By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    improving patient experience
    6 Ways to Improve Patient Satisfaction Within Hospitals
    December 1, 2021
    degree for healthcare job
    What Are The Health Benefits Of Having A Degree?
    March 9, 2022
    custom software development is changing healthcare
    Digital Customer Journey Mapping and its Importance for Healthcare
    July 21, 2022
    Latest News
    6 Easy Healthcare Ways to Sit Less and Move More Every Day
    September 10, 2025
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Feinberg’s Simulation-Based Training Program Wins Innovations Challenge
    November 16, 2012
    ACA Delays
    Top 8 ACA Delays: Blatantly Illegal or Temporary Courses of Action?
    July 7, 2014
    Vegetarina Dental Concerns Marielaina Perrone DDS
    Oral Health Concerns For Vegetarians
    February 14, 2013
    Latest News
    Healthcare at a Crossroads: Why Leadership Matters More Than Ever
    September 9, 2025
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Saving NHS Funding by Redirecting Frequent Callers
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Health care > Saving NHS Funding by Redirecting Frequent Callers
Health carePublic Health

Saving NHS Funding by Redirecting Frequent Callers

Juan Vittori
Juan Vittori
Share
6 Min Read
SHARE

Budget cuts have long been an area of intense concern among the healthcare system of the UK. The NHS has worked diligently with government and community organisations over the last several years to identify where funding can be saved and services can simultaneously be improved, but with less than ideal outcomes to date. The reality is that added pressure from a bevy of external and internal sources has made cutting costs while delivering quality medical care and social services an unprecedented challenge, leaving patients wanting more from the country’s healthcare institution.

Contents
  • Easing Pressure from Frequent Callers
  • A Look Ahead for NHS Services

However, NHS front-line staff are taking the lead on creative ideas to better the situation, not only from a funding perspective but, most importantly, from a patient care perspective. In 2013, senior paramedic Rhian Monteith uncovered a glaring trend among a small subset of patients in Blackpool. A group of 23 individuals was known to the local healthcare team as frequent callers, ringing 999 far more often than other patients of the same age and location. Among these frequent callers, many were found to have mental health issues, including strong feelings of loneliness and depression.

In an effort to ease their non-emergency issues, they were consistently using 999 for connection to Monteith and her colleagues. Over the course of three months, these frequent callers visited A&E units 703 times, delivered there by ambulance. The high cost of providing social connection to these patients put a spark in Monteith’s mind to change the game.

Easing Pressure from Frequent Callers

The senior paramedic was able to identify different, non-medical needs of the initial patient group of frequent callings, honing in on their desire for social interaction and comfort from personal visits. Across the UK, frequent callers are defined as those who visit the A&E unit in their local community more than 20 times per year. While this number represents only 0.50% of the population, or 5,000 individuals, the cost associated with these callers accounts for 3%, or £53 million to the NHS. Monteith developed a strategy to reduce this financial burden on A&E units and paramedics, named the High Intensity User programme.

More Read

HIMSS recap
HIMSS Privacy and Security Forum: Managing Social Media While Protecting Privacy and Security
What the Ebola Outbreak Shows Us About Modern Health Technology
Does Disclosure Work?
Plan B’s Balancing Act
Contaminated Water and Disease:Are We Safe?

As part of NHS initiatives under the RightCare campaign, the High Intensity User programme encourages frequent callers to reach out to specific individuals in their communities as a replacement for contacting 999 and receiving A&E care that is often unnecessary. The individual tasked with responding to frequent callers offers social interactions, education on coping mechanisms for mental health and loneliness, as well as resources for community-based services which offer a robust menu of benefits to vulnerable patients such as these.

Over the course of three years, Monteith and her colleagues noticed several positive outcomes from the initiative, including a reduction in A&E visits, 999 calls, and hospital admissions by an impressive 90%. Over time, frequent callers also relied on their contacts less often, suggesting the programme was serving a higher purpose for their individual needs. The financial savings to NHS is not a small achievement either, as the programme provided for nearly £2 million in reductions over the three-year timeframe.

A Look Ahead for NHS Services

The success of the High Intensity User programme has been hailed as a small change that yields significant results for an embattled NHS. A group of experts in medical negligence in the UK explains that several burdens have created a less than ideal fiscal environment for the healthcare system over the years, leading to a grave need for innovation and change. A rapidly aging population has paved the way for increased demand for healthcare services, but cuts to the budget for NHS has simultaneously reduced staffing numbers and availability of services for patients in need. The lack of connection between financial need and patient demand has meant less than ideal circumstances in NHS, not the least of which is the potential for lower quality care.

Programmes like the High Intensity User initiative are a step in the right direction for NHS and communities across the UK. Given its level of success, NHS has now implemented the programme in 36 out of the 195 clinical commissioning groups, with the hope to expand further later in 2018. A small recognition of a needed change on the community level sparked a vast shift for A&E units and community residents, and a promise of a better, more valuable NHS overall. Looking forward, community-based services like the High Intensity User programme can have a long-lasting impact on the viability of the healthcare system and ultimately, an improvement in the care provided to patients in need.

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

a woman walking on the hallway
6 Easy Healthcare Ways to Sit Less and Move More Every Day
Health
September 9, 2025
Clinical Expertise
Healthcare at a Crossroads: Why Leadership Matters More Than Ever
Global Healthcare
September 9, 2025
travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025

You Might also Like

Health careMedical Devices

How Anesthesia Can Be Delivered With Anesthesia Machines

September 3, 2019
empowered patients webinar
eHealthMobile HealthPublic Health

Monitoring to Change Behavior: Does It Work?

June 11, 2013
pediatrics
Health care

7 Strategies To Help Children Feel More Comfortable During Doctor Visits

July 22, 2019

Time for FDA to Hire Some Pharma Marketers?

February 3, 2012
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?