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Apollo – become a patient influencer

We are looking for people to join our patient panel and help us build our exciting new digital system. We know that our patients, parents and carers have a wide range of experiences and skills.

We want to hear from you if you:

  • have been a patient at King’s College, Guy’s and St Thomas’, Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals within the last 5 years
  • have an interest in technology in healthcare – you don’t need to be confident using computers
  • are aged 16 years or over

We are looking for patient influencers and lead patient influencers.

Role descriptions

Sign up to become a patient influencer

Application form to become a patient influencer or lead patient influencer

Get in touch

If you would like to:

  • have a chat about the role
  • request the form in a different format, such as a PDF for printing out and returning

Please contact Holly Salisbury at [email protected] or on 07770084970.

Further information

What is the Apollo programme?

We want to provide the best possible care, and support our staff to work efficiently and have more time to spend with our patients.

This is why we are working together with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust to transform patient care across south east and west London. This programme of work has been named ‘Apollo’.

Apollo will bring staff and patients together to design an electronic health record (EHR) system.

This will replace multiple systems that don’t always ‘talk to’ each other. By joining up patient records we can make them accessible to both clinicians and patients. This will give patients more opportunities to manage their healthcare online.

Why do we need patients to be involved?

Having an EHR system will change the way patients contact and communicate with services. We want patients, parents and carers to help us to design and test:

  • a digital kiosk that patients can use to check in for appointments and find out waiting times
  • an online patient portal where patients can access their health records and complete tasks to help manage their care
  • an online app for patients staying at hospitals or community care units that they can use to access educational materials and information on their healthcare, and to communicate with their care team
  • patient communications, training courses and materials
  • alternative patient pathways for those who can’t or don’t want to use digital services

Who are we looking for?

We know that our patients, parents and carers have a wide range of experiences and skills. We want to hear from you if you:

  • have used one or more services at King’s College, Guy’s and St Thomas’, or Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals within the last 5 years
  • are interested in how digital technology can be used in healthcare – you could have a background in communications or technology, or just have an interest in the topic
  • are aged 16 or over (applicants between the ages of 16 to 18 will need written permission from a parent, guardian or carer in order to take part)

We want to involve a wide range of people, including those who:

  • are not very confident in using digital services
  • are confident in using digital services
  • are a parent of a patient who is under 16
  • have experiences and perspectives that we can learn from, including (but not limited to) those who:
    • have learning disabilities, and their carers
    • have sensory disabilities, and their carers
    • have mobility disabilities, and their carers
    • use assistive technology
    • have one or more long-term conditions
    • have to travel to access hospital services
    • are over 75
    • speak English as an additional language
    • do not speak English as their primary language
    • come from a range of ethnic groups
    • are LGBTQIA+
    • are moving from children’s to adult services
    • may feel socially excluded

What will we ask you to do as a patient influencer?

Patient influencers will attend a patient panel welcome meeting. We will tell you our plans for involving patients in designing and testing as part of the Apollo programme.

As a patient influencer, you will need to:

  • sign up to one or more working groups
  • attend at least one workshop for each of the working groups you have signed up for
  • be willing to undertake appropriate training, development and support activities that are offered

How would we support you in this role?

  • Offer to recognise and reward your time for each meeting and workshop you attend, in line with Trust policy (you can choose whether you want to receive this reward or not)
  • Reimburse your reasonable expenses for each meeting event, in line with Trust policy (you can choose whether you want to receive this reimbursement or not)
  • Give you any support you need to carry out the patient influencer role, including individual support tailored to your needs
  • Support you to prepare for each meeting or event by sending materials ahead of time, if you think this will be helpful to you
  • Answer any of your questions ahead of meetings and workshops
  • Offer the opportunity for you to sign up for newsletters and be a part of an online Apollo patient panel community

Incentives and reimbursements

We are able to offer our patient influencers the following reimbursements and incentives in recognition of their time and commitment:

  • reimbursement of time spent in workshops and meetings in line with Trust policy
  • reimbursement of expenses, including transport within London, transport outside of London, childcare costs, carer costs
  • access to IT training
  • Foundation Trust membership (for those aged 18 or over)
  • job references
  • Apollo reward scheme and entry into our prize draw