First NHS physiotherapy clinic run by AI to start this year. New platform to provide same-day appointments with digital physiotherapist in effort to cut waiting times
https://www.theguardian.com/society/article/2024/jun/09/first-nhs-physiotherapy-clinic-run-by-ai-to-start-this-year
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The new platform will provide same-day automated video appointments with a digital physiotherapist via an app that responds to information provided by a patient in real time.
It is the first platform of its kind to be approved by the health regulator, the Care Quality Commission, as a registered healthcare provider.
Patients seeking physiotherapy for issues such as back pain can be referred to the platform Flok Health through a community or primary care healthcare setting, such as their GP. They can also self-refer directly into the service.
The service aims to provide faster care and reduce waiting times and pressure on clinicians, those behind it say.
Waiting lists for treatment for musculoskeletal (MSK) problems such as back, neck, and knee pain have grown by 27% since January last year. According to the NHS website, more than 30m working days are lost to MSK conditions every year in the UK, and they account for up to 30% of GP consultations in England.
Those behind the Flok app, co-founded by the medic and former professional rower Finn Stevenson, say initial trial results show its effectiveness. As part of a series of three-month pilot studies between May and December 2023, more than 1000 NHS staff suffering from back pain self-referred to an AI physiotherapist for treatment.
All of those surveyed patients from the NHS pilot said their experience with Flok had been at least equivalent to seeing a human physiotherapist, and 57% of patients said they thought the AI experience was better.
The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) said the number of physiotherapy posts in the NHS was not keeping pace with demand from Britain’s ageing and increasingly obese population.
CSP health informatics lead, Euan McComiskie, said of the AI clinic: “There is no doubt that more needs to be done to tackle huge NHS waiting lists, particularly for musculoskeletal services and AI has huge potential to be an adjunct to the work of physiotherapists. However, AI cannot yet replicate the clinical judgment and skills of a physiotherapist, who is required to be registered with a statutory regulator, the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).”
McComiskie added that physiotherapists manage “increasing complexity in patient presentation and their treatment needs to be individually tailored”. He said: “It is early days to know how much AI can eventually provide clinical decision making and more research is needed … but not at the cost of patient access, safety, experience nor trust.”
Hmm, I would love to know what AI is being used here. In my limited experience with AI it is just not advanced enough to be used in this way. I need to look at the healthcare system y’all have going over there in the UK because this seems like it is being implemented far too soon. The article does mention that the AI does not diagnose. I also did not see any mention of the AI prescribing anything. This looks like a way to artificially cut down on wait times without providing holistic patient care. For musculoskeletal health problems as well.. which are complex.
Great, my new interest will be to find out what the hell y’all have going on over there in the UK- healthcare-wise.