NHS 111 helpline calls ‘will be answered by robots within two years’

Calls to the NHS 111 helpline will be answered by robots within the next two years, it has been reported.

The Telegraph said it has seen a leaked report detailing the change, which could see 16 million non-emergency enquiries dealt with by algorithms instead of telephone by 2020.

NHS England said smartphones could become the ‘primary method of accessing health services’, the newspaper reported.

The draft NHS report from last month said one in four 111 cases will be dealt with online by next year, then up to one in three in 2020.

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The report said new solutions are needed to cope with the heavy demand on the health service.

However, human staff will not disappear entirely, as the algorithms will transfer the caller to a real person when their exact problem has been established.

The move comes after figures revealed that one in five non-emergency callers to the NHS gave up on the busiest day over the New Year and hung up.

The move to digital is expected to be rolled out across England by the end of this year.

Callers will either receive feedback from an automated system, get called back or be connected immediately to a GP.

It is thought the new system could solve one in three NHS 111 calls.

An NHS England spokesman said: ‘NHS 111 Online offers an additional route for urgent medical advice as an extra option.

‘If it frees up time for staff to spend with those patients who do prefer a direct conversation, that should be a win-win.’