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What if your nearest doctor was days away?
What if getting to hospital meant travelling for hours, sometimes on foot?
And what if you or a loved one needed urgent care right now?
This is everyday life for many people across rural parts of Zambia and Malawi. But thankfully, it doesn’t go unchallenged.
In Season 7, Episode 9 of Igniting Change, we speak with James Phiri and Daniel Grace from Virtual Doctors, a life-changing telemedicine charity using technology to bridge the gap between remote health centres and expert UK-based doctors.
It’s not the first time they’ve joined us, but with huge growth in their service and ambitious future plans, this was a conversation we couldn’t not have again. Watch the previous episode on Youtube here!
🎧 Listen now
The Virtual Doctors App: Healthcare in your pocket
Virtual Doctors started in 2007 with one powerful idea: What if a smartphone could become a lifeline?
Their custom-built app connects rural health centres with UK-based volunteer doctors, helping local clinical officers treat complex cases with real-time support.
It’s a project we’re incredibly proud to have worked on, and one that continues to evolve.
The app is also an award winning project! Achieving Gold in the ‘Apps, Platforms & Software: Health, Wellness & Lifestyle’ category at the 2024 Lovie awards!
From Concept to Crucial Service
The journey to build this platform hasn’t been without its challenges — balancing user experience with clinical necessity, onboarding new clinicians quickly, and ensuring the app works seamlessly on the devices people actually use.
From landscape layouts to form fields, every detail matters, because every second saved could be a life changed.
“What information does a clinician answering a case need to know, and then balancing that against, how do we make it user friendly for the clinical officers we support without overwhelming them with too many mandatory tick boxes.”
Daniel Grace, Virtual Doctors
Ground-Level Feedback is Gold
Understanding how the platform performs in the real world is critical. That’s why the team runs in-person visits like the Livingstone expedition, meeting users face-to-face, onboarding clinical officers, training teams, and gathering honest feedback.
“You can have discussions like this over Zoom and you can send emails, but actually human connections in real life, as it were, is a really good way of making things happen.”
Daniel Grace, Virtual Doctors
Scaling the Right Way
When looking to grow, Virtual Doctors takes a thoughtful approach. James shared the key factors they assess before expanding to new areas:
Is there enough mobile connectivity?
Can we sustainably fund this area?
Are clinical officers on the ground engaged?
How do we build strong, ongoing relationships?
As they grow, they’re aiming to be part of even larger cross-sector projects — expanding their reach and impact.
But this also means tackling new hurdles, like:
Finding ways to include non-UK doctors who want to volunteer.
Navigating regional healthcare policies and legal frameworks.
Securing sustainable funding models.
Want to Help? You Can.
One of the most effective ways to support Virtual Doctors is through donations.
They’re funded by individuals and supporters, like those in the 1000 Club, who commit to giving £1,000 a year for five years, as well as donations via JustGiving, CAF, and other trusts.
"They’re people who have kindly committed to donating sort of a thousand pounds a year for five years. We'll call that the 1000 Club, which is headed up by one of our trustees."
James Phiri, Virtual Doctors
Your donation keeps life-saving advice flowing to rural health workers who need it most.
If you’re in a position to support their work, whether as a donor or a volunteer doctor, you’ll be directly contributing to improved healthcare in some of the most underserved communities in the world.
A New Way to Volunteer
For doctors who want to make a difference, Virtual Doctors offers something special: flexible, remote volunteering.
Volunteer around your existing NHS or GP schedule
Handle one or two cases a week
Add valuable experience to your portfolio
Make a lasting difference, sustainably
“The nice thing about volunteering with the Virtual Doctors is that you can volunteer whilst you're having that fairly busy GP job or job in hospital. You don't have to take a week ,or two, or a month, or whatever time off, to travel overseas.”
Daniel Grace, Virtual Doctors
Let’s Keep the Conversation Going
We’re proud to support Virtual Doctors and amplify their work through Igniting Change. Their plans for the future are BIG, and with the right support, they're more than achievable.
🎧 Listen to the episode
🩺 Interested in volunteering? Learn more
For more brilliant conversations, check out our podcast page — or shout us a holla. We love hearing from you!
Published on 24 April 2025, last updated on 24 April 2025
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