Thousands of 999 callers are being referred to their GP or pharmacist instead to improve slow ambulance response times.
The NHS crackdown affects category two calls, classed as medical emergencies, which must be reached within an average of 18 minutes.
But heart attack and stroke patients – who also fall under the same category – will not be affected, health chiefs stressed today.
This only applies to a subset of such calls, including patients with burns, complications from diabetes or headaches.
That accounts for about 40 percent of all category two requests, officials estimate.
NHS data shows that one in five ambulances had to wait more than 30 minutes outside the emergency department in the week ending February 12 (red line). The number, which represents 20 percent of all hospital arrivals, is about double what it was before the Covid pandemic. However, this is half the number recorded in the last week of 2022, when 31,088 (43.7 percent) were confined outside hospitals.
Around 5,355 ambulances stood outside hospitals for more than an hour in the week ending 12 February. This is down from a high of 18,720 in the last week of December
Not all of these patients will need an equally quick response from paramedics, the NHS claimed today as it announced plans to be rolled out across England by the end of the month.
Any lower priority callers will be called back by a paramedic who will then decide if they really need a 999 team.
Doctors, nurses and paramedics who call back decide whether they can be referred to an emergency room, GP or pharmacist instead.
Experts hope the move will dramatically improve response times, which have fallen to record highs this winter.
During the worst winter crisis, heart attack patients had to wait an average of 90 minutes for paramedics to arrive.
Response times have since improved as pressure on the NHS eases, but are still well above target.
The move to further triage around 999 callers comes after NHS England tested what it called “clinical validation” in London and the West Midlands.
Almost half of those recalled were advised to seek alternative treatment, prompting the health service to ask England’s eight other services to take over the programme.
The NHS was able to identify a group of patients – who account for 40 per cent of Category 2 calls – who would benefit from a doctor’s call back rather than sending an ambulance.
For example, a patient with a minor burn on their arm may be advised to go to the pharmacy or emergency room.
Meanwhile, a very serious burn would be sent to an ambulance and could be classed as a category 1 emergency after a telephone assessment.
However, an ambulance is always sent for a group of category 2 patients, including patients with heart attacks and strokes.
And anyone who is not referred to another service after requesting a callback does not lose their original place in the ambulance line.
Clinical validation is already used by emergency services for category three and four callers.
The pilot project identified no safety risks, while ambulance response times were faster and patients received the most appropriate care.
NHS leaders will examine the system over the first few months.
Professor Julian Redhead, NHS England’s national clinical director for urgent and emergency care, said: “This new system allows for a conversation between a nurse and a paramedic or a doctor and the patient.
“Together they can decide if an ambulance is the best response or if an ambulance is not needed and they will be better cared for in another environment.
“It’s very important for people to know that it doesn’t mean that someone loses their place in line (while being assessed).
“This provides a patient with more personalized care, but also allows us to free up resources for our most vulnerable patients, patients who have had strokes and heart attacks.”
That’s because today’s NHS data showed that 15,665 ambulances in England queued outside emergency departments for at least 30 minutes last week.
The number, which represents 20 percent of all hospital arrivals, is about double what it was before the Covid pandemic.
However, in the last week of 2022, this is only half as many as in the last week of 2022, when 31,088 (43.7 percent) were trapped outside hospitals.
Of those ambulances, 5,355 waited in line for more than an hour. This is down from a high of 18,720 in the last week of December.
Pictured: Ambulances parked outside Medway Maritime Hospital in Gillingham, Kent, in January 2021
There was some relief in ambulance response times in January, as Britons with suspected heart attacks and strokes waited an average of just 32 minutes for an ambulance, down from a record 90 minutes in December. However, the figure is still double the official target that Britons only have to wait 18 minutes on average in such emergencies
Health chiefs warn the NHS has been hit by an increase in demand for urgent care this winter due to a combination of a record 999 calls and a shortage of beds in hospitals.
This affects paramedics’ response times as they are forced to wait their entire shift with their patients outside hospitals instead of responding to more callers.
Monthly data for January showed ambulances improved their response times after the long waits patients faced earlier this winter.
The response time to Category 1 calls – calls from people with life-threatening illnesses or injuries such as cardiac arrest and severe allergic reactions – was eight minutes and 30 seconds. That’s less than 10 minutes and 57 seconds in December.
The health department’s own manual said that on average it would take 999 teams no more than 7 minutes to respond to those calls.
Category two callers – including heart attacks, strokes, burns and epilepsy – waited 32 minutes and six seconds in January.
This is a sharp drop from 1 hour, 32 minutes and 54 seconds in December.
However, this response time is still almost double the target of 18 minutes.
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
