Expert Triage: Why It Matters for Safe Care

Recently, a patient contacted me requesting a home visit for their elderly parent.

During the initial telephone triage, it became clear this was far more serious.

The patient had recently been discharged following a large pulmonary embolism. That same day, they had developed extensive bruising — raising concern for complications from anticoagulation.

What stood out was this: the family had already called 999, been redirected to 111, and were waiting over the whole day for a GP visit that hadn’t arrived.

After a focused consultation, it was clear this patient needed urgent hospital care. I was able to arrange an emergency ambulance directly, ensuring rapid transfer to A&E.

More importantly, it gave the patient’s son immediate reassurance — that his concerns were valid, and that urgent care was absolutely the right call.

We are not an emergency service. But when delays happen, we’re proud to step in — providing rapid clinical assessment, clear decision-making, and helping patients access the right level of care without delay.

Every home visit request we receive is carefully triaged first — because sometimes, the safest care isn’t at home.