NHS 111 online is a triage system available for members of the public in England and uses clinical content from NHS Pathways to enable users to go through a digital remote triage process to get to the most appropriate level of care for their presenting health care needs. 111 online uses the Directory of Services (DoS) to refer patients to locally commissioned services that best meets the online user’s needs.
The system is owned by the Department for Health and Social Care, commissioned by NHSX and developed and delivered by NHS Digital
The system is built around a clinical hierarchy, meaning that life-threatening symptoms are assessed at the start of the online journey, progressing through to less urgent symptoms which require a less urgent response (or disposition) in other settings. NHS 111 online is not a diagnostic system and only assesses symptoms presented at the time of the interaction to refer or advise users to contact the most appropriate level of care for their presenting health care need.
People who access NHS 111 online enter their age, sex at birth, postcode and are guided to seek help for their main concerns and where symptomatic triage is required, they are then asked a series of questions based on their main presenting symptoms in line with the clinical hierarchy of NHS Pathways.
NHS Pathways is an interlinked series of algorithms, or pathways, that link questions and care advice leading to clinical endpoints known as “dispositions”. The system presents a series of questions in order that the most appropriate clinical response or disposition may be determined based on the answers given. A disposition will specify the skill set and time frame that a patient requires. The system triages both injury and illness presentations for users over the age of 5. In addition, special populations are included where relevant to the triage for example pregnancy.
The NHS Pathways system was developed and is maintained by a group of experienced NHS clinicians (clinical authors) with an urgent and emergency care background. The NHS Pathways clinical authoring team come from a variety of clinical backgrounds and are either a paramedic, nurse or doctor who are registered, licensed practitioners.
NHS 111 online is an accessible and convenient alternative to the NHS 111 telephone service and provides an option for people who want to access NHS 111 digitally.
REF NHS 111 online
SN v1.3 Approved by: Jacqueline Jedrzejewski, Deputy Director of Digital Development / Clinical Assurance Lead, NHSX
On: 7 October 2019