Mims Davies MP welcomes new action to make it easier for patients to contact their GP and end the 8am rush, with £240 million given to practices across England to embrace latest technology.
Under the plans, patients will be able to contact their general practice more easily and quickly - and find out exactly how their request will be handled on the day they call - as part of a major multi-million pound overhaul of primary care.
Practices across England will also be given £240 million this year to embrace the latest technology, replacing old analogue phones with modern systems so patients never get engaged tones and easy-to-use online tools to ensure patients get the care they need as soon as possible.
This will mean that when patients in Mid Sussex contact their practice online or over the phone they will know on the day they make contact how their query will be managed, rather than being told to call back later. If their need is urgent, they will be assessed and given appointments on the same day. If it is not urgent, appointments should be offered within 2 weeks, or patients will be referred to NHS 111 or a local pharmacy.
Primary care is the way most people access the NHS and the Government has committed to modernising the way patients contact their GP surgeries – improving satisfaction and delivering on the Prime Minister’s promise to cut waiting lists.
On average sized practice of 10,000 patients often receives more than 100 calls in the first hour every Monday.
With advanced digital telephone, rather than an engaged tone, patients will receive a queue position, a call back option and their call can be directly routed to the right professional. The phone system will also be integrated with the clinical systems so practice staff can quickly identify patients and their information from phone numbers.
Practices that have invested in modern online booking and messaging systems find they help free up phones for those who prefer to call, while giving patients a convenient way to get the help they need.
As well as helping patients to make contact, the government has taken action taken to support staff in dealing with the calls. Working with NHS England the government will fund 6,500 care navigator training places – that is one member of staff per practice who can then pass on the training to colleagues.
Commenting on Primary Care Plan, Mims Davies MP said:
The pandemic has had a huge impact on the NHS and our ability to access healthcare, so we must make it easier to access NHS services and cut waiting lists.
That is why I welcome the Government's £885 million Primary Care Plan, which will tackle the 8am rush and make it easier to get an appointment, support patients accessing some prescriptions from pharmacies without first seeing a GP, and deliver more GPs and GP appointments in our NHS.
I am confident this plan will help to cut waiting lists by freeing up around 15 million GP appointments over the next two years, delivering a better service for patients in Mid Sussex and across the UK.