> -----Original Message-----
> From: [log in to unmask]
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Lynn Woods
> Sent: 30 December 1998 21:59
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: SMM?
Lynn Woods wrote

> Our feedback suggests that co-ops and dep services nationwide received
> 5 calls per member-GP per day over the three busy days.  Therefore the
> c500-GP schemes like Devon (Midge) and NYED (Paul Caldwell) were
> dealing with about 2,500 calls a day and about 8,500 over the whole
> Christmas period.   Trefor's figures for Sheffield would fit that
> pattern.
>
> Quite a few schemes were saturated on Monday and would undoubtedly
> have taken more calls had callers not encountered jammed lines and
> given up or gone off to join 5hr queues at A&E.
>
> This is not an unusual phenomenon in four day Christmases and I don't
> see what co-ops can do to alleviate it short of building in extra
> call-management capacity for just a few days each year.   This of
> course means much expense on extra phone lines, ops room capacity, IT
> and everything else, and with so many schemes shoehorned into shared
> premises it usually isn't a viable option.   Having experienced the
> co-op management side at Christmas I have to say I don't think full
> coverage of the fourth day of Christmas is entirely safe, and I
> believe surgeries should open-up for just a couple of hours in the
> morning.

The amazing thing is that all practices in Sheffield had to open either Saturday or Monday Morning. My two colleagues who did the
Monday surgery saw about 20 between them and did 8 visits, all these calls coming between 8.00am and 11.00 am. This is the
equivalent of 5 calls per GP just in this time. If we had all been closed all four days the the figures would heve been much higher!

Trefor

Dr Trefor Roscoe
Beighton Health Centre
Queens Road, Beighton,
SHEFFIELD

GP Tutor Informatics - N Trent
Member of the BHIA



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