29.07.13
NHS Direct pulls out of NHS 111 contracts
NHS Direct has announced it is seeking to withdraw from 11 contracts to provide NHS 111 services, stating they are “financially unsustainable”.
Calls to the non-emergency service took more than twice as long as expected, which meant NHS Direct did not have sufficient capacity to handle all calls. The board concluded that “no serious harm” had been caused by the troubled launch, but that a managed transfer of the contracts was being sought.
NHS Direct initially won 11 out of 46 contracts, but pulled out of two in Cornwall and North Essex earlier this month.
Projections showed NHS Direct has lost £2.8m since April and was “heading for a deficit of £26m if we continue to run the same volume of 111 services until the end of this financial year.”
Nick Chapman, NHS Direct chief executive said: “We will continue to provide a safe and reliable NHS 111 service to our patients until alternative arrangements can be made by commissioners. Whatever the outcome of the discussions on the future, patients will remain the central focus of our efforts, together with protecting our staff who work on NHS 111 to ensure that the service will continue to benefit from their skills and experience.”
NHS Direct is currently delivering NHS 111 in: Buckinghamshire; East London and the City; South East London; Sutton and Merton; West Midlands; Lancashire and Cumbria; Greater Manchester; Merseyside and Cheshire; and Somerset.
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Image c. Peter Macdiarmid/PA Wire