Expanded Role for NHS Direct

Supporting people with chronic conditions, supporting ambulance services and reducing waiting times in A&E will be part of the expanded role for NHS Direct, health secretary Alan Milburn has announced.

At a speech in Newcastle to mark the service’s fourth anniversary, Mr Milburn said, "NHS Direct shows that putting in the resources delivers real results for patients. In just four years NHS Direct has become the world’s largest healthcare telephone advice and information service.

”Just like elsewhere in the health service as we continue to put more money in we will expect to get more out for patients. So NHS Direct will help to support people with serious conditions to live safely at home where previously they might have had a long stay in hospital.

”NHS Direct in the future will help to better respond to 999 calls so people in need of an ambulance in an emergency are reached more quickly and people who are in need of other forms of care are helped to access the services they need. Services developed through NHS Direct will help to reduce the wait for patients in casualty.”

Pilots around the country have shown benefits in the areas earmarked for development. In West Yorkshire NHS Direct is helping to monitor people with lung conditions. Using a telephone line and modem, changes in the patient’s condition can be detected early, reducing the chances of readmission to hospital dramatically.

In the West Midlands up to two ambulance crews a day have been freed up to deal with urgent cases while emergency nurse advisors working with NHS Direct deal with calls from people who do not need an ambulance.

At North Tyneside Hospital a face-to-face version of NHS Direct’s software has just been introduced. The aim is to use the technology to support the introduction of streaming to separate patients with minor injuries and illnesses from those with more serious conditions.