But now health managers are urging more patients to make use of the scheme to take the strain away from their voluntary carers. Stoke On Trent GP Dr Ruth Chambers has helped introduce the Flo to GP surgeries across Stoke-on-Trent. She said: "We are developing Flo all the time, it's not something that is fixed. People have told me how they would like to see it used to help teenagers with various problems or for dementia patients, so the work around this is ongoing."
Her husband, telehealth facilitator Chris Chambers, added: "It's difficult to persuade people to use different things. We all get used to the way we do things and we need to persuade people that there is an alternative way. This has huge benefits. It allows people to live more independently and takes the strain away from their carers who are perhaps trying to juggle their caring responsibilities with their everyday lives."
Flo – named after Florence Nightingale – is an automatic messaging system which can provide reminders to patients through their mobile phones. They can receive reminders telling them when to take their medication, along with simple health and wellbeing advice. It also allows patients to take their blood pressure from home and check their test results via an automated system.
Rosey Smith, practice nurse at Middleport Surgery, said: "It's a very useful tool because it helps patients to take more responsibility for their own health. It also increases their knowledge of their own illness and helps them to become more confident in picking up when things aren't as they should be."
Demi Khetia, aged 18, from Newcastle, is a full-time student and carer to both of her seriously ill parents. She said: "It's in my nature to be a caring person, but if there were more things like Flo out there then that would take the strain away from just one person having to do everything."
Ian Gibson, practice manager at Willow Bank Surgery, in Meir, started to use the Flo system earlier this year. He said: "We use it for people trying to give up smoking and we recently had some success with a parent whose child has asthma. A mum said she often forgets to give her son his inhaler because she's very busy in the morning, so now she gets a text message reminding her to give it to him before school and she said it has made a real difference."