Primary care telephone triage does not save money or reduce practice workload

(University of Exeter) A new large study, published in The Lancet on Aug. 4 2014 and funded by the UK National Institute for Health Research, has investigated the potential value of telephone triage for patients and for the NHS. It concluded that patients who receive a telephone call-back from a doctor or a nurse following their request for a same-day consultation with a GP are more likely to require further support or advice when compared to patients who see a doctor in person.