contracting works,” it said.

“It is high time that everyone respected people’s right to choose the NHS GP service that works best for them. No other GP service that we know of can match our standard of service.

“With over 200 NHS GPs serving our GP at Hand members, we know that most progressive GPs respect people’s right to choose the NHS GP service that works best for them.”