Service information for ambulance staff

An elderly patient had recently been discharged following ten days in hospital due to a cerebrovascular accident. Given their history, mobility, gait issues, and the fact they lived at home with their elderly wife, who was also frail, the carer was uncomfortable managing the situation. The situation could not be escalated without an assessment from an Occupational Therapist (OT).

I arrived at the patient’s house and used Consultant Connect to contact the stay well@home team rapidly. Following a lengthy discussion, we received amazing support from an OT who arrived at the patient’s home an hour after contact. They carried out a full assessment at home, and at the same time, we were able to liaise with the Care Services, which resulted in continued care at home for the patient. This was very helpful and a fantastic response from the stay well@home team. This was the best outcome for the patient and their wife as they were able to remain at home instead of being taken to A&E.’ Read the case study.

‘I recently attended a female patient in her 40s, who had tested positive for COVID-19 a few days prior to her 999 call. The patient had been monitoring her oxygen saturations continuously, with a pulse oximeter and was concerned that they were low. I used prof to prof clinical decisions via the Consultant Connect App to contact a local consultant to discuss the case. After a full assessment of the patient, all documented observations were within normal parameters and there were no acute changes to the 12 lead ECG, and she had normal air entry in all fields on auscultation, I had no concerns that the patient was significantly unwell.’ Read the case study.

‘I used Telephone Advice & Guidance to speak to an A&E consultant about a patient experiencing what had the potential of a stroke mimic but I thought the patient was experiencing a Bell’s palsy. Using Telephone Advice & Guidance allowed me to speak to an A&E Consultant who was able to talk me through a few simple steps to confirm his suspected diagnosis.

Telephone Advice & Guidance gave both myself and the A&E Consultant the confidence that the best pathway for the patient would be to be referred to their local GP rather than needing to undertake a journey to hospital. The patient was happy that the outcome meant a local appointment with their GP as opposed to an 80-mile round trip to hospital.’ Read the case study.

‘I recently needed to contact the Palliative care team for some advice in managing an End of Life patient. I was able to speak very quickly to the Palliative Care specialist and discuss a treatment plan to allow the patient to remain comfortable at home with their family around them.’ Read the case study.

‘The COPD pathway enables ambulance clinicians to access the respiratory team during operating hours to make assessments and enable shared decisions. We recognise that hospital admittance in some cases is often unwarranted, unwanted and provides little benefit to the overall patient outcomes, and so we are pleased to be able to offer this alternative. Recently, an appropriate alternative to hospital attendance was identified for a 71-year-old patient. This patient was keen to stay at home and received a full care assessment from the Community Respiratory Team within 24 hours.’ Read the case study. 

Depending on your Ambulance Trust, you will be able to access the service either via the free Consultant Connect App (by searching ‘Consultant Connect’ on the App Store or Google Play), via a unique Dial-In Number, or both.

Within the app, ambulance clinicians can make Telephone Advice & Guidance (A&G) calls at the touch of a button as specialty access numbers are pre-programmed.

The Consultant Connect App is a cloud-based service and therefore, no patient information is stored on the device or within the app. This includes the safe clinical photography feature – PhotoSAF. Photos taken via the app are stored in an IG-secure and GDPR-compliant cloud and not on the device, meaning photos won’t appear on your camera roll or in the recently deleted folder. The photos are automatically sent to your NHS email address and can also be accessed via Consultant Connect in your browser from any device by logging in using your credentials for the app. In areas where sharing is enabled, photos and messages can also be sent within the app directly to specialist teams for A&G.

Your Dial-In Number can be called from any mobile or landline, or via your onboard radio – this can often help in situations when signal or connectivity is an issue. Your Dial-In Number, the specialties you have access to, and their operating hours can be found in your Service Directory. If you do not have your Dial-In Number or Service Directory link, please contact the Consultant Connect Team by emailing hello@consultantconnect.org.uk.

The time it takes an ambulance clinician to connect to a specialist for Telephone A&G is just 11 seconds (UK average).

If you are a locum clinician, work within multiple organisations, or have recently changed organisation, please email hello@consultantconnect.org.uk for us to provide you with the correct access.

The service is paid for by your local NHS commissioning organisation, meaning, if it is available in your area, there is no cost to you or your colleagues, other than the cost of a local telephone call if you are seeking Telephone Advice & Guidance. The Consultant Connect App can be downloaded for free from the App Store and Google Play (just search ‘Consultant Connect’ on your app store).

The specialties available and the hours of operation are agreed upon by the Acute/Mental Health Trust/Hospital Teams and your local NHS healthcare commissioning organisation.

The Consultant Connect service (including the Dial-In Number menu options and the app) automatically updates whenever changes are made to the service, such as new specialties being added. Calls will only be routed to specialists during the agreed hours of operation.

Telephone numbers, including mobile numbers, of those seeking and providing Advice & Guidance are never shared with users.

To reset your password, click here.

Yes. If you are unable to make a call via the app, you can access Telephone Advice & Guidance by calling your unique Dial-In Number from any phone, and in most cases, your onboard radio. If you do not know your unique Dial-In Number, please email hello@consultantconnect.org.uk or call us on 01865 261 467.

If you have any questions or require support for the Consultant Connect service, please email hello@consultantconnect.org.uk or call us on 01865 261 467.