Health sector reacts to plans for an ‘online hospital’ in England

There was big news from prime minister Keir Starmer last week with plans to launch an ‘online hospital’ by 2027, digitally connecting NHS patients in England to expert clinicians.

Sir Jim Mackey, chief executive at NHS England, said that NHS Online would “deliver millions more appointments by the end of the decade, offering a real alternative for patients and more control over their own care”.

However questions have been raised about the lack of detail, such as who will run the new service, where the clinicians will come from and how to tackle digital exclusion.

We asked leaders from across the health and tech sectors for their reactions to the plan. Here’s what they had to say:

Enhancing patient care

Dr Mohammad Al-Ubaydl,chief executive, Patients Know Best: 

“This is a good idea. It allows specialists in the efficiencies of online consultations to focus on reducing the backlog, we’ve seen this work in Saudi Arabia, with the world’s largest virtual hospital. 

“This also grows the available workforce by allowing flexible working. 

“For some patients online consultations gather better information, such as seeing a mental health patient at home, and for others it is safer care, such as cystic fibrosis patients who get infections from hospital waiting rooms.”

Dr Eleanor Wicks, chief medical officer, Lifeyear:

“The launch of NHS Online is a landmark moment for patient care in England. By connecting patients to specialist clinicians digitally, this initiative promises faster access, greater convenience, and more control for patients, while reducing local waiting list pressures.

“What makes this announcement particularly exciting is the opportunity it creates for a collaborative health tech ecosystem. 

This approach not only enhances patient experience but also frees up hospital capacity for those who need face-to-face care

“For innovators, SMEs, and emerging digital health companies, NHS Online opens the door to integrate solutions directly into care pathways such as remote monitoring and virtual consultations to patient management tools. 

“This approach not only enhances patient experience but also frees up hospital capacity for those who need face-to-face care. Done well, NHS Online could be transformational for both patients and the broader health innovation ecosystem.”

Richard Armstrong, director, registries and real-world evidence, NEC Software Solutions: 

“This is a positive development towards digitally enabling more personalised and convenient NHS services that better reflect the needs of patients. 

“The focus on embedding patients into the design process is especially welcome, recognising that services are most effective when shaped around lived experience. 

“It presents opportunities for intelligent pathway management and for digital services to support more appropriate referrals, reducing the large number of clinical days currently lost each year to inappropriate referrals. This could free up capacity for those who need it most.”

Alex Johnston, director, Solventum Health Information Systems:

“The announcement of NHS Online is a bold step in reimagining healthcare delivery for England. By connecting patients to expert clinicians wherever they live, this model has the power to cut waiting times, reduce inequalities, and give patients greater choice and control. 

“We see NHS Online as a natural evolution of the NHS’s digital-first vision, where data flows seamlessly and clinicians are empowered to focus more on patients and less on paperwork.

“This isn’t just about technology; it’s about equity, empowerment, and sustainability. NHS Online shows that care can be both digital and human, efficient and compassionate.

Ensuring secure foundations

Ric Thompson, senior vice president health and care, OneAdvanced:

“The NHS online hospital is a bold step towards reimagining how care is delivered. 

“To succeed, it must be inclusive, clinically safe and seamlessly connected with existing services — ensuring digital innovation strengthens, rather than fragmented patient care. 

“Achieving this will require genuine collaboration between the NHS and its technology partners.” 

Dr Andrew Whiteley, founder and managing director of  British MedTech firm, Lexacom:

“Sir Keir’s vision for a fully digital NHS is an important and welcome step. Putting patient care at the centre of digital reform is the right focus, and technology can play a vital role in easing pressures on GPs, freeing them from unnecessary administration, and ultimately improving the patient experience.

For a digital NHS to succeed, patients need absolute confidence that their data is protected

“But as we accelerate this journey, we must also make sure the foundations are secure. Public trust in how data is used remains fragile – with thousands of health sector data breaches reported in recent years and widespread concern about big tech handling personal information. 

“For a digital NHS to succeed, patients need absolute confidence that their data is protected, and clinicians need to know they can rely on safe, compliant systems. 

“That balance between innovation and protection will be crucial in making this transformation a success for everyone.”

Sokratis Papafloratos, chief executive and founder, Numan:

“The launch of NHS Online in 2027 marks a hugely exciting new chapter for the health service, and we welcome Keir Starmer’s commitment to making the NHS fit for the future. 

