We have undertaken a study into the effectiveness of unscheduled care services in Wales. 

Unscheduled care is a term used to describe any unplanned health or social care - ranging from emergency hospital treatment, to patients who need help to care for themselves at home.

The complexity of the current unscheduled care system can confuse members of the public over where to go for help and they may go to one particular service when it would have been better for them to have gone somewhere else. This, in turn, can lead to pressures on unscheduled care services, such as the ambulance service and accident and emergency departments. 

If more than one service is needed, these services do not always work together effectively. Delays can also be caused when a person is transferred between services.

Our study will look at the entire system of unscheduled care in Wales. We examined the following aspects of unscheduled care in detail:

• NHS Direct - looking at its cost effectiveness and future role;
• A&E handovers - looking at the handover target for patients, the way this data is recorded and whether the target is helping to improve ambulance crew capacity; and
• Out of hours services - this will include a review of out of hours primary care, social care and mental health services.