For decades, the telephone has been the beating heart of primary care. Even as digital tools multiply, the 2024 Patient Survey found that 68% of patients opted for the phone first when they needed to contact their GP (Ipsos, 2024)1. It is familiar, trusted and universal. But healthcare is changing. The NHS is pushing towards digital-first access, new GP contract requirements are reshaping patient flows and practices are under unrelenting demand. The question is: how do we ensure that digital transformation does not leave people behind?
Voice technology may be the answer. More specifically, voice-enabled technology is emerging as a bridge between traditional access routes and digital-first ambitions. By blending natural conversation with digital systems, it can help create a more equitable, efficient and resilient model of access..
Why voice technology matters in a digital NHS
It is easy to assume that as apps, online portals and chatbots evolve, the phone will fade away. Yet evidence tells a different story. Many patients, particularly older people, those with limited digital literacy, or communities where English is not the first language, continue to rely on calling their practice.
NHS England’s Fit for the Future health plan emphasises the importance of transitioning from analogue to digital, but it also warns of deep-seated health inequalities if transformation is not inclusive. Voice is the thread that connects these worlds. It provides a familiar entry point for patients, while allowing practices to route requests into structured digital pathways.
This is more than convenience. It is about equity. If online forms become the only route to care, those who cannot or will not use them risk delayed treatment. A voice-first option ensures the front door remains open to all.
How voice technology supports safe, scalable triage
The rise of online consultation (OC) tools has created new challenges for practices. Web forms may capture demand digitally, but without smart patient navigation first to manage demand better, practices risk shifting the workload rather than easing it. Information can be incomplete, clinically urgent issues may be routed incorrectly, and staff are left sifting through submissions with little context.
This is where voice technology shows real potential. A voice agent can ask structured, conversational questions, probing for detail in ways that static forms cannot. For example, instead of a patient simply typing “chest pain”, the agent can follow up to clarify duration, severity, and associated symptoms. The result is richer information, easier prioritisation and a safer triage model.
At X-on Health, this approach is already being tested in Surgery Connect. The first generation of voice agents is focused on gathering OC information over the phone and making it available to practice teams through the Surgery Connect Phonebar. Staff can review, prioritise and assign requests, with the option to feed activity back into the patient record. It is an early step, but one that illustrates how voice can sit at the centre of modern access pathways.
How voice technology enhances quality of care
From a patient’s perspective, one of the most pressing concerns in primary care is the risk that technology creates a transactional rather than a relational experience. Patients want to feel heard, not processed. Voice can help preserve this human quality.
Unlike text, which can feel impersonal, spoken interaction conveys tone, urgency and context. A patient describing their symptoms in their own words is often more revealing than a set of tick-box answers. For clinicians, this helps build a clearer picture and reduces the risk of missed information. For patients, it feels closer to the kind of interaction they are used to. If voice agents are integrated into existing systems, the information captured does not sit in a silo but instead flows into the same triage and workflow processes as other requests so practices maintain oversight and control, while patients benefit from smoother, joined-up care.
Ambient voice technology (AVT) is already emerging as one of the tools that can support this. In Europe’s largest clinical trial of its kind, TORTUS AI’s AVT was used across 16,470 patient encounters in nine clinical sites — from mental health to A&E and hospitals such as Great Ormond Street. Clinicians reported 23.5% more time for direct care and an 8.2% reduction in overall appointment length2. The findings highlight how voice can enhance efficiency while strengthening the patient–clinician relationship.
Read the full study here: Time to Care: The Value of AI-Powered Ambient Voice Technology Across Diverse Clinical Settings
How voice technology enhances access through multimodal pathways
Voice technology also has a role to play beyond the telephone. As AI becomes more embedded in healthcare, voice submission can be layered into digital assistants and chatbots.
For example, take our AI-powered care navigation tool Surgery Assist. Already capable of diverting around 30% of patient requests by signposting to the NHS App, 111, pharmacy or local services, it now offers OC form functionality to help practices achieve GP contract 25/26 OC compliance without risk. Here, voice adds another dimension. Instead of typing into the chat, patients are able to dictate their request.
This is not just a matter of preference. It can transform access for people with poor literacy, visual impairment or disabilities that make typing difficult. By allowing patients to choose between typing, tapping or talking, practices can offer a multimodal digital front door that is both equitable and safe.
Watch our latest webinar: Voice Agent – a smarter way to manage OC forms
The role of voice technology in the future of patient access
While currently focused on gathering information and reducing duplication, voice agents will become more personalised and flexible over time to coexist with other channels.
Imagine this…
—Mr Khan was recently discharged from hospital after treatment for heart failure. A few days later, he receives a call from his GP surgery. Instead of waiting on hold or repeating his story, he’s greeted by a voice agent that already knows why he was recently in hospital.
The agent checks in on his recovery: “Are you managing your medication? Have you noticed any swelling or shortness of breath?” Based on his answers, the system updates his record, flags a possible concern for the clinical team and schedules a follow-up call. If urgent symptoms are detected, the agent can route him directly to a clinician without delay.
For Mr Khan, it feels like personal, proactive care without the burden of navigating the system. For the practice, it means efficient monitoring, fewer emergency readmissions and more time for staff to focus where they are needed most.—
Digital transformation is essential to the sustainability of the NHS. But it must not come at the cost of equity. Voice technology can meet patients where they are without forcing them to abandon the ways of communicating they know best. It can scale across various contexts, from triage and navigation to documentation and appointment management, all while feeding structured data into workflows to enhance practice efficiency.
When innovation prioritises inclusion as well as efficiency, voice technology becomes more than just a tool; it becomes a bridge to a future of equitable, flexible and sustainable access for all.