Health Supplements

Health services

Posted on 08. Oct, 2011 by admin in Primary health

The NHS aims to provide health services to cater for people of all ages and backgrounds and therefore offers different services for both local communities and national specialist centres. Services include routine health services, as well specialist services and services which are aimed at specific groups of people.

Common NHS services

NHS services include primary and secondary health services; primary care is the first point of contact for example, your GP, while secondary care is the second point of contact such as when a referral is made to a specialist. Both primary and secondary care services are managed by primary health trusts (also known as primary care trusts or PCTs) in conjunction with the Department of Health.

The NHS delivers a collection of diverse health services and there various private health providers who may offer both general and specialist medical services.

Examples of common NHS services include:

Mental health services: mental health involves the diagnosis and treatment of conditions that affect emotional health and wellbeing. Mental health conditions are very common with estimates suggesting 1 in 6 people suffering from a mental health condition in their lifetime. Mental health illnesses cost around 77 billion pounds a year and account for a third of all illnesses in the United Kingdom. Examples of mental health services available in the United Kingdom include:

• inpatient care
• rehabilitation
• community services
• day clinics
• drop-in centres
• residential centres
• 24 hour emergency care (provided by CRTs- crisis resolution teams)
• forensic mental health services
• outreach services

Emergency care services: urgent care and emergency services are a vital part of the care team and in many cases they make the difference between life and death. NHS figures suggest that 18 million people go to Accident and Emergency departments in the United Kingdom each year. Examples of emergency and urgent care services include:

• accident and emergency: accident and emergency departments are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
• ambulance services
• major trauma services
• emergency mental health services

As well as emergency services there are also other services for less severe injuries and illnesses which include walk-in centres, out of hours GP services and minor injuries units.

Hospital services: millions of people receive care in hospitals in the United Kingdom each year. Hospitals offer many different services and patients may be admitted for emergency care or referred by GPs, dentists and opticians.

Dental services: dental care is available on the NHS but unlike most other treatments dental treatment is not without charge, however, the costs are considerably lower than private fees. NHS dentistry is currently charged according to three price bands, where different treatments are charged at different rates according to the complexity of the procedure and the cost of materials. The NHS only provides essential dental treatments and therefore cosmetic treatments are unavailable on the NHS.

Eye care services: the NHS provides optical services; children, people over the age of 60, people with relatives with certain eye conditions and individuals who are given particular benefits can receive eye care on the NHS free of charge.