We Couldn’t Stand GPs’ Phone Systems – So We Started Giving New Ones Away

PRLog (Press Release) - May 07, 2008 -
They were shocked to discover that some companies were telling doctors to use premium rate ‘rip off’ numbers – effectively charging patients up to 40p/minute to call their doctor – as part of a solution. Disgusted, they invented a way to start giving new phone systems away to surgeries.

'With two young children growing up in the house all we wanted when they were sick was to be able to easily get through to our GP, but it was often very difficult,’ Jon explains. ‘When we started to look around at surgeries that had tried to address this problem we discovered that some of them were being talked into taking on ‘rip off’ deals with premium rate numbers which were against NHS guidelines and hugely unpopular with patients. We felt compelled to come up with a more equitable solution’.

‘We worked out that for what most surgeries already pay for their lines and calls we could actually supply them with all of that plus include a brand new state-of-the-art telephone system. So we thought we’d guarantee it for all surgeries! It solves their problems without any additional cost to them or their patients and doesn’t rely on cheap technology like internet telephony which is still not fully reliable.’

The couple used the mobile phone industry model for inspiration; when you sign up to a mobile phone network, you are normally given a free phone. They also claim their new venture, UK Business Telephone Systems, has gone a step further with the model by capping the monthly payments regardless of the number of calls made by the practice.

Getting through to doctors’ surgeries at peak times is a problem that patients and practices have suffered for years. Receptionists, particularly those in inner city areas, also suffer verbal abuse from frustrated patients who have tried repeatedly to get through. With surgeries now under increased pressure to improve patient access, offer better out-of-hours services and now even stay open longer, improved telephony can play a vital role in supporting these services.

One solution used up until now has been to employ a ‘non geographic number’, usually a number starting 0844, to queue patients’ calls before they get to the surgery. A staggering 10% of all surgeries now use these systems. Surgeries make a small commission from incoming calls which is often put towards a new phone system, with the rest of the money going to the phone companies. However the additional cost to patients – sometimes amounting to 40p/minute – has seen the numbers dubbed a ‘rip off’ and pressure against their use is building from patients as well as from Health Minister Alan Johnson.

The solution from UK Business Telephone Systems allows surgeries to keep their existing local telephone number, improve call handling and out-of-hours services, and of course keep within their budgets.

Although the systems are given away free, the company claims that it can provide these deals profitably and is considering launching similar deals for professional practices and certain businesses.