A Year to Remember: Reflecting on 2024 at iPLATO
By Tobias Alpsten, CEO and Founder of iPLATO
As 2024 comes to a close, I’ve been reflecting on what has been an extraordinary year for iPLATO. It’s been a year of milestones, growth, and partnerships that have taken us closer to our mission of improving healthcare access and outcomes for millions across the UK. This journey has been filled with proud moments, and I’m excited to share some of them with you.
The most significant step we’ve taken this year was joining forces with eConsult. In October this year, Huma acquired eConsult, a market leader within the digital triage and online consultation space in the UK.Together, we’ve combined iPLATO’s patient communication platform and eConsult’s online triage expertise to create a stronger, more integrated solution for healthcare providers.
What makes this so exciting is the potential we now have to serve over 50 million patients across the UK. We offered every iPLATO GP practice in England access to the iPLATO Toolbar for free, streamlining their patient communications and making it easier to provide timely care. At the same time, eConsult users are benefiting from tools like Selfbook, Connect, Patient Questionnaires and more! iPLATO users can now access eConsult’s structured online consultations.
This merger isn’t just about technology; it’s about the people. By bringing together our expertise, we’re making it easier for practices to offer high-quality care in a way that is accessible, efficient, and cost-effective.
Another highlight of 2024 has been the recognition we’ve received for our work. Winning the Best Virtual Care Project at the HTN Now Awards alongside Huma was a proud moment. The award was for our GDm-Health solution, which helps pregnant women with gestational diabetes manage their condition and enables clinicians to monitor them remotely. It’s a fantastic example of how digital tools can transform healthcare for both patients and providers.
We were also thrilled to be finalists in the British Data Awards, recognised for our efforts in tackling health inequalities. By analysing NHS data and deprivation indices, we’ve helped identify gaps in care and supported better resource allocation. This work is about making sure every patient gets the care they need, regardless of where they live or their circumstances.
We’ve also made great strides in building partnerships that bring tangible benefits to patients and practices. One of the most exciting moments was securing our contract with Wales, where we’ll be providing patient communications for all GP practices. This means practices across the country will have access to tools like the iPLATO Toolbar, enabling them to save time, improve communication, and focus on patient care.
Another important partnership was with Greater Manchester Cancer Alliance to promote the Targeted Lung Health Check programme. By using our Population Health service, we’re encouraging more people to participate in life-saving lung cancer screenings. It’s initiatives like this that remind me why we do what we do—to make a real difference in people’s lives.
We’ve also continued to support regions like Kent and Medway, Lancashire and South Cumbria, and Cambridge and Peterborough with tailored solutions that improve efficiency and free up valuable resources for frontline care.
Three practices in North Central London have reached a remarkable milestone, using our platform for an incredible 20 years! Clerkenwell Medical Practice, City Road Medical Centre, and The Goodinge Group Practice all onboarded in August 2004 and remain valued users of the platform to this day. We extend our gratitude to these practices for their ongoing support and trust in our digital solutions over the years. Here’s to continuing our partnership and driving even more innovation in healthcare together!
Our Population Health service is making strides in public health programmes, our most notable being BEST4 bowel cancer screening. iPLATO plays a pivotal role in partnering with the NHS to drive earlier identification of bowel cancer through innovative digital solutions. Recognising that bowel cancer accounts for 11% of all new cancer cases in the UK, iPLATO focuses on increasing screening uptake among underserved populations, breaking down barriers such as language, stigma, and socio-economic challenges. By delivering targeted SMS reminder programmes and leveraging Digital Patient Questionnaires — achieving completion rates of up to 42% — iPLATO has successfully increased bowel cancer screening uptake by 16%. These efforts help normalise screening within communities, promote education, and support earlier detection at stages 1-2, improving health outcomes while reducing treatment costs.
This year, we celebrated reaching three million users on the myGP app—a milestone that reflects how far we’ve come in empowering people to manage their health. Our app has become a vital tool for booking appointments, managing repeat prescriptions, and even checking blood pressure and skin health from the comfort of home.
In 2024 alone, myGP users booked over 1.1 million appointments and placed more than 12 million repeat prescription orders. We’ve also helped practices reclaim thousands of hours by managing cancellations more efficiently, freeing up time for patients who need it most.
Together with our pharmacy partners – LloydsDirect, Pharmacy2U, PillTime and Phlo – we simplified access to prescription medication through digital first. We also added tools to improve adherence and persistence to prescribed medication.
iPLATO’s partnership with Healthera’s national pharmacy network to enhance the myGP app with advanced Click-and-Collect prescription services and access to bookable pharmacy services, including flu and COVID-19 vaccinations and treatment for common conditions has been hugely successful. Through this partnership, myGP users can now seamlessly book vaccinations and manage prescriptions across over 1,500 local pharmacies in Healthera’s growing network. This integration not only simplifies access to essential healthcare services but also strengthens patient engagement with their local community pharmacies.
With over 30 million people eligible for free flu vaccines and NHS initiatives like Pharmacy First expanding access to care for seven common conditions, iPLATO and Healthera’s collaboration empowers patients to prioritise their health with ease.
Our innovations, like the Autoderm skin checker and Lifelight’s blood pressure checker, are helping people take control of their health in ways that are simple, effective, and accessible. It’s a privilege to see these tools making such a positive impact.
As we head into 2025, I’m more optimistic than ever about what we can achieve. Thank you to everyone who has been part of this journey—our partners, our team, and the millions of patients who trust us to help them manage their health.
Here’s to 2025!
Tobias
