The Sound Doctor is a social enterprise concerned with effective patient education and is now urging Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) to prioritise high-quality information to help patients manage their own health conditions.

This comes after a study reported that 93% of patients who used The Sound Doctor reported fewer visits to their GP, while 62% said they were in the hospital less than before. At a time where cost efficiency is as pressing as ever in the health sector, such packages could become an important way of reducing unnecessary expenditure.

The study also revealed that almost all patients understood their condition better and learned new and relevant information, while 96% of those surveyed feeling more confident about managing their condition.

Rosie Runciman, co-founder of The Sound Doctor said: "These days, health spending is a vital issue, and particularly as one in four GP visits are potentially avoidable, we think that the heavy pressure on the system can be relieved in some ways.” 

"Our packages aim to educate patients, not only to reduce their need for face-to-face consultations with medical experts but also to improve their experience and quality of care by increasing their understanding."

The Sound Doctor films are currently used by a number of CCGs, as well as several hospital trusts and community pharmacies. The package gives access to more than 300 films which cover six key areas of health: COPD, back pain, diabetes, heart failure, weight management surgery, and dementia. 

Also included are a series of health and wellness animations which are used in GP surgeries. All material is ready to be adopted by any GP practice or CCG for immediate implementation.

The films have been endorsed by leading charities and adhere to NICE (The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) guidelines. 

Dr Charles Alessi, a senior adviser for Public Health England, said: "The quality of the product is, in my experience, unmatched anywhere in the world"

With a mission statement to provide a cost-effective solution to help patients manage their own health conditions when possible, The Sound Doctor complete package gives access to all conditions and all new material added during the period of the licence. 

The complete packages are immediately available for £1,000 each month, while a license for a single condition is £300 per month.

For more information, visit www.thesounddoctor.org