NHS Direct to ‘withdraw’ from troubled 111 phone service

NHS Direct, the main provider of the service which was first trialled in 2010, announced on Monday it was seeking to “withdraw from contracts entered into”.

A company spokeswoman said: “The trust is seeking to agree a managed transfer of NHS Direct’s 111 services, and the frontline and other staff who currently provide them, to alternative providers.

“NHS Direct is seeking to withdraw from the NHS 111 contracts it entered into as these have proved to be financially unsustainable.”

The “planned withdrawal” from the service follows estimates that the service was projected to contribute a £26m deficit to NHS Direct’s finances.

NHS Direct originally won 11 of the 46 contracts to provide teh 111 service. Ealirer this month it announced it would be unable to provide the service in North Essex and Cornwall.

It is now seeking to withdraw from the remaining nine services it operates, in Somerset, Buckinghamshire, east London and the City, south-east London, Sutton and Merton, West Midlands, Lancashire and Cumbria, Greater Manchester and Merseyside and Cheshire.

The company “encountered significant problems” when it launched the three contracts in the north west of England and the West Midlands in March, the spokeswoman said. She said calls took “twice as long as expected” and as a result, NHS Direct did not have “sufficient capacity” to handle all the calls it received.

Chief executive Nick Chapman 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.”

The NHS Direct announcement is the latest blow to the scheme, which was launched by the Labour government in a bid to clean up confusion around NHS services.

Last month a leaked report condemned the way in which the service was rolled out across the North West and the West Midlands, and questioned the long-term viability of the service.

The report highlighted how 70 per cent of NHS 111 calls went unanswered. In May it was revealed that there had been 22 “potentially serious” incidents, including three deaths, linked to advice given by the 111 service.

NHS England said that discussions were underway with new providers who could take over the contracts.

NHS England’s deputy chief executive Dame Barbara Hakin said: “We have been in discussions with NHS Direct for some time over this issue and they have assured us they are committed to continue to provide services.

“We are also having constructive discussions with a number of potential new providers who could take on these contracts, specifically with the local ambulance trusts who have experience and a strong track record in provision of similar services.

“I want to reassure callers to 111 that, regardless of today’s announcement, a full 111 service will be available throughout the transition. The public should not feel any detrimental effects of changes in the providers of the service.

“This decision has been taken by all parties to make sure that 111 delivers a sustainable high level of service to all callers in the years ahead.
“NHS Direct’s current contracts will come to an end in a planned and managed way throughout 2013/14.”

A spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron conceded there had been problems with the initial implementation of 111, but insisted performance and patient satisfaction was now high.

“He is confident that we will continue to push up standards and deliver a high level of service for patients across the country,” the spokesman said.

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