Services

The service is delivered via a multi disciplinary approach

As the commissioned provider NSUC call handler all North Staffordshire’s calls in the Out of Hours period from 18:30 until 8am, seven days a week. At the weekend this will include all day Saturday and Sunday and all day on designated Bank Holidays.

When calls presented at NSUC The patients demographic details will be taken and thereafter based on the severity or routine nature of their presenting symptoms ,they will be prioritised and call streamed by the call handler.

This process ensures that the patient is seen by the correct health care professional, in the correct location and within the correct time frame to coincide with their symptoms. The following options are available and appropriately activated to meet patient’s needs.

• All life threatening calls will be transferred immediately to the ambulance service

• All calls requiring urgent telephone assessment are transferred through to a nurse or a doctor for an immediate priority response.

• Patients presenting with symptoms that meet the base consultation criteria are given an appointment and seen by a duty doctor, over the weekend a nurse practitioner is also available.

• Our home visiting service is also available to those patients following nurse triage or who have been call streamed by the call handler, meet the home visiting criteria. The visit will either be under taken by a doctor or a district nurse.