HEALTH HOTLINE MAY BE A FAMILY’S BEST FRIEND OVER XMAS

The Queensland Government’s 24-hour health hotline 13 HEALTH may be a family’s best friend this festive season, Health Minister Stephen Robertson said today.

“Many suburban GPs take leave over the Christmas-New Year period; placing extra demands on our busy hospital emergency departments,” he said.

“13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84) is designed to provide callers with quick, reliable advice if they or a family member suddenly get sick and they are unsure what to do.

“This is a great service that can give you peace of mind when concerned about a health situation and can point you in the right direction.

Mr Robertson said 13 HEALTH is available to all Queenslanders 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for the price of a local call.

“Experienced registered nurses staffing the phones will give callers advice about what to do and how quickly you should do it.

“I stress that 13 HEALTH is for non-life threatening situations only and not meant to replace medical consultations.

“People with life-threatening emergencies should always call Triple O immediately for urgent assistance from the Queensland Ambulance Service.”

Mr Robertson said more than 264,400 Queensland callers had received assistance from 13 HEALTH since the service began operating statewide in April 2006.

“Some 241,000 of those calls were transferred to nurses for triage advice or clinical information.