19.03.11
NHS 111 tender for north west
North west PCTs are seeking a supplier of non-emergency telephone services to support NHS 111 in the region. This number will be rolled out nationally by March 2013 to provide an alternative to the 999 emergency number.
NHS Shared Business Services Commercial Procurement Solutions has put out a tender for 111 services, including call handling, clinical assessment and referral services for the 24 PCTs in the north west of England.
The contract has been divided into four lots: NHS Cumbria and NHS Lancashire, NHS Cheshire, Warrington and Wirral and NHS Merseyside, NHS Greater Manchester and a single ‘footprint bid’ for the whole area.
The three-year contract is worth between £40 and £60m.
111 will provide advice on non-emergency health issues and GPs will be able to link their own booking systems to enable patients to book appointments out of hours.
The Department of Health has said that the service should clear up any confusion about who patients should contact during day or night, adding that there will be “no more impersonal answer machines and no more waiting for call-backs”.
In 2010 the DH launched 111 pilots and the service is currently live in four areas - County Durham and Darlington, Nottingham city, Lincolnshire and Luton.
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