Tag: Health Secretary Humza Yousaf

NHS 24 Call Handler and Operator Day

Spotlight on the unseen staff of the NHS – NHS 24 Call Handler and Operator Day 2023 

To highlight the hard work and dedication of Call Handlers and Operators, NHS 24 has held its third annual event to recognise the unique role our staff have in supporting patients seeking urgent care.

Call Handler and Operator Day was created by NHS 24 to recognise the role’s contribution to Scotland’s health care system. An essential part of the 111 service, NHS 24’s Call Handlers and Operators provide valuable information for those needing help when their GP or dental practice is closed. 

NHS 24 currently employs over 740 Call Handlers and Operators in contact centres all over Scotland, with more staff due to be recruited in the coming months. Staff are supported by a range of clinical colleagues who understand first-hand how crucial the job is in supporting those who need medical advice. 

Pauline Howie, Director for Service Delivery for NHS 24 said: “NHS 24’s Call Handlers and Operators are a highly trained and dedicated team that are the backbone of our organisation. I have a huge amount of respect and admiration for everyone who performs this specialised function. 

“The 111 service has been particularly busy over the last few months, but our colleagues have risen to this challenge and have worked extremely hard to meet the needs of our patients.” 

Almost 100,000 calls were made to NHS 24’s 111 service over the Christmas and New Year period. These are the highest figures in almost a decade.  

Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “Call Handlers play a vital role for many who seek help and advice about their health – helping to ensure people get the right care.

“They have worked through a sustained period which has been challenging and difficult at times. Their compassion, dedication and skills have helped many a person in their hour of need.” 

Michelle is a call handler based in NHS 24’s South Queensferry contact centre. She encourages anyone who is interested in the role to find out more: “I really like my job at NHS 24. I enjoy speaking to people, so working in the call centre environment suits me. The contact centre always has a good atmosphere and there’s lots of support from colleagues. 

“The best part about being is call handler is helping people and knowing you are making a difference. It’s great to feel that you’ve helped someone when you come off a call.”

  • Call Handler and Operator Day takes place on Friday 27 January 2023.  
  • NHS 24 has recently launched a recruitment microsite site which provides key information for all applicants hoping to join the organisation. Visit https://careers.nhs24.scot/ to find out more. 

Action to cut delayed discharge

National exercise to re-assess hospital patients who are clinically safe to be discharged

Patients who no longer need to be in hospital are to be reassessed as soon as possible to get them the right care in the right place at the right time.

Before the end of the month each health board area will identify patients who are clinically safe to be discharged without further delay and can safely move home or to another setting such as an interim placement in a care home.

Staying in hospital is not the best option for those who are clinically fit for discharge. Being in hospital for longer than needed is not in the best interests of the individual, particularly for older patients, reducing their ability to look after themselves and return home.

This approach is based on good practice already adopted by several health boards. Patients will only be discharged if it is deemed safe, and clinical risk assessments will take into account the capacity of social care and social work and the potential impact on families or carers of patients.

This is the latest step in efforts to free up capacity in hospitals and help get the NHS through the toughest winter in its history. It builds on last week’s £8 million commitment to provide an extra 300 interim care home beds to get patients discharged quicker.

Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “First and foremost, we know hospital is not a good place to be for people who are medically fit to leave, because it can lead to them becoming weaker or less independent. That’s why it’s so important they can move home, or to a homely setting, as soon as possible.

“We believe this will also help to alleviate pressure on our NHS by freeing up beds and improving the flow of patients through hospitals. It is also, crucially, in the best interest of the people concerned.

“If we can reduce delayed discharge there is more chance that beds will be available for people who need them. We hope that these reviews will also contribute to reducing some of the pressures our hospitals are facing.”

Additional Winter support for NHS

More staff to bolster Scotland’s Test and Protect system

Changes are working, insists Health Secretary

Scotland’s Test and Protect contact tracing system will see its workforce bolstered with the deployment of additional staff over the coming week to help address a rising number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases.

Health Secretary Humza Yousaf  said recent changes to the system are helping its performance and the way it operates will continue to evolve as vaccination levels rise.

Ascensos, one of Test and Protect’s existing commercial partners, has agreed an arrangement with Barrhead Travel to accelerate and augment the capacity they are providing to the contact tracing system by 100 staff. Additional contact tracing bank staff continue to be brought on board and existing bank staff mobilised. 

Recent changes to the system have also been implemented aimed at ensuring a growing number of cases are closed by contact tracers and that high risk cases are prioritised. These include greater use of text messaging to contact lower risk index cases and digital self-tracing forms.

Mr Yousaf said: “Our Test and Protect workforce have played a vital role in the battle against this pandemic. We  owe these contact tracing teams a huge debt of gratitude for all their efforts over the past year.

“The Test and Protect system has continued to operate well as case numbers have increased in recent weeks, contacting unprecedented numbers of people.

“This agreement to bring in additional staff follows our ongoing efforts this year to ensure commercial partners were on board in preparation  for potential increases in demand on the contact tracing system.

“This extra workforce is important, but the  success of the system going forward will not simply be about staffing numbers. 

“Test and Protect will  change as the population becomes more protected by vaccination and it will still play a key role in mitigating clusters and outbreaks in high risk settings, slowing infection spread and protecting populations at risk.

“As we announced last week, we are now using a variety of methods to contact people, including using digital methods like SMS messages for lower risk cases and prioritising calls for higher risk cases. These changes, along with extra staffing, will ensure that people are contact traced, and begin self-isolation, as quickly as possible. I’m confident that the performance of Test and Protect has started to improve in recent days.

“The majority of people comply when asked to self-isolate and we are thankful for the important role they are continue to play in stopping transmission of COVID-19.

“We will have to manage living with COVID-19 for some time to come, even when we are able to move beyond Level 0. While we hope we are in the process of emerging from the pandemic, case rates at the moment underline the fact that this virus is still with us.”

Recently announced measures have been implemented to streamline the contact tracing system to manage pressure on the system and ensure it is more efficient.

These include greater use of text messaging to contact lower risk index cases and digital self-tracing forms.

The new approach ensures that the contact tracing system is using its resource appropriately and proportionate to public health risks: Test and Protect to prioritise high risk cases – gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Test and Protect is an NHS-led service which works with commercial partners to help augment capacity when required.

Contact tracing capacity in Scotland is split between the National Contact Centre operated by National Services Scotland (NSS) and  the daily contact tracing workforce  provided by territorial Health Boards.

All mainland health boards offer drop-in coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination clinics: Drop-in vaccine clinics in every mainland health board – gov.scot (www.gov.scot)