Shoosmiths advises Gresham House Ventures on £5m investment in NHS digital triage provider, eConsult Health

UK law firm Shoosmiths has advised client Gresham House Ventures on its investment of £5m into eConsult Health, the NHS’s leading online consultation provider to primary care.

Built by NHS GPs for NHS patients, the eConsult platform is the most widely used digital consultation solution for NHS GP surgeries and gives millions of patients access to their own GP online. 
Gresham House Ventures’ £5m injection will enable eConsult Health to maintain that position as the leading digital triage service and continue the rollout of its urgent and emergency care triage solution, eTriage, and its outpatient referral software, eSpecialist.

Alastair Peet, who heads the firm’s national venture capital practice group and principal associate Helen Burnell advised long-standing client, Gresham on this latest investment. Tom Wilde, a partner heading the firm’s venture capital trusts tax practice and partner Craig Armstrong in Shoosmiths technology, media and telecoms team also made key contributions. Further support came Libby Roberts in the corporate team from Chris Moakes and Alexander Massey in the tax team as well as Jo Tunnicliff and Nick Vernon in the firm’s employment practice among many others.

Helen Burnell said that in light of the additional pressures put on the NHS by the COVID-19 pandemic, this deal had completed at a pivotal moment in the development of healthcare provision for millions across the country.

She added: “At such a crucial moment for healthcare provision in the NHS it is rewarding to know that our work has enabled this technology to continue to deliver real benefits to the public. What is also exciting is the fact that our client’s investment means that eConsult Health has the potential to go even further and completely revolutionise healthcare provision in the UK.”

“This has been a tremendous effort by all concerned right across the firm. This additional investment funding will help a supplier of cutting-edge health technology to continue the product development needed to support their expansion of eConsult Health in primary and secondary NHS care.”