Reclaiming time and focus: The impact of Heidi at a busy London GP practice

Background

Dr. George Verghese is a GP partner at a bustling inner-city London practice with around 15,000 patients. With twelve years under his belt in this partnership role, he and his team care for a diverse demographic, offering both general medical services and enhanced access provisions to meet a wide range of health needs.

Challenge

Many clinicians will relate to the strain on general practice resources. Dr. Verghese’s practice is no exception. Juggling a growing patient list, evolving administrative burdens, and workforce issues can stretch any team thin.

Rising patient demand vs. capacity

With the growing number of patients each day and more complex cases to manage, Dr. Verghese explained,

"The number of patient contacts in a day are significantly higher than they have ever been. The nature of the work is also much more complicated."

Increased cognitive burden and stress

The mounting workload also contributed to cognitive strain on the team, particularly when balancing patient care with administrative duties. Dr. Verghese expressed,

"There are times where you can see that people's ability to do more work is harder and harder."

Burnout and sustainability

The relentless pace of work led to concerns about clinician sustainability, particularly with the demands of constant patient-facing contact. Dr. Verghese stated,

"I think if you ask any clinicians if they could carry on working at the pace they're working at, they would absolutely say no."

Despite efforts to manage this growing pressure - like hiring additional team members or distributing administrative tasks - the team struggled to strike a balance between the increasing demands and clinician well-being, until they discovered Heidi.

Solution

Heidi entered the picture when Dr. Verghese, dissatisfied with another product, heard about Heidi through digital health podcasts and social media. After testing the free version for a few months, he rolled it out for both clinical consults and non-clinical meetings, with immediate results. Heidi's ability to automate documentation and transcribe meetings allowed Dr. Verghese to reclaim valuable time.

"Heidi now really allows me to just maximally focus on what I have been trained to do, rather than all of the other admin bits."

Favourite features:

• Speedy transcription and summaries: Dr. Verghese has shaved off “at least an hour to two hours” from his clinical day.
• Versatile usage – He uses Heidi for patient consultations, referral letters, and even appraisals or practice meetings.
• Contextual AI support – Beyond transcription, Dr. Verghese road-tests Heidi for brainstorming additional questions, reflective entries, and more.

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Impact

The introduction of Heidi has drastically reduced administrative time, improved clinician satisfaction, and helped maintain a sustainable work pace.

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Key outcomes

• Up to 2 hours saved per day: Time saved on clinical documentation allows for more focused patient care.
• Improved clinician satisfaction: Reducing administrative burden has improved morale and well-being within the team.
• Increased productivity: With less cognitive load, Dr. Verghese can handle a higher patient volume without burnout.

Managing high demand with ease

With Heidi, Dr. Verghese and his team can continue delivering great patient care at scale, knowing that their documentation is handled.

"In a high-stress environment, that sort of thing can absolutely be a game changer in terms of satisfaction."

Cognitive capacity unlocked

Despite the busy schedule, Dr. Verghese feels less mentally taxed at the end of the days, and more present with his patients during consults. 

"Heidi now really allows me to just maximally focus on what I have been trained to do."

Longer and more fulfilling career

"Honestly, I think it’ll keep us in the game for longer and it'll be much more satisfying."

Unexpected benefit

The team has also benefited from Heidi's transcription features for non-clinical meetings, significantly improving communication and organisation.

"I’ve used it as a great tool in terms of its transcriptions... it works really, really well."

What’s next

With Heidi now an integral part of daily practice, Dr. Verghese feels more confident about managing growing patient demand. The team plans to explore further use cases to optimise patient care, including more proactive initiatives.

"If Heidi didn’t exist or ceased to exist, I can’t even imagine how we would manage. It’s truly been a game changer."