NEW PUSH DOCTOR INVESTMENT TO HELP SCALE DIGITAL SUPPORT FOR NHS THROUGH SECOND WAVE
- Push Doctor secures new investment to scale its digital services and support the NHS deal with unprecedented demand
- Push Doctor has doubled its patient reach to 5.4 million since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, through new partnerships with the NHS across the country
- Push Doctor forms new partnership with Well Pharmacy to provide unique “digital pharmacy first” platform offering consultations to NHS patients
- GP surgeries across Stockport and West Devon are the latest to partner with Push Doctor to reach almost 350,000 patients securely and quickly
London: Push Doctor, the leading digital healthcare company, is to invest significant funds to further support the NHS though the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. Push Doctor has recently secured £13.7m through a Series C funding round led by the European venture capital firm Draper Esprit, with ADV also contributing.
Push Doctor’s model has evolved from focusing on signing-up patients directly to its platform to partnering with Primary Care Networks (PCNs) and CCGs (Clinical Commissioning Groups) within the NHS. This has allowed it to expand while providing gold standard support to GP surgeries throughout the pandemic. Push Doctor is the digital provider rated most highly by the Care Quality Commission.
By forging new partnerships with the NHS across the country, the number of people who can access Push Doctor’s services has more than doubled since March, rising to 5.4 million. Among the latest PCNs to partner with Push Doctor are Viaduct and Sound in Stockport and West Devon, respectively. These two partnerships alone will enable a further 342,000 people to see a GMC-registered doctor within minutes and at a time that suits them, including in the evenings.
The latest investment by Push Doctor, which enables the delivery of online consultations within the NHS, will give more clinicians and patients immediate access to secure and convenient appointments. This forms part of the NHS Long Term Plan to give every patient in the UK access to online digital GP consultations.
Push Doctor’s will also be expanding its market leading Digital Locum offering, to meet growing demand for the service in hospitals and GP surgeries. The funds will also go towards supporting clinicians across the NHS get the most from Push Doctor’s capabilities as they adopt its technology solutions to help them.
The UK has seen a surge in demand for digital health solutions like online GP consultations, as Covid-19 necessitates a move away from face-to-face interactions between patients and doctors. NHS Digital data estimates around half of the 102 million GP appointments from March to July took place over the phone or via video call[1].
As part of its continuing growth, Push Doctor is also launching a new partnership with Well Pharmacy which will see the company’s technology power an innovative “digital pharmacy first” platform, offering consultations to NHS patients in the Plymouth area. This will reduce demand on general practice and offer patients an instant video consultation with a pharmacist where appropriate.
Wais Shaifta, Chief Executive, Push Doctor, said:
“At Push Doctor, we are in a privileged position to be able to provide a service that can make life easier for both GPs and patients. We want to continue and deepen the support we’ve already been providing throughout the pandemic, to help the NHS and patients emerge even stronger from Covid-19.
“We are proud to be playing our part in helping our National Health Service through this challenging period and these funds will be put to work in scaling-up the NHS’s digital offering at a critical time in its existence.”
The Series C investment follows previous rounds of funding in 2015 and 2017, where a total of $26.1m was raised from long-term investors ADV and Draper Esprit, with participation from major European funds, Oxford Capital, Partech Ventures and Seventure Partners.
