Health 'pods' allow patients to undergo routine check-ups

PATIENTS battling the bulge will be able to call into their local shop, church hall or post office under a new weight-loss initiative being planned in the Capital.

A series of "community pods" - the first of their kind in the UK - will be set up in an attempt to save both patients and staff the effort of meeting up for health checks.

It is understood the mobile facilities will allow a patient, with the help of a swipe card for identification, to register their weight and other measurements such as blood pressure in local venues such as shops or pharmacies.

The proposal is one of numerous telehealth initiatives being rolled out by the Edinburgh Community Health Partnership, which is run by NHS Lothian and the city council.

Health chiefs said developing telehealth was key to the future of healthcare, providing staffing and financial benefits and often an improved level of care.

Angela Lindsay, allied health professional manager for the partnership - who is also its tele- health lead - said: "It's about the delivery of health services from a distance.

"Telehealth has been very successful so far, patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD] have benefited from local recording.

"But we have some new projects too like in weight management. Traditionally, patients would have to come back into hospital (to have their weight monitored] but what we will do now is put in community pods and rather than take up the time of a patient (going to hospital] they can use a swipe card to enter their own measurements.

It isn't something that's been used anywhere else yet. In the long run it could save a member of staff going out as far as Dunbar to see a patient."

In theory, the pods could be placed at any facility, including church halls, GP surgeries, libraries and schools.

Experts also said making it easier for adults to regularly check and register their weight might make them more determined to make an ongoing effort to reduce their size.

The city's health leader, Councillor Paul Edie, said: "The country with the longest life expectancy in the world is Japan and they have really invested in telehealth over the years.

"We are facing huge demographic pressures in this country, not least with the fact we are not going to have enough people to look after everyone that needs to be. That is why investment is so important, it saves on resources and often makes life easier for the patients, allowing them care in a more dignified way."

The Lothians has one of the worst obesity rates in Scotland, with high rates of associated conditions such as diabetes.

Lothians Conservative MSP Gavin Brown said: "This is exactly the sort of new thinking that the NHS in Scotland requires to cope with the pressures it is currently facing.

"As well as freeing up GPs' and specialists' time, this scheme will also save NHS Lothian money which can be used to deliver maximum investment in frontline services."