NHS needs to simplify urgent care

Posted 17/06/2013

The BBC has reported that a review of the NHS in England has shown that a much simpler and co-ordinated system of 24 hour urgent and emergency care is needed.The review was led by NHS medical director Sir Bruce Keogh and highlights that the current system confuses many patients so that they often go to A&E units when they require urgent help.  It reveals that there are around 100 million NHS calls or visits each year where urgent or unplanned care is needed. A growing number of frail elderly patients, more long-term illnesses, new treatments and increased public expectations have all contributed to increased demand.Sophie Bales, a medical injury solicitor at Ashtons Legal, comments:“The system surrounding urgent care certainly is confusing for patients and needs to be simplified. There have also been criticisms of the out of hours service. As a result, more patients appear to be attending their local Accident & Emergency Departments putting further pressure on these services.This latest review identifies that change is needed which is a positive step. However, this is not enough and practical steps should be taken as soon as possible to simplify the 24 hour urgent care system”.