Britons who feel ill have been asked not to contact NHS 111 unless their condition deteriorates - which can leave space for more urgent cases to be reported. The healthcare worker, who began working for NHS 111 three years ago, said there were 12 clinicians on a shift in every centre - but that has now more than halved, meaning the waiting time of those expecting a call back hit 14 hours this week. Writing for Mail Online, the nurse said: "The 111 system is not designed to cope with an emergency such as this. It’s easy to laugh at their absurdity, but calls like that delay help for someone in real need. The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the UK is 5,018 - with 233 deaths reported.

Source: Daily Mirror March 21, 2020 20:38 UTC