OVER a million of people in England could be greeted by a paramedic or NHS 111 worker when calling their GP to book an appointment.
Under new potential plans 1.5 million people in London will be automatically diverted to NHS 111 during busy times of the day.
Paramedics could also help support 111 call handlers by dealing with simple medical concerns directly over the phone, The Times reported.
Daniel Elkeles, the chief executive of the London Ambulance Service, told the newspaper that the pilot could be "game changing" in helping more patients see their GP.
Patients ringing their doctor's surgery will be redirected to an NHS 111 worker or paramedic who will go through the same questions that the GP or receptionist would have asked and then navigate the patient to the right place.
“You’d be freeing up loads of time in primary care for the GPs to see the patients who really need them, because we’ve taken away a chunk of the work," he explained.
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It could also reducing the number of people calling an ambulance or going to A&E because they cannot reach their GP.
Daniel said: "If we can get the public back into the idea that if you are not feeling well you phone your GP, then the patient experience will be better and the NHS will work better".
There are about 30 million GP appointments each month in England but patient satisfaction has dropped.
Some 51 per cent of people said they were dissatisfied with the nation’s health service, according to an annual King’s Fund and Nuffield Trust poll.
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Nearly five million patients a month in England wait more than a fortnight for a GP appointment.
One in six consultations – almost 52million between March 2022 and February 2023 – lasted just a few minutes.
Critics say family doctors are so busy that many patients do not get enough time to discuss their health.
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The London Ambulance Service NHS Trust plans to trial the idea and is working with GP practices in London to develop the new phone system.
However, further details on what GP surgeries are involved have not yet been revealed.
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