Managing calls from healthcare professionals
There are two national frameworks to manage calls from GPs and other healthcare professionals (HCPs) requesting an ambulance for patients who need urgent or emergency transportation to hospital or between hospital sites.
The National Framework for Inter-facility Transfers and the National Framework for Healthcare Professional Ambulance Responses have been designed by the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives in collaboration with commissioners, NHS England and other key stakeholders.
The frameworks have shown benefits including:
- Equity of access for all seriously ill and injured patients, supporting patients’ clinical needs
- Consistent definitions for high acuity responses mapped to the equivalent 999 response priorities
- Opportunity for local innovation and acknowledgement of different contractual and commissioning arrangements for lower acuity incidents (Level 3 and 4)
- Reporting of HCP and IFT incidents separately to other 999 activity, and in a way that allows comparison and assures transparency.
EMAS went live with the processes on 1 October 2019.
Below are guidance documents for GPs and HCPs on the two processes.
- Guide for healthcare professionals - how to request an ambulance
- Poster for GPs and HCPs requesting an ambulance to take a patient to hospital
- Poster for HCPs requesting a transfer between hospital sites
Read the frameworks on the NHS England website