Caredoc's whopping 34% rise in contacts
The Caredoc service saw a huge surge in demand over Christmas and New Year period
CAREDOC experienced the busiest period in its 26-year history last Christmas/New Year, with a whopping 34% increase in patient contact during that time.
Figures released this week by the HSE relating to the out-of-hours service indicate that during the Christmas and New Year period, Caredoc deployed 1,599 of call-taking and call-taking supervision. The goal is that every patient requiring a general practitioner consultation receives an appointment on the same day.
The HSE was responding to questions by cllr Fergal Browne, a member of the Regional Health Forum. Cllr Browne questioned the length of time it took many people to get through to Caredoc, adding it was particularly an issue over the Christmas period.
“Apparently, it is a centralised system with over 20 taking calls that’s not fit for purpose,” said cllr Browne.
In response, Caredoc fully acknowledges that wait times can be frustrating, particularly during peak activity hours, when demands are at their highest. According to the most recent statistics published by the Health Surveillance Unit of the HSE, the 2024-25 Christmas and New Year period saw the highest recorded level on influenza notifications during week 52 (2024) and week one (2025).
“The Caredoc centralised model is designed to ensure that all calls are manage as efficiently as possible. Over the two busiest weeks on record, HSE data for Christmas and New Year surge period demonstrates that 28.33 patients per 1,000 of population accessed the Caredoc service in the southeast, as against a national average of 18.03 per 1,000 population,” the HSE stated.
“The Caredoc out-of-hours services across the southeast demonstrated a 34% increase in patient contacts. Caredoc consistently strives to reduce the response times through the deployment of the most advanced telephony and computer technology to support our professional call-taking personnel. However, it is important to acknowledge that extremely high demand during peak hours does result in longer wait times and that is why we remain committed to ongoing process improvements to enhance efficiency,” the HSE stated.
