111 causing more trouble than it's worth

Oh crun

I know that it would be awful for you to be called a time waster, but your life is far more important than that!

How are you feeling now?
Do you still need to go to hospital?

The thing is, a caller in that situation could actually die. Best not to worry about being a time waster and just call the ambulance yourself.

crun Maybe it's a new policy that once they have the date of birth and it indicates someone over a certain age, they simply pass the call around and around until the caller dies of frustration, thus saving the NHS considerable sums of money.

On 20.8.12 I rang NHS direct because my heart rate had been 230 for 14 hours, and I was unable to stand up. I knew I needed an ambulance, but there was no way I was going to call one and put myself in the position of being accused of being a time waster.

When they answered they asked me name, address, phone no., DoB, etc., and asked what was wrong. After I explained they said to wait a moment while they transferred me.

When they answered, someone else asked me name, address, phone no., DoB, etc., and asked what was wrong, and then transferred me. Then again I was asked my name, address, phone no., DoB, etc., and what was wrong, and then transferred.....

This went on for half an hour, by which time it was obvious that they were just putting me back into the call centre for someone else to pick up because nobody wanted the responsibility of making a decision. So I asked what I should do, and they just said "I don't know", so I hung up.

Always good to hear positive news re NHS service.

Wills I sincerely hope your wound is healing as well as possible.

That is so reassuring to hear willsandco. Nice to hear from you, hope you are keeping well?

yes, we have to ring 111 and they will set us up with an out of hours GP clinic in Lincoln hospital. They provide a super service. This weekend I had a nasty discharge issuing from a wound following an operation four days earlier. I have MND and, so that I wouldn't have to travel all over town to see a GP, they sent a doctor and a nurse around to have a look. I couldn't believe how kind that was. I never knock them at all. Over the last two years, they have arranged me appointments very late at night. I really cant fault them at all.

Is this good or bad?
111 lost over 15000 reports.
Some GPs think it is good because it saves them paperwork.

pulsetoday.msgfocus.com/c/12bBR7kYAUoyDFVaLWpsyNUg

When there was norovirus on the hospital ward where my husband was over three years ago, I could not wait to get him out of there and home. Had to ring up his GP who agreed to book him out of the ward.
I am surprised that 111 did go for an ambulance to take someone with norovirus to hospital. It must have been someone very new to the job.

Re my OP. If the 111 service thought this person ought to attend A&E why didn't they at least ask if she had someone who could take her? She has a perfectly able husband who could have done so. That at least would have cut out the ambulance.

I don't know if we are particularly lucky but we've found 111 quite good. If I have to call about DH i always get to speak to a doctor who either advises or visits. The fact that he has a diagnosed serious illness helps here. When GS2 had breathing problems DD rang 111 and a doctor called her back and said A&E (where he was seen with no wait at all!)

Here in East Sussex we have to use the 111 number to get a doctor out of hours. Is that what happens elsewhere.?

When we lived in York, we were halfway between the walk in centre and the hospital. When my grandson was in his playpen he bounced too much when we were looking after him, and bit his tongue. There was rather a lot of blood, so I phoned NHS direct. They told us to take him to the walk in centre rather than A&E as it would take longer to see someone at the A&E.
He was fine, in the end, but was seen almost as soon as we walked in.

Why did this government close some walk in centres? They did/do what they were supposed to do, take the pressure off A&E. I note that now they are talking about having GPs at A&Es, which does not make sense to me. GPs should be in their surgeries so that fewer people go to A&E.

April 2013.

Our local walk in centre was saved by public demand, even though 3 miles from an A&E hospital. People power! x

Well we have and DH was critical enough to spend the next 6 days in a hospital bed. He could have gone to A&E but the point is that if you are "walking wounded" it is unfair to increase the pressure there. DH needed to be seen by a doctor and that doctor was NOT dealing with the drink/drugs overdoses or the very poorly victims of accidents.
Don't understand what you mean by overboard once and under board once so we haven't used them since. I got the impression you hadn't used them at all. Perhaps you were referring to the 111 service which you say you gave up on years ago despite the fact it has only been in existence since Ril 2013?

Then I am a month or two out then. They went overboard once, and underboard once, so we havent used them since.

"One in four NHS walk-in centres – set up in the past decade to improve patients’ access to urgent health care – have been closed since the election, an official report has found, amid a mounting crisis in accident and emergency care.

Health watchdogs said patients have been left with nowhere to turn after the closure of more than 50 of 238 clinics, which were introduced to relieve pressure on casualty departments.

Regulators said that demand for the centres has remained high, with most closing because of financial pressures – in some cases because they were “too popular” with patients, and costing the NHS too much.

The warning was issued as Prof Sir Bruce Keogh, NHS medical director, prepares to publish recommendations about reform of urgent and emergency care, amid growing concern that the health service could be facing “its worst winter ever” and fears services could buckle under the strain.

Sir Bruce will call for sweeping changes, with fewer patients taken to hospital, and more treated by paramedics and community nurses in their homes, to tackle an “inexorable climb” in A&E attendances and soaring demand for walk-in-centres."

This was in the Telegraph in 2013.
Walk in centres were set up by the Labour government to ease the pressure on A&E, but they were doing too well! Keogh's changes did not work, did they?

Durham was one of the areas where 111 was piloted, and it worked well after two years. Unfortunately, instead of bringing it in piecemeal, the present government changed the rest of NHS Direct to 111 overnight, on April Fool's Day, 2013.
Soon, you could not have given up on 111 years ago, as it has been in existence for less than two years.

So the same as the out of hours service? Though I dont think you would go there if you were critical.

They do what it says on the tin. They are open 7 days a week, you walk in, give your details, say what is wrong and wait for one of the duty doctors or a nurse to see you. You will usually have a bit of a wait but they can diagnose, treat, or refer e.g.to hospital in the same way your GP can if you go to him/her during surgery hours. I think ours is officially called "Critical Care Centre" and they are basically centralised out of hours surgeries for "one off" incidents. Most areas have them but if you live right out in the country I suppose you might have a bit of a drive. They are NOT however an ambulance destination, you have to be well enough to at least limp in!

Can you explian how walk in centres work. Pretty sure we dont have them anywhere in our area. I want one <stamps feet>!

On the plus side we do have an excellent, what I presume is classed as, a walk in physio department.

Hear, hear for walk in centres, we've used ours as have the GCs. They are the way forward! x

I am stunned by the stupidity of whoever arranged this fiasco, probably under the heading of "efficiency".

Can I put in a bouquet for Walk-in Centres here? I know they do not exist everywhere but when DH had signs of internal bleeding -of course on a Saturday afternoon - they saw him in pleasant surroundings, no drunk and disorderlies, albeit after a bit of a wait, and after an examination referred him to our local hospital not via A&E where he then spent a week.

Eloethan It wasn't so much that NHS Direct was abandoned, more that they could not afford to provide the service at the rates the Government were prepared to pay, when the 111 service was introduced and it was put out to competitive tender. NHS Direct was one of several providers who won contracts.

But whereas they were previously paid £20 per call, when 111 was introduced, this went down to £7 -9 per call. No wonder not many qualified nurses are employed by the providers still involved.

more detail here