A 24 hour telephone medical helpline service is available from NHS Direct.
You can speak to an experienced staff member anytime on 0845 4647. Doctors are always on hand to help, even at night and weekends.
What will happen when I call?
- when you call NHS Direct, the first person you speak to will be an experienced call handler
- the call handler will take initial information such as your name and address
- you will be asked a series of questions so that the nature and urgency of the call can be assessed
- if you need straightforward information about local services, the call handler will deal with the enquiry and close the call
- if the matter is more serious, the call will be passed to either a nurse advisor or health information advisor
- the nurse advisor will assess the call and provide information on what to do next. This could mean:
- advising on self-care at home
- referral to a GP out-of-hours service
- calling 999.
If you call to request information on a specific illness or service, your call will normally be passed to a health information advisor. These advisors have experience in research and deal with particular requests from the public.
Information can be given over the telephone or sent in the post.