“The key challenges will be ensuring there are safe pathways between digital and physical services, and that the workforce is equipped to deliver this at scale. 

“Digital first healthcare is already proving transformative in the private sector who have valuable experience in regulation, data security and app development that the NHS should lean on as it builds this service.  

If we can get regulation, interoperability and data sharing right this initiative could be transformative

“If we can get regulation, interoperability and data sharing right this initiative could be transformative, offering faster access, greater choice and better outcomes for patients. 

“An ‘open banking’ style model for health data will put patients in control of their health records unlocking safer, more connected care. 

“With the right regulation and collaboration, NHS Online could mark the beginning of a digital revolution for the future of UK healthcare.”  

Martin Bradbury regional vice president, UK&I, Dynatrace:

 “Moving NHS services online demands flawless and secure digital interactions, as even brief website outages could undermine patient safety and damage public trust. 

“That means investment must go beyond software to the frameworks that keep digital services resilient.”

Kath Dean, president, Cloud21:

“The creation of NHS Online marks a bold and exciting step in modernising patient care. By giving people faster access to specialists and more control over their care, this initiative has real potential to reduce waiting times and improve equity across the system. 

“But transformation cannot be about technology for its own sake. To succeed, NHS Online must focus on outcomes: reducing pressures on clinicians, improving patient pathways, and ensuring digital services integrate seamlessly with physical care.”

The need to scale services at speed

Tom Whicher, chief executive, DrDoctor:

“I’m fully supportive of any initiative to modernise the NHS and improve access to care. But 2027 isn’t exactly right around the corner, and patients stuck on waiting lists need solutions today. 

“I’m keen to ensure that we’re bold and ambitious, but that we aren’t distracted by shiny projects at the expense of proven technologies that are already available to roll out. 

2027 isn’t exactly right around the corner, and patients stuck on waiting lists need solutions today

“There’s huge potential in tools that we’re already seeing drive results across the system. It’s about how we scale these at speed that matters”.

Kat James, managing director at Consultant Connect:

“An online NHS hospital service by 2027 is a welcome signal that the government recognises the need to deliver care fit for this day and age, but we cannot afford to wait another two years before patients feel the benefit. 

“The technology and models already exist and are ready to be scaled. Video consultations, virtual triage and even remote emergency rooms are proven to work safely and effectively in other health systems around the world.

“The ambition is positive, but the real test will be how quickly these services are embedded into frontline practice. 

“Patients and clinicians are ready for the switch – the NHS must be too.”

Digital exclusion fears

Dr Harry Thirkettle, director of health innovation, Aire Logic:

“This marks a bold step towards a truly patient-centred, digital-first healthcare system. Yet, to ensure this online hospital serves everyone, not just the digitally savvy, we must confront the digital divide head-on. 

“The centre will need to forge partnerships with health tech suppliers to deliver innovative, affordable solutions that bridge these gaps and provide a service which is easy to use. 

“This will be a huge undertaking and currently it’s not clear how it will work or how it will be funded.”

Mark Gale, policy manager at the national disability charity, Sense:

“It’s hugely important that any digitalisation of the NHS works for disabled people. Digitisation has the potential to offer new, better ways to support disabled people, particularly around offering better integration with social care. 

If online offers aren’t accessible, this can have a massive impact on disabled people’s health

“However, if online offers aren’t accessible, this can have a massive impact on disabled people’s health.

“Our data found nearly half of disabled people with complex needs find it difficult to book a medical appointment online and one in four say they struggle to ever contact their GP in an accessible way.

“We therefore welcome the government’s commitment that online services will supplement rather than replace face-to-face appointments, and call for safeguards to ensure nobody’s health suffers if they can’t get online easily.”

Dr Rachael Grimaldi, co-founder and chief medical officer at CardMedic: 

“The new NHS Online hospital is a bold, necessary leap to modernise care, yet for a solution of this scale to be truly transformative, its design must be fundamentally inclusive from day one. 

“We need a clear blueprint for how this will work in practice which is currently missing. 

“Any virtual service must proactively dismantle communication barriers for the significant proportion of the population facing foreign language differences, low health literacy and sensory impairments. Integrating robust, multi-format support – such as EasyRead, sign language videos and multi-lingual content – is not optional. Without it, this ambitious initiative risks creating a dangerous digital-exclusion gap that will widen, not reduce, existing health inequalities. 

“This feels like a plan that will either change everything for the better or make things a whole lot worse.”