Members may be interested to read a comment submitted to the Talk Talk Members Forum via www.talktalkmembers.com/forums/sendmessage.php.


Quote:

I note a posting from Talk Talk Online Community Executive Emma Longworth at - www.talktalkmembers.com/forums/showpost.php?p=253073&postcount=6. Emma suggests that TalkTalk customers refer to www.saynoto0870.com for alternative geographic numbers to use in place of the 0844 numbers that are expensive to call. It is great to know that Talk Talk approves of the use of alternatives to revenue sharing numbers, as it is in a good position to assist with this. Around 1000 NHS GPs have expensive 0844 numbers provided by TalkTalk (see 771 examples at www.tinyurl.com/dhtiny/0844). The Department of Health has directed that NHS providers should not use numbers that cause patients to incur more than the “cost of a local call”. Perhaps Emma, or one of her colleagues, would like to help both Talk Talk customers and the NHS by adding the geographic alternatives for these numbers to the saynoto0870 database. Perhaps Talk Talk would like to demonstrate its general support for the use of alternatives by doing the same for all of the revenue sharing numbers that it provides, and also offer sponsorship to saynoto0870. Do please get back to me with a comment. Emma, or any other representative of Talk Talk, may also wish to add a comment to the saynoto0870 discussion thread at http://www.saynoto0870.com/cgi-bin/forum/YaBB.cgi?num=1252043677

I will report any meaningful response here.

Any Talk Talk customer, entitled to register in the member’s forum, may wish to raise this topic in discussion there.

Opal Telecom is the “business to business” division of the Talk Talk Group, which provides the 0844 numbers used by GPs adopting the “Surgery Line” system.

As posted previously on this specific topic.


SilentCallsVictim wrote on Aug 30^th, 2009 at 9:45am:

GPs using Talk Talk (Opal Telecom) 0844 numbers can change to 0344. A guide to changing numbers is published. Briefing issued.

Well my Dad is a GP and he fully supports the fact that all NHS GPs and hospitals should publish a geographical landline number. There is no excuse for it. Although I have an 0845 number myself I have no hesitation in openly publishing the geographical landline number to which it diverts to. i very much hope that other people follow suit.

agentq wrote on Sep 5^th, 2009 at 4:13pm:

Well my Dad is a GP and he fully supports the fact that all NHS GPs and hospitals should publish a geographical landline number. There is no excuse for it. Although I have an 0845 number myself I have no hesitation in openly publishing the geographical landline number to which it diverts to. i very much hope that other people follow suit.

I suspect that your Dad is in the majority amongst his colleagues, although the GPC of the BMA supports the use of revenue sharing numbers.

I suspect that the difference with your own situation is that you were not offered a complete telephone system, that eliminated the problem of callers getting engaged tone, for "free". If you had, you would have probably stopped to wonder where the catch was before you signed up to a seven year contract. The catch is that NHS patients pay premium telephone charges to access NHS services.

These GPs can return themselves to compliance with the principles of the NHS by getting their number changed from 0844 to 0344 within the contract. (03 numbers are charged at no greater rate than geographic numbers.) That will however mean that they will lose the revenue share and have to pick up the bills for the line and the leased telephone equipment for the remainder of the term themselves - just like your Dad's practice does.