NursingNotes
  • login
  • signup
  • Latest News
  • Clinical Updates
  • Professional
  • Education
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
NursingNotes
No Result
View All Result

Home > News

Making patients pre-book A&E appointments ‘a disaster waiting to happen’

The pilot is designed to reduce crowding in A&E departments and prioritise those most.


17 September 2020
hospital waiting room

Adobe

Patients would be required to book an appointment via NHS 111.

A leading expert in Public Health has said that asking patients to book A&E appointments via NHS 111 “is a disaster waiting to happen”.



The pilot, designed to reduce crowding in A&E departments and prioritise those most in need, will see patients calling NHS 111 to book a space in their local emergency department.

Professor Gurch Randhawa, Professor of Diversity in Public Health and Director of the Institute for Health Research at the University of Bedfordshire, says the policy once again demonstrates that the government is not taking disadvantaged groups into account when devising its COVID-19 response.

Healthcare professionals have supported these concerns on social media suggesting those most at risk, such victims of domestic abuse and violence, would be unable to ask for help. The peak of the pandemic also saw critically NHS 111 overloaded.

If pilots are successful, the scheme could be rolled out to all NHS trusts in December.


Failing to learn vital lessons.

Professor Gurch Randhawa said; “Triaging access to urgent care through the NHS 111 free-to-call phone line is no doubt intended to stop Covid-19 spreading in hospital waiting rooms but it is a huge risk to the communities, especially older people, lower socio-economic groups, and BAME communities, that our research has consistently shown have difficulty accessing healthcare by phone and online.”

“Throughout the pandemic the government has consistently failed to undertake a proper equality impact assessment of its response to Covid-19.

“Given this it is quite frankly flabbergasting that NHS 111 will be the gateway to the emergency care system. This will disadvantage the communities at greatest risk during the pandemic.

“The government is failing to learn vital lessons from its previous errors. If we continue like this, a rise in health inequality will be one of the principal outcomes of the Covid-19 pandemic.”




Popular

Patient face mask in GP

GP practices can now deregister patients for ‘unrealistic service demands’

2 June 2022

student nurse staff nurse

Student nurses ‘used and abused’ on placements

13 June 2022

RCN

Nursing staff demand immediate review of ‘not fit for purpose’ Agenda for Change pay and conditions

8 June 2022

Insight

Busy A&E waiting room

‘The NHS is having its worst winter ever – and the reasons run much deeper than COVID’

28 January 2022

Hospital curtain intensive care

‘During the Downing Street Christmas Party we were caring for dying patients and forbidden from seeing family’

8 December 2021

Vaccine inPPE

‘Making vaccination compulsory for NHS frontline workers likely to make patients suffer’

19 November 2021


Related Posts

Nurse putting PPE in bin
News

Nurses may not have died if the Government purchased ‘decent’ PPE

15 June 2022
Ambulances lining up outside a hospital in the UK
News

Nursing director warns his ambulance service will entirely collapse in August

30 May 2022
Medical students listening sitting at desk
News

Doctors compare nurses to ‘flight attendants’ in row over ACP role

21 May 2022
NursingNotes

© 2019 NursingNotes.co.uk

Navigate Site

  • Who are we?
  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Agenda for Change Pay Scales

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • Latest News
  • Clinical
  • Education
  • Health Politics
  • Opinion
  • Resources

© 2019 NursingNotes.co.uk