Insomnia? There’s a Nice-backed app for that | Letter

Dieter Riemann, a professor of clinical psychophysiology at the University of Freiburg in Germany, suggests clinicians may now take insomnia more seriously (Discovery of different forms of insomnia could lead to better treatment, 22 July). As a GP, I certainly take insomnia seriously, observing first-hand the debilitating effect it can have on people’s physical and mental wellbeing. GPs also understand the importance of tackling the root causes of insomnia and would prefer not to prescribe potentially harmful hypnotics.

The NHS in Scotland has pioneered the use of evidence-based digital therapeutics that treat insomnia and other mental health conditions safely through cognitive behavioural therapy. These are self-guided programmes, accessed via an app or online without requiring a prescription. The health secretary has expressed a refreshing openness to innovation and technologies.

Sleepio, a programme for improving sleep that was created by the digital therapeutics company for which I work, Big Health, is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. The NHS could introduce it at pace and scale to help hundreds of thousands of people back to healthy sleep patterns, alleviating the burden on overstretched health professionals, providing options other than potentially harmful drugs and starting to cut the estimated £40bn annual cost to the UK economy due to poor sleep.
Dr Ian Wood
NHS GP; UK medical director, Big Health