Three-quarters of callers to NHS Direct (73%) would have attended their GP or A&E if they did not have the service, according to independent research.

Almost half (41%) were advised by the helpline to treat themselves, with just 28 percent referred to a GP and 11 percent to A&E. 95 percent of the 4163 callers questionned stated they were satisfied with the service.

www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk

Patients are being asked to rate their doctor via the controversial new website iWantGreatCare.org which has been officially launched this month.

The site, developed by Dr Neil Bacon, former CEO of Doctors.net.uk, encourages patients to rate their doctor out of 100 in three key measurements - 'Do you trust them?', 'Did they listen to you?' and 'Would you recommend them?'.

Two-thirds of patients value a convenient appointment over seeing the same GP, according to a survey by Which?. 32 percent of the 1,791 polled by the consumer agency reported that seeing a different doctor was the norm at their practice. Patients over the age of 55 are more likely to want to see the same doctor (75%) while the younger and full-time workers prioritise convenience.

www.which.co.uk

Prescribing costs increase six-fold when patients reach 65, according to a study of more than five million patients published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.