Health advice comes to the TV screen

Thursday, 16 December 2004 12:00 AM

Health advice will soon be available by the flick of a remote control switch following the launch of a new NHS digital information service.

NHS Direct Interactive will allow viewers with digital television to access health advice from their sofa by pressing the red button on their remote control. The interactive television health information service complements the existing online and telephone health information services.

Unveiled by Health Secretary Dr John Reid and Harry Cayton, director responsible for patients and the public at the Department of Health, the new service is initially only available to satellite viewers. NHS Direct Interactive will be rolled out to other platforms, such as Freeview and cable, during 2005.

NHS Digital TV will provide access to around 3,000 pages of basic health information on a range of subjects, including diet and nutrition, sexual health and advice on how to stop smoking, and will be expanded over time to include transactional services such as booking appointments.

Launching NHS Direct Interactive, Dr Reid said: "Some seven and a half million households have digital satellite TV, so this will be one of the biggest digital television interactive services in the world, dramatically increasing access to health information and advice through people's televisions.

"This new, innovative service provides people with high quality health information from a trusted and reliable source and gives them more choice about how they can access health information from the NHS.

"The public have told us they want easy access to high quality information so they can make their own choices about their health and healthcare. People already have access to the NHS Direct service via their telephone and through the internet. The interactive TV channel is another avenue in which the public can find advice."

NHS Direct Interactive was originally commissioned at the beginning of 2004, after a series of pilot projects to assess the potential of digital television for delivering health information.

The contract to run the service over its first three years has been awarded to MMTV together with PA Consulting and usability specialists Nomensa, following a competitive tender. The deal is thought to be worth around £15 million.

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