Trust ditches 0844 number

Tags: 084 GP

01 Oct 2008

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust has ditched a recently introduced 0844 number following complaints that it could leave vulnerable patients out of pocket.

The trust introduced the 0844 number as a single contact for Glenfield, Leicester General and the Royal Infirmary hospitals, early in September.

It opted not to make revenue from the number; but patient groups still objected that it would not be free for callers using some popular landline packages or mobiles.

The trust has now decided to use an 0300 number instead. “The single number is a great idea, but with the 0844 prefix, it was patients who were picking up the cost,” said Zaffar Haq, chair of Leicester Patients’ Group.

“We were enraged that after spending so long trying to get GPs to stop using the 0844 number, the hospital suddenly began to use it,” he added.

There have been persistent complaints about hospitals and GPs using 084 numbers. Earlier this year, health secretary Alan Johnson appeared to criticise their use and the Department of Health launched an investigation.

However, in September, health minister Ben Bradshaw indicated the DH had no immediate plans to ban their use. In a letter to Rob Marris MP, who has been campaigning against the use of 084 numbers by the health service, he said the Department was analysing the information from its data collection exercise.

He added: “In time we will publish guidance about how primary care trusts can ensure that patients are able to access their GPs or other NHS organisations via the best possible service, without placing additional costs on them.”

In a statement on the trust’s website, Leicester’s director of IM&T, John Aird, said: “We wanted a single number for all three hospitals because that would enable us to answer the public’s calls more quickly.

“We chose 0844 as a single number prefix but declined the option of making money out of it. However, people have since pointed out that if you have a call package on your home phone or a pre-pay mobile, the 0844 number is not recognised and could end up costing more.

“We’ve listened, learnt and ditched 0844 and changed to an 0300 number, which call packages and pre-pay mobiles do recognise.”

Huq welcomed the move, but said: “I won’t be happy until GPs are forced to change their numbers too. 178,000 people in Leicester have a GP who uses the 0844 number. That’s over half of the population who are out of pocket as a result of needing to contact their GP.”

The number change will be introduced in several phases, according to a trust spokeswoman. The new number will cost the trust £14,000 a year, whereas the old number was free.

Simona Stankovska

Reader's Comments

an example of a patient choice

john.aird@uhl-tr.nhs.uk

01 Oct 08 08:10

This is not quite as straight forward as reported.

The Trust procured a 0844 (single Trust number) number a couple of years ago as an ongoing part of our hospital sites merger, but delayed its publication to coincide with the revised Trust letter headings arising from our FT application, but as that was delayed we decided we had to consolidate our telephony anyway.

The Trust had made a conscious decision not to raise funding through the 0844 number and only to charge local land-line rates of 3p per min, applicable nationally, so giving local call rates to patients outside our catchment area too. The down side being mobile phone charges could be more for some.

Recently the 03 number was introduced and we looked at that too. Although the off-peak charges at c.1 to 2p per min were cheaper than the 0844 number, as was mobile phone use, peak-time land-line charges were c.1p per min more, plus the Trust has to subsidise callers too. So at the time we felt that the cheaper peak-time landline rates of 3p per min (when 70% or our calls happen) applicable nationally was more advantageous to patients and the Trust

However, a vigorous local debate preferred the 03 number and as it is really a swings and roundabouts debate anyway (cheaper landline or mobile calls) we were quite happy to go with the wishes or our patients, who always come first.

FREE 03 allows move from 0844

andrew.holford@remedi.me.uk

08 Oct 08 08:10

As a designer, supplier and prior advocate of 0844 systems for NHS use I have great sympathy with the many Trusts/GPs who use them; it was the correct choice at the time. However with a third of all calls now being generated from Mobiles the 084 deal knell has started to ring.

As the Trust also states going 03 costs money, generally it costs half the money to host an 03xx than hosting 0800.

At REMEDI we are please to announce that from next month Trusts can apply for 03xx numbers that are free to host. Our FREE03 service will mean callers costs are within their normal 01/02 call bundles yet of greatest importance the host, i.e. hospital or surgery will pay no call receive cost.

Until services like REMEDi's FREE03 become more generally available the 0844 debate will continue yet Trusts should not be criticised too greatly, it is a difficult choice and one in which rules have been changing almost annually.

Andrew Holford Busines Product Development REMEDi.me.uk