Over 50% of Belgians open to video consultations with a GP
Dwindling GP availability prompts behavioral change
Need to make an urgent appointment with your GP? What about finding a GP that can take on new patients? Both situations are becoming increasingly difficult in Belgium. Nowadays, in many European countries, video consultations are already part of the solution to this problem. Belgium, on the other hand, still has a long way to go in this area. But there's good news: over half of Belgians reported that they are open to the idea, according to the survey commissioned by Belgian video consultation app Doktr and AG Insurance, Belgium's market leader in group insurance. In the short term, video consultations could also help alleviate pressure on healthcare in Belgium, simplifying access to medical care.
Overburdened and understaffed: declining GP availability
"Old school" GPs, available from early morning to evening, from Monday to Saturday, are a dying breed. A healthier work-life balance for them, but on the downside, patient access to medical care has become more difficult. For example, according to the iVOX survey by AG and Doktr, 1 out 10 Belgians don't have a regular GP.
For many of them, it's because they simply cannot find a GP or are on a waiting list. This is hardly a surprise when we know that 75% of Belgian GPs currently apply a full or partial patient freeze. In addition, 2.5 million Belgians don't have a doctor managing their Global Medical Record.
Some key findings from the survey on the availability of Belgian doctors:
- Drop-in office hours (i.e. no appointment necessary) are a thing of the past: 95% of GP consultations are now by appointment only, with a split of 47.2% made online and 47.7% over the phone. In other words, drop-in office hours are nearly non-existent.
- More than 65% of Belgians reported that they would consult another doctor if they could get an appointment faster.
- In Wallonia, only 23% can still get an appointment with their GP after 6:00 pm on weekdays. In Brussels, that figure is even lower: only 1 out of 6 (17%). Flanders scores much better in this area: half of the survey respondents (48%) reported that they could also see their GP in the evening.
- Just under 10% of Belgians can also get an appointment with their GP on Saturdays.
- 3 out of 5 Belgians (60%) can no longer expect their GP to make house calls. However, 7 out of 10 older respondents (55+) would greatly appreciate having a GP that makes house calls.
Having a regular GP no longer means that it's easy to get an appointment. In several Belgian municipalities, waiting times can be up to several weeks. A recent Municipal and City Report highlights a 15% drop in satisfaction with GP availability in the past 3 years. Unfortunately, there's no immediate improvement in sight, as doctors who retire are not being replaced.
Growing patient acceptance of video consultations
In this changing landscape - characterized by more difficult access to GPs - it's important for society to adapt to the new reality. In neighboring countries, video consultations are increasingly becoming part of the solution. After a slow start, willingness now seems to be on the rise among Belgians too, as revealed in the survey findings.
More than half of Belgians (53%) now report that they are open to video consultations. That's a 25% increase compared to a 2020 survey by Proximus for the launch of Doktr - albeit in the middle of the COVID-19 crisis. However, there are clear regional differences: in Wallonia, this openness is the lowest (44.6%). Demographic characteristics also have an impact. The younger and more educated a patient is, the more likely they are to be open to video consultations.
However, only 5% of the survey respondents reported ever having a video consultation with a GP. This is hardly surprising, since very few GPs currently offer video consultations in their practices. Telephone consultations are more common (96.5% of all remote consultations), even though they don't allow for visual examination and often disrupt in-person consultations.
In ten months' time, from August 2022 to June 2023, the INAMI/RIZIV recorded as many as 5.7 million remote consultations. This confirms that patients don't always need to go to the doctor's office.
Belgians are more likely to try video consultations for issues such as (in order of decreasing importance): renewing a prescription, advice and/or treatment for infections (e.g. flu, common cold), advice and/or treatment for physical symptoms (e.g. stomachache, headache), help interpreting examinations and test results (e.g. blood test results) and advice on medication and side effects.
AG and Doktr offer remote access to quality care
As Belgium's biggest healthcare insurer, AG feels a responsibility to reflect on the challenges and the future of healthcare in Belgium and to anticipate new needs that arise. In this case, there is a need for flexible solutions that can complement the existing healthcare system in Belgium. This is why the decision was made last year to incorporate the Doktr video consultation app in AG's group insurance offer as a way to improve and simplify access to primary care.
This alternative is an especially positive development as 3 out of 10 Belgians reported that they wouldn't go elsewhere for medical advice if their doctor was unavailable, even though waiting could potentially aggravate their condition or symptoms. In addition, 1 patient out of 10 would go straight to the emergency room if they couldn't get an appointment with their GP. Another 10% turn to "Dr Google" for medical advice.
With video consultations, these patient groups get quick, convenient access to an accredited GP, regardless of where they're located.
At Doktr, we serve as a digital healthcare provider, addressing issues such as access to primary care, mental health and employee well-being. We connect patients, healthcare providers, businesses and partners across the healthcare ecosystem. With more than 120,000 registered users and a 97% patient satisfaction rate, we are a force for positive change. Our partnership with AG enables us to specifically improve workplace wellbeing, address the long-term sick leave challenge and promote healthier, more engaged teams.
AG and Doktr are working closely together to make video consultations more accessible to patients. It's about creating a strong partnership between two companies with complementary ambitions to build an ecosystem that supports the specific Belgian healthcare model, in response to current pressures and future demand for hybrid care. We firmly believe that video consultations are an intelligent and valuable complement to traditional consultations with GPs.
