Recommendation 27

We welcome the news that the Government and NHSE/I are piloting a ‘111 dial first’ scheme to support the triaging of patients before they attend A&E departments. The introduction of an expectation that a patient will call first before walking into an A&E department is a sensible change to support A&E departments during the pandemic, and has much to commend it as a long-term reform. We recommend that the Department and NHSE/I provide us with an update by the end of November 2020 on the progress of these pilots and other steps that are being taken, in both the short and long-term, to support A&E departments. (Paragraph 170) Technology and digital alternatives (“telemedicine”)