NHS Direct – number not service to go

NHS Direct hopes that it will continue to be a part of England’s national urgent care service, following the introduction of the 111 non-emergency number.

Health secretary Andrew Lansley told reporters last week that NHS Direct would be replaced with a new 111 number service. But the helpline told EHI Primary Care that news of its demise was premature.

“It’s not the end of the organisation but the end of the [NHS Direct] number,” a spokesperson said when asked to clarify whether the organisation is being scrapped or subsumed within a new set-up.

The health helpline is involved in the piloting of the 111 service, which began last week in NHS County Durham and Darlington.

There are no formal plans for rolling out 111 nationally and none setting out if and how NHS Direct’s nurse-led advice service will be subsumed into the new offering.

Calls to the 111 number in County Durham and Darlington are being handled by North East Ambulance Service NHS Trust, but NHS Direct is working with it to handle any calls relating to health information or medicines enquiries.

Three further pathfinders will be launched in Nottingham City, Lincolnshire and Luton. NHS Direct said it would be providing call handling, nurse assessment, health information and onward referral where necessary in those pilots.

The Department of Health has said national roll-out of the service will follow the pilots. Earlier this month, a spokesperson told EHI Primary Care that 111 would be evaluated in stages to provide a quick understanding of its costs and benefits.

The NHS Direct spokesperson said plans to phase out NHS Direct’s 0845 number had already been outlined and they did not mean the entire service would be scrapped.

She said it was “business as usual”. Programmes including the web-based advice service are continuing as normal, alongside NHS Direct’s innovation projects, which include the NHS Wellness health coaching programme.

In a statement, Nick Chapman, NHS Direct chief executive, added: “NHS Direct is working hard with all of the local health communities involved in the three ‘pathfinder’ sites for NHS 111 to make these first tests of the new approach a success for patients and the NHS in their area.

"When detailed plans are made to roll out the service nationally, we hope NHS Direct staff will be able to contribute their experience to the new service.”

The helpline acknowledged that there would be little point in two numbers for health advice running alongside each other.

Chapman said: "The government has announced its intention to eventually replace the current NHS Direct telephone number (0845 46 47) with the new 111 number.

" The more memorable number will clearly help patients find the new service more easily. NHS 111 is intended to work in an integrated way with local GPs, out-of-hours services, ambulance services and hospitals, for the benefit of patients and to help the NHS become more efficient.”

The 111 number pilots are also using the NHS Pathways software, which was developed to direct patients to the most appropriate local service, and which was a winner in the BT E-Health Insider Awards 2008.

Dr Nick Robinson, associate clinical director for long term conditions and telecare for NHS Direct, will be speaking at EHI Live 2010 about its telemonitoring and motivational support programmes.
 

EHI Live 2010 is an essential two day conference and exhibition for anyone in the e-health community. Online registration for the event, which will be held at the NEC in Birmingham from 8-9 November, is now open.