The adoption of digital health technologies has changed the UK private practice sector. While the initial shift to video consultations was driven by necessity during the pandemic, it has now evolved into a preferred model of care for many patients, offering convenience and accessibility.
However, for practice managers and clinic owners, this shift presents a complex challenge: how do you maintain rigorous clinical governance, safety, and efficiency without a physical exam? This telehealth consultation template guide for remote care is designed to help you navigate these complexities.
This guide demonstrates how implementing a robust system can streamline your operations, ensuring you meet NHS remote consulting policy standards while improving the patient journey. We will explore how to structure your documentation, ensure CQC compliance, and utilise digital tools to reduce the administrative burden on your clinical team.
Developing a Telehealth Consultation Template for Remote Care
A robust telehealth consultation template serves as a safety net for the clinician. It ensures that even when a patient is not physically present, no critical clinical information is missed. While the core clinical data remains similar to a physical consultation, a remote template must include specific fields to address the unique risks and requirements of digital care, particularly when conducting remote consultations.
At the very top of the template, identity verification is paramount. Under Data Protection (GDPR) and UK data protection laws, you must be certain you are speaking to the correct patient before disclosing medical information.
A template should prompt the clinician to confirm the patient's date of birth and address at the start of the call. Following this, explicit consent for the video consultation must be recorded. This involves explaining the limitations of a remote assessment and ensuring the patient understands that a physical examination may be required if symptoms persist or worsen.
Essential Template Fields
The clinical section of the template should be structured to maximise the utility of the video medium. Unlike a physical exam, where a doctor can observe signs directly, a telehealth template requires fields for "Environmental Check" and "Carer Presence." The clinician needs to document that the patient is in a safe, private location and confirm if anyone else is present in the room, which is crucial for safeguarding.
| Template Section | Key Fields Required | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Patient Verification | DOB, Address, Photo ID check | GDPR compliance and identity confirmation |
| Consent & Safety | Consent to video consult, Safeguarding check | Legal protection and patient safety |
| Clinical History | Presenting complaint, History of present complaint | Standard medical data collection |
| Outcome & Plan | Diagnosis, Safety netting advice, Follow-up plan | Ensures continuity of care |
Use Intake Form Before the Video Call
Efficiency in telehealth is largely determined by what happens before the video connection is established. In a traditional surgery setting, a patient arrives, checks in, and fills out a paper form in the waiting room. In a remote setting, this process must be replicated digitally.
If a clinician has to spend the first five minutes of a ten-minute consultation asking for administrative details or basic medical history, the value of the appointment is significantly diminished.
To streamline this, implement a digital intake workflow using telehealth best practices for practice managers. When a patient books an appointment, they should receive an automated link to a secure form. This form should cover current symptoms, medical history, and current medications. Thus, the patient provides more accurate information, and the clinician can review the data prior to the appointment.
Medesk automates this through its patient portal and customisable medical forms. When an appointment is scheduled, the system triggers an invitation for the patient to complete their intake. The results are automatically synced to the patient's file in Medesk.
Additionally, automated appointment reminders containing the video link are crucial to reduce DNA (Did Not Attend) rates. By ensuring the patient has the link and instructions in advance, combined with the pre-appointment form completion, the actual consultation time can be 100% dedicated to clinical decision making.
Many clinics report that this workflow alone saves an average of 5 to 10 minutes per consultation, which allows for an increase in daily patient capacity without extending working hours.
Customising Templates for Private Practice Scenarios
The versatility of private practice means that a one size fits all approach rarely works. The requirements for a Physiotherapy assessment differ vastly from a GP medication review. Therefore, your practice management software must allow for scenario-specific templates. This specialisation improves the speed of documentation and ensures that the data captured is relevant to the specific clinical guidelines, such as those issued by NICE.
1. GP Follow-up (Medication Review)
For a remote medication review, the template should focus on compliance, side effects, and efficacy. It should list current medications and prompt the doctor to ask specific questions about adherence. This aligns with the GP remote consultation framework designed to ensure safety. The outcome section should automatically generate a prescription request or a sick note if appropriate, integrating directly with the billing module for the consultation fee.
