Assessment of response times to telephone calls made to NHS hospital wards in England

Background/Aims Telephone calls are a key method of hospital communication, both with patients and other healthcare services. This study aimed to assess the time required for telephone calls to be routed through NHS switchboards to hospital wards in England. Ear, nose and throat (ENT) wards were selected as a focus, as this specialism is present in most acute NHS hospitals. Methods A total of 20 randomly selected NHS hospitals (10 university and 10 district general hospitals) in England were included. Telephone calls were made to the main switchboard of each hospital, then transferred through to the ENT ward. The process was timed from the moment the phone began to ring until the call was answered by the switchboard and subsequently by the ENT ward. Each call was capped at a maximum duration of 20 minutes. Call features were recorded, such as the presence of pre-recorded messages, options to enter an extension number and the use of an interactive voice response system. Results The average switchboard response time was 84.50±35.63 seconds in university hospitals and 108.00±37.95 seconds in district general hospitals. The average time for calls to be transferred from the switchboard to the ENT ward was 213.50±151.84 seconds in university hospitals and 206.50±55.88 seconds in district general hospitals. Three ENT wards did not answer calls routed through the switchboard within 20 minutes. Conclusions There are substantial delays in telephone call response times in NHS hospitals, which could have serious implications for communication and patient care. This highlights the importance of regular audits of NHS telecommunications. Implications for practice Increased staffing levels and the implementation of technological aids could help to increase the efficiency of hospital telephone systems and reduce response times. Automated messages should be regularly reviewed to ensure that they remain relevant and concise.