Apple Health Records reach the U.K.
The Health app on the iPhone lets users have direct access to their health records. Apple Health Records has been in the States since 2018 and today it makes its first move beyond the U.S. From today, it’s available in the U.K. and Canada. Apple has just revealed the news on its website.
It means that patients can be more engaged in their own health by seeing relevant information gathered together in one place and provide key elements of medical history, something that’s particularly useful when visiting a new doctor.
The United Kingdom has a much-loved public health system, the National Health Service (NHS). The NHS is often referred to as having the most valuable database in the world, so the only way Health Records will work in the U.K. is if users feel it’s safe, secure and private.
Although it works with individual companies and institutions in the U.S., the U.K.’s national system is very different. The first institutions to make this feature available to patients are Oxford University Hospitals and Milton Keynes University Hospital. More medical facilities will connect to Health Records in the coming months.
Apple Health Records in the Oxford University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
The benefit for patients of Apple Health Records is that a patient’s medical records which have previously been held in multiple locations are now more accessible, thanks to a more direct connection between the healthcare provider and the user’s iPhone.
Can’t remember what you last immunization was? The app can tell you. Want to check your healthcare professional has a full list of your allergies? Now you can.
“We designed Health Records on iPhone to empower people to easily view their health records at any time, and we are thrilled to put this feature in the hands of customers in the U.K. and Canada,” said Kevin Lynch, Apple’s vice president of Technology.
“We believe people should have access to their health information in the most private and secure way, and we have worked hand in hand with healthcare institutions and organizations to put privacy at the centre of the patient experience.”
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