Quarter of Scotland's NHS 24 winter calls unanswered

One in four calls to Scotland's NHS 24 over winter were abandoned before they were answered, new figures have shown.

From October to mid January, 25.8% of calls to the 111 helpline did not reach an operator before the caller cut off. The average wait was about 18 minutes.

Scottish Labour, which obtained the data from a freedom of information request, said it was "unacceptable".

A spokeswoman for NHS 24 said there had been an unprecedented growth in demand during the pandemic.

Between 1 October and 16 January, 163,814 calls to the helpline were abandoned out of a total of 632,637, according to data provided to Scottish Labour.

A similar request submitted by the Scottish Conservatives found 68,119 calls were abandoned in September, more than any of the following four months.

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The longest wait for a call to be answered took place on 16 January, when someone waited two hours and 21 minutes, more than seven times the average wait of 18 minutes 42 seconds.

NHS 24 said calls could be abandoned for numerous reasons, including patients ending the call after hearing the automated options such as accessing advice from the NHS Inform website, calling 999 or contacting the Covid information line.

The non-emergency 111 phone number operates an out-of-hours service for non-emergency medical and dental concerns but was expanded to a 24/7 operation during the pandemic.

Patients calling with Covid-19 symptoms accounted for up to 25% of 111 calls over the winter, according to NHS 24 figures.

Health services in Scotland have been stretched during the pandemic. Regional health boards urged people to contact NHS 24 instead of attending overcrowded emergency departments.

In turn, NHS 24 warned of longer call waits and reminded people to treat common illness at home and use its website NHS Inform.

Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie called on the Scottish government to better support NHS 24, one of Scotland's special health boards.

"The SNP's failure to support NHS 24 has led to thousands of Scots missing out on medical help," she said.

"Staff have worked tirelessly, but with thousands of Scots in need being left hanging on the telephone it is clear that greater support is needed.

'Dangerous bottleneck'

Scottish Conservative health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane described the number of abandoned calls as "deeply concerning".

He added: "Patients have been encouraged to use NHS 24 as a first port of call before going to Scotland's over-stretched A&E wards.

"Some of these calls will relate to serious conditions. This has created another dangerous bottleneck in our NHS."

NHS 24 said that in response to increasing demand,it had employed 422 new members of staff and opened three additional centres.

A spokeswoman added: "The winter period is busy for the whole NHS across Scotland and this year was particularly busy due to the pandemic and the Omicron variant."

"This unprecedented growth in demand means that, at times, people have experienced a longer wait time for their calls to be answered."

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She said that callers may have followed an alternative route to care through the options offered.

Callers were also given the option of using the online symptom checkers, which had a 140% increase in visitors from October to January.

The Scottish government said it had increased NHS 24 funding by more than £20m for extra staff and a new call centre in Dundee, which opened in December.

A spokesman said: "We will continue to support the service as it expands both its services and workforce."