The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 273 No 7322 p589
23 October 2004

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News summary

Out-of-hours service standards set for 2005

New minimum standards for out-of-hours services have been published by the Department of Health.

The “National Quality Requirements” will come into force on 1 January 2005. They aim to ensure that patients will be guaranteed high standards of out-of-hours care as many GPs opt out of out-of-hours care and the responsibility for these services falls to primary care trusts.

Altogether, there are 13 requirements including:

· Providers must ensure that patients are treated by the clinician best equipped to meet their needs in the most appropriate location
· Where more than one organisation is involved in the provision of out-of-hours services, providers must have clearly agreed responsibilities regarding the transmission of patient data
· Providers must have systems in place to support and encourage the regular exchange of up-to-date and comprehensive information between all those providing care to patients with predefined needs
· Providers must regularly audit services
· Providers must operate a complaints procedure

Health minister John Hutton said that GPs would work alongside nurses and other practitioners to deliver services that ensured patients “get the right service at the right time from the right person”.

The requirements can be accessed here