Non-emergency Patient Transport Services are defined as non-urgent, planned transportation of service users with a medical need for transport to and from premises providing NHS healthcare, and/or between providers of NHS-funded healthcare. For the purposes of non-primary care NHS-funded healthcare services.

The overarching principle of NEPTS is that most people should travel to and from hospital independently by private or public transport, with the help of relatives or friends if necessary. NHS-funded patient transportation is reserved for when it is considered essential to ensuring an individual’s safety, safe mobilisation, condition management or recovery.

NHS Dorset is responsible for commissioning Non-Emergency Patient Transport for service users registered with a GP practice in the Dorset Integrated Care System (ICS).

Please direct any queries to the Non-Emergency Patient Transport team via e-mail: patient.transport@nhsdorset.nhs.uk

Booking Non-Emergency Patient Transport

Health care travel cost scheme

Who is eligible for NEPTS?

Provider background

Who is eligible for NEPTS?

Most people should travel to and from hospital independently by private or public transport, with the help of relatives or friends if necessary. NHS-funded patient transportation is reserved for when it is considered essential to ensuring an individual’s safety, safe mobilisation, condition management or recovery.

Only service users who meet one of the below reasons for an appointment will be considered for NEPTS eligibility:

  • The service user has been referred by a doctor, dentist, or ophthalmic practitioner for non-primary care NHS-funded healthcare services – that is, secondary-care diagnostics or treatment

  • The service user is being discharged from NHS-funded treatment

A patient is likely to qualify for transport if they meet one or more of the following criteria:

  • They have a medical need

  • They have a cognitive or sensory impairment

  • They have a significant mobility need

  • They are travelling to or returning from in-centre haemodialysis

  • A safeguarding concern has been raised

  • They have wider mobility or medical needs that have resulted in treatment or discharge being missed or severely delayed

Any queries regarding non-emergency patient transport should be sent to the team via e-mail: patient.transport@nhsdorset.nhs.uk

Booking non-emergency patient transport

The Patient Transport Advice Centre (PTAC) is the public booking and information line for patients and carers. To request transport, you will need to call PTAC between 08:30 and 18:00 on 01278 727457.

Callers to PTAC will have their needs assessed by a member of the team and – if eligible – transport will be arranged via the existing provider, E-Zec.

If the caller is not eligible, PTAC will signpost them to other appropriate alternative services such as voluntary car schemes, community transport schemes, public and private transport, whichever best meets their needs. Healthcare Travel Cost (HTC) reimbursement scheme information will also be made available to them.

Any queries regarding Non-Emergency Patient Transport should be sent to the team via e-mail: patient.transport@nhsdorset.nhs.uk

Health Care Travel Cost Scheme (HC5)

If you’re referred to hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostic tests by a doctor, dentist, or another primary care health professional, you may be able to claim a refund of reasonable travel costs under the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme (HTCS).

To qualify for help with travel costs under the HTCS, you must meet 3 conditions:

  • At the time of your appointment, you, or your partner (including civil partners) must receive one of the qualifying benefits or allowances or meet the eligibility criteria for the NHS Low Income Scheme

  • You must have a referral from a healthcare professional to a specialist or a hospital for further NHS treatment or tests (often referred to as secondary care)

  • Your appointment must be on a separate visit to when the referral was made. This applies whether your treatment is provided at a different location (hospital or clinic) or on the same premises as where the GP or another health professional issued the referral

Any queries regarding Non-Emergency Patient Transport should be sent to the team via e-mail: patient.transport@nhsdorset.nhs.uk

Provider background

E-zec Medical Transport Services are the NEPTS transport provider and are responsible for the safe, timely and comfortable transportation of patients between their place of residence and the healthcare facility, between different healthcare facilities, or from the healthcare facility to their place of residence.

E-Zec is the largest independent provider of:

  • Non-emergency patient transport services to the NHS

  • Specialist high dependency teams for critical inter-hospital and neo-natal transfers

  • Bariatric ambulance services, supporting emergency services and planned healthcare visits

  • Specialist transport and healthcare support services to the public and private sector

Their ambulance care assistants (ACAs) are fully trained in first aid, basic life support and understand the needs of patients.

The Dorset control base is in West Howe, Bournemouth, and supports a fleet mix of:

  • Cars

  • Minibuses

  • Stretcher vehicles

  • Paramedic/HDU/Bariatric

  • Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles (WAVs)

Patient Transport Advice Centre (PTAC) is the public booking and information line for patients and carers. Since July 2019 this service had been provided by the NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit (SCW CSU).

Commissioned functions of PTAC:

  • To provide transport eligibility assessments against the Dorset eligibility criteria

  • Make a booking for those who are eligible

  • Signposting for those who are ineligible for NEPTS

South, Central and West (SCW) is an NHS organisation providing support and transformation services to health and care systems. Their purpose is to support and achieve the best possible outcomes for people, communities, and populations.

PTAC is part of the wider Care Navigation Service (CNS) which is recognised centre of excellence that provides safe and appropriate referral support using the most clinically appropriate providers.

SCW head offices are in Eastleigh & Bristol, with workplaces across the south, central and west of England, and a workforce across the UK.

Contact and feedback

NHS Dorset recognises that comments, concerns, complaints and compliments are a valuable source of information from service users about the quality of the services it commissions and encourages both positive and negative feedback about services.

NHS Dorset is committed to providing any user of the organisation, their family or members of the public, with the opportunity to seek advice, raise concerns and make a complaint about any of the services it provides or commissions.

For complaints and enquiries relating to NHS Dorset, you can write, telephone or email the Customer Care Officer:

NHS Dorset
Vespasian House,
Barrack Road,
Dorchester,
DT1 1TG

Telephone: 01305 368926
Email: customer.careteam@nhsdorset.nhs.uk

Feedback relating to the any of the services we commission is welcome, please write to, or telephone, the Customer Care Officer as above, or email: feedback@nhsdorset.nhs.uk