2. Physiotherapy Initial Assessment
Remote physiotherapy relies heavily on self-guided physical examination. The template should guide the clinician to instruct the patient on specific movements (e.g., "Please stand and raise your arms above your head"). The template needs fields for "Visual Observation of Posture" and "Active Range of Motion." Since the physiotherapist cannot palpate the injury, the template must include detailed pain scoring charts and functional questionnaires.
3. Mental Health Check-in
In mental health settings, the template should prioritise risk assessment. It must include mandatory fields for suicide risk, self-harm, and safeguarding concerns. The template can include validated scoring systems like the GAD-7 or PHQ-9, which can be shared via the intake form prior to the session. This allows the therapist to spend the session discussing the results rather than calculating them.
Medesk’s clinical notes templates engine allows practices to create these specific formats without coding. You can access a library of templates to get started, tailoring them to the specific tone and requirements of your clinic. By having these consultation form templates available at the click of a button, you ensure that your clinicians are not starting with a blank page, reducing cognitive load and minimising the risk of missing key clinical indicators.
What is a Hybrid Consultation Model?
The ultimate goal of implementing templates is to create a seamless path from booking to payment, often utilizing a hybrid consultation model. A disjointed workflow, where the video call happens on one platform, the notes in another, and the billing in a third, creates friction and data loss. An integrated system like Medesk ensures that these elements communicate with each other.
The Ideal Workflow:
- Booking: The patient books via the online booking system, selecting a video slot.
- Intake: Automated reminders and forms are sent. The patient completes history.
- Consultation: The clinician starts the video call directly from the appointment agenda. The relevant template is already loaded with the patient's history.
- Documentation: The clinician fills in the template during the call.
- Billing: Upon ending the call and saving the note, the system can automatically generate the invoice and process payment.
This level of integration is what transforms a practice. Medesk Meet allows for video consultation integration that sits natively within the patient record. There are no external links to copy-paste. When you are in the appointment, you click "Start Video," and you are connected.
Furthermore, features like EHR mobile apps mean that if a clinician is away from their desk, they can still access the templates and join the call securely. This secure patient messaging and video capability ensures that the operational flow is never interrupted.
Compliance, Security, and Regulation
When moving to telehealth, the responsibility for data security shifts from the clinic's front desk to the digital realm. Compliance with the CQC (Care Quality Commission) and GDPR is non-negotiable. A critical error many practices make is using consumer-grade video software (such as generic meeting apps) for clinical consultations. These platforms often lack the necessary encryption and data processing agreements required for medical data.
To remain compliant, you must use tools designed for healthcare. This means ensuring that video calls are encrypted, that recordings (if any) are stored securely in line with NHS Digital standards, and that patient data is not hosted on servers outside of the UK or EU without adequate safeguards.
Medesk addresses these concerns through built-in GDPR compliance tools and secure architecture. The platform is designed to handle sensitive medical data, ensuring that patient records created during telehealth consultations are stored with the same security as physical files. The system also manages access controls, ensuring that only authorised clinicians can access the video consultation notes.
By centralising your telehealth services within Medesk, you gain not just a software tool, but a workflow automation partner that understands the nuances of UK private practice.
To discover how Medesk can help you implement these templates and streamline your telehealth workflow, sign up for a free trial today. You can explore our extensive library of consultation form templates and experience the difference that an integrated system makes for your clinicians and your patients.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Are there specific telephone consultation templates I should use?
Yes. While video consultations allow for visual cues, telephone consultation template structures are specifically designed to capture auditory information effectively. They often include more detailed prompts for symptom description and patient history since the clinician cannot rely on visual observation. Using a specific phone template ensures safety netting is thorough despite the lack of visual contact.
2. How do I ensure I am following remote consultation guidelines in the UK?
Following remote consultation guidelines UK requires adhering to standards set by the General Medical Council (GMC) and CQC (Care Quality Commission). You must ensure patient identification, obtain explicit consent for the remote format, and have robust safety netting procedures in place. Your documentation must demonstrate that the care provided met the same standard as a face-to-face visit.
3. Can I use the same template for video and phone consultations?
While the core clinical data is similar, it is best to use telephone consultation template variants for audio-only calls. These templates remove fields for visual observations (like "rash appearance") and add prompts for verbal descriptive checks. However, the identity verification and consent sections should remain strictly consistent across both formats to maintain compliance.
