‘The Times’ has today revealed statistics suggesting that one million people per year may attend A&E needlessly due to inaccurate advice from the NHS non-emergency advice number, 111.
It further suggested that some ambulance workers were taking patients to A&E without need, in order to ‘cover their own back’.
The data was analysed by Suzanne Moore, professor of emergency medicine at Sheffield University, who assessed details of over one million A&E visits at 19 hospitals, finding that ‘a fifth of adults had no need for tests, treatment or referral’.
We have previously mentioned in this blog that 60,000 people are thought to have waited in A&E departments last January. It would now seem possible that up to 20% of those people – 12,000 people – did not, in fact, need to be there at all.
The problem seems to stem from a shortage of staff or a lack of training, leading to inaccurate advice being given or patient lack of confidence in the advice they are being given.
It has also been suggested that the problem may be exacerbated by the increasing unavailability of GPs and out-of-hours services.
However, it was also pointed out, by Mark Dayan of the Nuffield Trust, that, if 111 did not exist as a service at all, even higher numbers would probably be attending A&E unnecessarily as some people probably were dissuaded from attending A&E after receiving advice from the non-emergency number.
Speak with a solicitor
If you have been the victim of poor medical care, contact Glynns Solicitors to discuss your case with a solicitor experienced in handling medical negligence cases.
Please call us on 0800 234 3300 (or from a mobile 01275 334030) or complete our Online Enquiry Form.
Share Article With:
|
|
|
|
|
|
