Cleveland Henry (Director of NHS Choices - HSCIC) spoke at the recent "Healthcare Efficiency Through Technology Expo (HETT 2015)". Areas covered include: · How does analysis of NHS Choices usage help us to understand the public’s health and care information needs? · What can web analytics and user feedback tell us about the most popular and useful content? · How does the mass media agenda drive content consumption? · How has the move to ‘mobile’ changed the demand for information? · Where next for online information and transactions?

1. NHS Choices
Keeping pace with the public’s changing health information needs
Cleveland Henry, Director of NHS Choices

2. What we do
We provide information, data and IT Systems for commissioners,
analysts and clinicians in health and social care. Our work includes…
• Setting standards that protect patient’s confidential
information, reduce bureaucracy and improve data quality
• Operating essential technology services that support the
health and care system
• Collecting, analysing and publishing national data and
statistical information that helps inform decision making
• Developing the next generation of national data and
information systems

3. NHS Choices
NHS Choices is the website for the National Health Service in the UK, providing
health and lifestyle advice, information about local services and the latest news

4. User trends
How can web analysis help us to anticipate information needs?

5. Understanding seasonal demands
Which of these NHS Choices pages was visited
most often in January 2015?
1. Stop smoking treatments
2. Healthy Weight Calculator
3. Risks of alcohol misuse
4. Improve your NHS Health Check numbers

6. User trends: seasonal demands
6
Jan 2015:
New Year’s
Resolution
> 980k visits to
‘Healthy Weight
Calculator’ (4th)
> 250k visits to
‘Height/Weight
Chart’ (20th)
Mar 2015: Chickenpox
> 225k visits to ‘Chickenpox Introduction’
Jul 2014:
Summer
Holiday
> 540k visits to
‘European Health
Insurance Card’
Dec 2014: Christmas Dinner
> 90k visits to ‘Turkey Cooking’ page

7. User trends: Self-help
51%
56%
of users considering visiting their GP say
NHS Choices information
enabled them to manage their own
symptoms instead of seeing a GP
of users concerned about mental health
have used NHS Choices to manage
a mental health condition

8. Our response
8
Using cloud servers means the
service is more reliable
for users and cheaper
for taxpayers

9. Today’s news
How does the media shape the demand for information?

10. News stories generate interest
Which of these news stories generated the most
visits to NHS Choices?
1. Lynda Bellingham dies from bowel cancer
2. ‘Call the Midwife’ features a diphtheria storyline
3. TOWIE star Sam Faiers reveals she has Crohn’s
disease
4. ‘Emmerdale’ mentions risk of infection to pregnant
women from ewes during lambing season

11. News stories generate interest
23 Feb 2014
TOWIE star Sam Faiers reveals
she’s been diagnosed with
Crohn’s disease
• > 110k visits to ‘Crohn’s Disease Introduction’
page that day
• 71% of these visits during screening of
the episode

12. News stories generate interest
15 Feb 2015
BBC One’s ‘Call the Midwife’
features a storyline about
diphtheria
• >41k visits to ‘Diphtheria Introduction’ page
• Ranked as most visited page on NHS Choices that day
• 88% of these visits via mobile phones or tablets

13. News stories generate interest
20 Oct 2014
Actress Lynda Bellingham’s
death from bowel cancer is
announced
• 865% rise (to >22k) in visits to
‘Bowel Cancer introduction’ page
• Ranked 8th most visited page on NHS Choices that day

14. News stories generate interest
06 May 2015
ITV’s ‘Emmerdale’
mentions risk of infection to
pregnant women from ewes
• 526% rise (>8.5k) in visits to ‘Why should pregnant
women avoid sheep during the lambing season?’ page
• 40% of these during broadcast of the episode at 7pm

15. Our response
15
We’ve produced 343
Behind the Headlines
articles in 2015. These
generated more than
1 million visits

16. Public health campaigns create awareness
Oct 2014
Stoptober month
• Visits to ‘Smoke free’ homepage reached >69k during
October 2014. 70% higher than visits recorded the
following month
• 67% of these visits came from mobile phones

17. Public health campaigns create awareness
Jan 2015
Sugar Swaps
• 513% rise (>185k) in visits to
‘Change 4 Life’ homepage following
Sugar Swaps campaign
• Positive impact on other C4L pages
• Meal mixer up 227% (>69k)
• Eat well hub up 311% (>62k)
• Healthier snack ideas up 385% (>33k)

18. Going mobile
How has mobile technology affected consumption of information?

19. What percentage of NHS Choices visits are via
mobile and tablet devices?
Growth of mobile visits
1. 26%
2. 49%
3. 69%
4. 85%

20. 69.5%
0.0%
10.0%
20.0%
30.0%
40.0%
50.0%
60.0%
70.0%
80.0%
Growth of mobile and tablet visits
Chart shows % of traffic on a mobile or tablet device growing since 2009
• Most popular device in 2015 is mobile phones with 51% share of all visits
• This increases to 69.5% when tablets included
• Desktop users account for 33%

21. Growth of mobile visits
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
Weekday Weekend
Chart shows average hourly visits to nhs.uk. Two distinctive spikes:
• 09:00 – This could be result of morning’s health news, or checking
details/opening times/contacting GPs and dentists etc.
• 21:00 – Visits tend to be driven by what is on TV at the time. Higher
proportion of mobile and tablet visits at this time

22. Our response
Software developments ensure
the website is responsive
to mobile devices

23. Social media
How does social media effect user behaviour?

24. When Stephen Fry tweeted about the ‘My Heart
Age’ test, how many Twitter referrals to the page
were generated in the week that followed?
Impact of social media
24
1. 50
2. 160
3. 750
4. 2000

25. Impact of social media
25
13 Feb 2015
Twitter
• Visits to ‘What’s your heart age?’ page increased from
<450 on Thursday to >28k on Friday
• >2k referrals from Twitter during the week
• >1.3k referrals from Facebook during same period

26. Impact of social media
26
May 2015
Facebook
• Facebook post about obtaining medicines for free via
minor ailment services goes viral
• Visits to ‘Common problems your pharmacist can help
with’ page increased from <1.5k to >138k in one week

27. Our response
27
Our social media
channels ensure that we
reach patients and carers in the
digital spaces they feel
most comfortable
with

28. Where next for online patient information?
Transactional content

29. Where next for online patient information?
29
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg0bJfwNgNU&feature=youtu.be

30. Where next for online patient information?
Transactional content
• Book and amend my appointments online
• View my medical record
• Decide when my data can be shared
• Click and collect my prescriptions
• Provide a seamless health and care journey
• Manage my personal care budget