title: Acceptability of NHS 111 the telephone service for urgent health care: cross sectional postal survey of users' views.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In 2010, a new telephone service, NHS 111, was piloted to improve access to urgent care in England. A unique feature is the use of non-clinical call takers who triage calls with computerized decision support and have access to clinical advisors when necessary. Aim. To explore users' acceptability of NHS 111.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional postal survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four pilot sites in England.
  
  
  METHODS
  A postal survey of recent users of NHS 111.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The response rate was 41% (1769/4265), with 49% offering written comments (872/1769). Sixty-five percent indicated the advice given had been very helpful and 28% quite helpful. The majority of respondents (86%) indicated that they fully complied with advice. Seventy-three percent was very satisfied and 19% quite satisfied with the service overall. Users were less satisfied with the relevance of questions asked, and the accuracy and appropriateness of advice given, than with other aspects of the service. Users who were autorouted to NHS 111 from services such as GP out-of-hours services were less satisfied than direct callers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In pilot services in the first year of operation, NHS 111 appeared to be acceptable to the majority of users. Acceptability could be improved by reassessing the necessity of triage questions used and auditing the accuracy and appropriateness of advice given. User acceptability should be viewed in the context of findings from the wider evaluation, which identified that the NHS 111 pilot services did not improve access to urgent care and indeed increased the use of emergency ambulance services.
authors: Medical Care Research Unit, The School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield UK.
authors: Alicia
authors: A
authors: O'Cathain
authors: Emma
authors: E
authors: Knowles
authors: Janette
authors: J
authors: Turner
authors: Jon
authors: J
authors: Nicholl
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D039602:After-Hours Care / Q000379:methods*; D000368:Aged; D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000379:methods*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004739:England; D005260:Female; D015277:Hotlines; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010865:Pilot Projects; D013222:State Medicine; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013689:Telephone; D014218:Triage / Q000379:methods; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: General practice; out-of-hours medical care; patient satisfaction; telephone; triage; urgent care.