Nhs direct closed?

[Nibblenic]

How have we not heard about this. I live in the North east and phoned NHS direct today. It asked for my post code then told me it was no longer available. To ring 111 or 99 or GP

I rang 111 and got nowhere. Luckily my gp did a phone consult.

But how have they closed NHS direct and it not been made very public knowledge.

 

[Lucasmum]

Thats madness, it says nothing on the website

 

[Wriggley]

we used them last week and was all ok

 

[Kate&Lucas]

I saw something about this on Twitter last week, I think it was a petition to stop it closing. I thought it was all very hush-hush.

 

[Jade--x]

I had the same thing I tried to call them a few weeks ago and it didn't even tell you to call 111 or ask for my postcode it just said to call 999 or wait until you can get a GP appointment :S it was my friend who works for the NHS who told me they'd scrapped NHS direct and they use 111 now, I've used them twice and both times I got straight through and they sent me for emergency out of hours appointments which I found better than when I used NHS Direct in the past. I do agree though they've kept it all under wraps and shouldn't have

 

[torch2010]

I used them yesterday. I am in Wales x

 

[isil]

The Department of Health has confirmed that NHS Direct's telephone number is to be phased out in favour of the new non-emergency NHS 111 number, following three pilots in the North East, East Midlands and East of England. NHS 111 is intended to work in an integrated way with local GPs, out-of-hours services, ambulance services and hospitals, for the benefit of patients and to help the NHS become more efficient. NHS Direct as an organisation is not being closed down, nor was this ever the Government’s intention. NHS Direct will have an ongoing role, along with other providers, in helping to deliver the NHS 111 Service and, in the interim, will continue providing local and national telephone and web-based services on behalf of its commissioners.

Does that explain it maybe?

 

[Tegans Mama]

We've used 111 a few times, twice when Tegan has been ill and once when I had an allergic reaction to penicillin and they were fine

 

[Chezzz]

We still have our out of hours before the 111 switch over thing.
We ring our gp surgery and it'll put us through to south east health (the out of hours people)
But I guess clues in the name, were in the southeast so nothing's changed yet x

 

[bumpsmum]

Sorry I'm muddled is NHS direct different from NHS24? I'm in west of Scotland not sure if direct is a service down south lol x

 

[Ceejay123]

I think that this is absolutely awful! x

 

[binxyboo]

https://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/AboutNHSservices/Emergencyandurgentcareservices/Pages/NHS-111.aspx

Reading this, it seems they HAVEN'T closed NHS direct, they have just changed the number to a more memorable one, and in the process changed the name to NHS 111.

It appears that NHS 111 offers pretty much the SAME service as NHS Direct.

 

[Arcanegirl]

NHS24 is the scottish version and we still have that running. I do beleive this jsut applies to England with NHS Direct.

 

[Baby France]

I know that some of our emergency surgerys are due to close soon

They've close a local maternity ward and made the most local a super centre - although they were obvious building changes (during my pregnancies) that I felt more on a conveyor belt to get our than the genuine care with my first.

Our local centres (that you get directed too via NHS direct) are closing down and we've to go to our A&E, but they are plans to close that and we go to the other hospital (that hasn't a maternity) instead

Doesn't make sense to me either - its not as though there was never a 3 hour wait and it was brimmed to packed whenever I had to visit anyways!

 

[Mummy2B21]

I knew nothing of this, I didn't evan know about nhs 111 thank you so much for posting!