NHS 111 ‘disaster’ inquiry demanded by BMA
GPs have called unanimously for an independent inquiry into the NHS 111 ‘debacle’.
They also demanded a government-commissioned probe into the ‘wholly inappropriate’ use of the least-qualified people for triaging calls made to the urgent non-emergency phone line.
The BMA local medical committees conference heard accounts from GPs about the botched implementation of the service in March this year.
Manchester GP John Hughes described the implementation as an ‘omnishambles, a complete disaster, a complete waste of public money’. He said he understood a confidential report into the implementation of NHS 111 had blamed insufficient call handlers, poorly trained staff and inadequate governance.
Dr Hughes added: ‘The finding of the pilot had been ignored. There was extreme pressure for a soft launch. We warned in the time running up that this was unsustainable … We need a public inquiry into this.’