cricketer
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Sorry everyone. DaveM has reminded me that I have not put up the amended letter. This is the letter I finally sent, having taken all of your thoughts about my initial draft.
I refer to our past correspondence.
I think that you may have been ill advised either by your PCT, the Government, or your switchboard supplier - now that you have changed your number from 0870 428 0773 to 0844 477 8648.
The penalty to call you is now even worse than it was when you had your 0870 number, which was bad enough. Allow me to explain.
The following table shows the cost of a 1 minute call to your surgery from a residential phone.
NOTE - YOU WILL HAVE TO IMAGINE THAT A TABLE GOES HERE, SHOWING COSTS OF CALLS TO AN 0870 AND 0844 FOR DAY, EVENING AND WEEKENDS
0870 7.51p 3.75p 1.50p 0844 5.00p 5.00p 5.00p
A daytime call to a 01380 number with BT, on their standard tariff costs just 3p a minute. During the weekends and evenings an hour-long call costs just 5½p. Some supplier tariffs have free calls to ‘normal’ 01 or 02 numbers. Your patients cannot benefit from these tariffs when they call your surgery.
Your suppliers’ statement on their website and a bulletin from Customer Service Call Centre at the Department of Health, state that 0844 numbers are ‘guaranteed low rate call’ or lo-call’ numbers. This is incorrect - they are high cost numbers to call.
You can clearly see that the rate you now force patients to pay to call you is excessively high when compared to a call to a 01 or 02 number. The situation worsens if a patient has to use a phone box, as many do, to reach you. This call will cost your patients 30p for the same duration! This is even higher than the cost of calling your 0870 number. So, you penalise further those that are disadvantaged. Calling your 0844 number from a mobile phone can be over 10p a minute!
This excessive charge generates a rebate. This rebate, or income, is created on every call to your surgery number. Someone is earning revenue from each call to your practice. I trust you are aware of part 18 clause 483 of the Standard Medical Services Contract? It states:
“The contractor shall not, either itself or through any other person, demand or accept from any patient of it’s a fee or other remuneration for its own or another’s benefit.”
The use of revenue generating phone numbers is contrary to this provision because it means acceptance of remuneration from your patients. It is irrelevant if this income is paid to you or if your supplier uses it to fund supplying your switchboard.
I know one of your patients hung up when trying to reach you, because they thought they had the wrong number and was confused to hear ‘press 1 for appointments, 2 for enquiries etc. When she tried to redial, she pressed the wrong number she was so confused. This is not an ‘improved service’ as you claim.
I now respectfully request, under The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act passed on 30 November 2000 that you supply me with the 01380 terminating number for your surgery and all other numbers in your practise where you have an 0870 or 0845 numbers.
I very much look forward to hearing from you soon.
Yours sincerely
I trust that some of you others may find this method useful?
Has anyone any thoughts about my reply to the two replies? Any AND ALL help appreciated.
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