Abstract
This study compares health status, demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of users and non-users of NHS Direct in order to establish whether the service is being used by people with the greatest need for healthcare services. It suggests that use of NHS Direct is widespread among carers of children under 5 years old, but there is evidence that it may not be accessed equitably by those from ethnic minorities, lower socioeconomic groups and those with established ill health.
Full Text
The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (19.4 KB).
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Asch D. A., Jedrziewski M. K., Christakis N. A. Response rates to mail surveys published in medical journals. J Clin Epidemiol. 1997 Oct;50(10):1129–1136. doi: 10.1016/s0895-4356(97)00126-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Florin D., Rosen R. Evaluating NHS direct. Early findings raise questions about expanding the service. BMJ. 1999 Jul 3;319(7201):5–6. doi: 10.1136/bmj.319.7201.5. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- McInerney J., Chillala S., Read C., Evans A. Impact of NHS direct on demand for immediate care. Target communities show poor awareness of NHS direct. BMJ. 2000 Oct 28;321(7268):1077–1077. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Munro J., Nicholl J., O'Cathain A., Knowles E. Impact of NHS direct on demand for immediate care: observational study. BMJ. 2000 Jul 15;321(7254):150–153. doi: 10.1136/bmj.321.7254.150. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- O'Cathain A., Munro J. F., Nicholl J. P., Knowles E. How helpful is NHS direct? Postal survey of callers. BMJ. 2000 Apr 15;320(7241):1035–1035. doi: 10.1136/bmj.320.7241.1035. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]