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Expect delays in getting swine flu help
Fears that seriously ill patients will have to wait for out-of-hours assessments as calls double
PATIENTS who think they may have the swine flu virus have been warned to expect delays in getting out-of-hours medical assessments due to an explosion of calls.
Camidoc, the doctors co-operative which operates phonelines when GP surgeries in Camden are closed, said it had dealt with more than double its normal demand in the last week.
Chief executive Michael Golding said: “It has taken longer for us to respond to patients because of the number of calls we are receiving on swine flu. The concern is that seriously ill patients will have to wait longer to be dealt with.
“Call-back times have averaged in the region of six to eight hours. Last week we dealt with 4,000 patients – 45 per cent are over the phone. Normally it is around 1,500. For most people, they are just wanting reassurance. We are not blaming people – it is natural to be anxious. Thankfully, the flu is currently in a mild form.”
Mr Golding said the new national swine flu assessment hotline, expected to be operational by tomorrow (Friday), will help ease the burden on the out-of-hours service. Camidoc has also hired more staff to “channel” swine flu calls to specialist operators. Most suspected cases are being diagnosed over the phone with sufferers told to stay at home. Patients have also been prescribed anti-viral drugs over the phone.
Mr Golding’s concerns follow mixed messages on the response to swine flu in Camden from Health Secretary Andy Burnham.
Following questions from MPs Frank Dobson and Glenda Jackson in a parliamentary debate on Monday, Mr Burnham told the Commons: “Let me outline what is happening in Camden: three chemists have extended opening hours; three anti-viral collection points will be in place later this week. There is a flu car for those without flu friends. So there is a local distribution system for people who might find it hard to get anti-virals, and 350 courses of anti-virals have been issued to date. In Camden, as he can clearly see, a detailed local operation is already in place.”
But NHS Camden, the new name for the Primary Care Trust, said none of these measures had been introduced.
The Trust said it was ready to do so if instructed, adding they were “pleased” by the Minister’s praise.
Ms Jackson told the Commons that pregnant women and the parents of children under five in her Hampstead and Highgate constituency had raised concerns about contracting the H1N1 virus.
Mr Burnham replied: “It is not the case that anyone is necessarily more at risk of developing the virus than others – it is a question of people’s ability to withstand it after contracting it.”
The number of confirmed cases in Camden has risen by more than 100 this week. At the Royal Free Hospital, five staff members are off sick with the bug.
And 44 members of staff at Camden Council are off work due to the virus. |
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