EVERY patient who calls for a vital face-to-face out-of-hours appointment with a doctor is now getting one thanks to a new and improved privatised service.

The new out-of-hours doctor service, launched in October and run by Take Care Now (TCN), is more efficient than the old service run by Worcestershire Primary Care Trust, say health chiefs.

The number of urgent face-to-face consultations achieved within an hour has risen from 90 per cent to 100 per cent for October – all 776 patients who needed face-to-face care received it.

Fewer patients who call the out-of-hours line are now abandoning calls because they cannot get through.

Telephone calls abandoned by waiting patients, who can use the service when their own GP surgery is closed, fell from 10 per cent to under 5 per cent in October.

A total of 477 callers out of 10,145 were left unanswered – it was about 1,000 callers a month before TCN launched the new service.

This means the out-of-hours service has hit the Government target that fewer than five per cent of calls should be abandoned by patients.

Health chiefs say 112 per cent more calls are being answered within 60 seconds and the number of urgent face-to-face consultations achieved within two hours has risen from 82 per cent to 98 per cent.

The improvements have been achieved despite a 32 per cent increase in the volume of calls, according to TCN, who won the contract to run the service by tender in July.

There were 14,605 calls in November, more than 4,000 more than the previous month.

TCN is a UK-based independent healthcare provider which works with the NHS.

Paul Bates, chief executive of Worcestershire Primary Care Trust, which commissions the service, said: “We are determined to obtain the best services we can for patients within the resources we have and to work in partnership with our private sector contractors to continually improve.”

However, he stressed that patients should use the service appropriately and also use NHS Direct as a first port of call during the busy winter period.

There are out-of-hours staff available at Worcestershire Royal between 6.30pm and 8pm on weekdays and 24 hours a day at weekends but health chiefs prefer callers to ring in advance for an appointment.

Other centres that exist are based in Redditch, Kidderminster, Malvern and Tenbury Wells.

The NHS Direct number is 0845 4647.

If you feel you need a doctor when your surgery is closed and cannot wait until it is open, call the out-of-hours service on 0300 1233211.

For things such as fractures and minor burns and scalds, patients should visit their nearest minor injuries unit and only use accident and emergency for serious problems.

Patients should call 999 only when the condition is life threatening.