Procurements of out-of-hours services have been suspended until September, to create a new model of care integrated with NHS 111, Dr Barbara Hakin, NHS England chief operating officer, said last week.
The new services would join together 111 and general practice out of hours services with other urgent care services. In some areas all services are run by one organisation, but in others, different contracts are given to a variety of bodies.
Procurements of out-of-hours services have been suspended until September, to create a new model of care integrated with NHS 111, Dr Barbara Hakin, NHS England chief operating officer, said last week.
The new services would join together 111 and general practice out of hours services with other urgent care services. In some areas all services are run by one organisation, but in others, different contracts are given to a variety of bodies.
The new model of care will create a “functionally integrated urgent care access, treatment and clinical advice service” the letter from Hakin, seen by Health Service Journal, said.
“Further procurements of NHS 111 and OOH (out of hours) services should be suspended, whatever stage of the procurement has been reached, until the end of September, to allow completion of the consultation and the release of the revised commissioning standards and supporting procurement advice for integrated services,” Hakin said.
The suspension of local NHS 111 services followed a Telegraph investigation that exposed major safety risks to patients.
A new blueprint will be issued this autumn, promising a new model of care, and national standards on how the helpline should work with ambulances, GP out of hours and urgent care providers.
