Conduit wins contract to provide NHS Appointment Line service
Online service enables patients to manage referrals and appointments
Conduit's success as a leading provider of specialist managed services for patient care is boosted by a major contract for the provision of the NHS The Appointment Line (TAL) service.
The Appointment Line service supports patient management of appointments once their GP has referred them for treatment through Choose and Book. The service currently handles about 65,000 telephone calls a week from patients who can confirm, change or cancel their appointment and is a core element of the Choose and Book service.
The announcement follows the closure of the NHS Direct-provided TAL service on 31 March 2014, and supports the nationwide drive for the efficient delivery of public healthcare service through the progressive integration of remote and digital patient management.
Crucially, Conduit’s expertise will also assist in the transition of services from the current Choose and Book system to the new NHS e-Referral Service to be launched later this year.
Mark Cleary, head of healthcare client services at Conduit, said, “Conduit has secured this important new contract due to our technical and management capability for patient and customer centric delivery, backed by our deep experience in healthcare working for the Department of Health, NHS England, the the Health & Social care Information Centre (HSCIC) and numerous ambulance trusts.
“We believe Conduit will deliver best-in-class service for the HSCIC and their patients as the most-experienced specialist supplier of call handling services for healthcare and in the NHS.”
Conduit expects the new contract will increase the company’s existing contact centre workforce of 2,000 by more than 200, specifically in Milton Keynes and Chatham.
