NHSUK MCP Server

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides tools for searching NHS organisations by type and location, plus accessing NHS health information using Azure API Management.

Features

• Get Organisation Types: List all 24 available NHS organisation types
• Convert Postcode: Convert UK postcodes to latitude/longitude coordinates
• Search by Postcode: Find NHS organisations near a specific postcode
• Search by Coordinates: Find NHS organisations near specific coordinates
• Get Health Topic: Get detailed NHS health information and guidance on medical conditions

Installation

From PyPI (Recommended)

pip install nhsuk-mcp

From Source

git clone https://github.com/sinclr4/nhsuk-mcp-python.git
cd nhsuk-mcp-python
pip install -e .

Configuration

Environment Variables

This server requires two environment variables:

• API_MANAGEMENT_ENDPOINT - The Azure API Management base URL (without service paths)
• API_MANAGEMENT_SUBSCRIPTION_KEY - Your subscription key for API Management

Usage with Claude Desktop

Installation

pip install nhsuk-mcp

Configuration

Add to your Claude Desktop config file:

macOS/Linux: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "nhsuk": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "nhsuk_mcp.server"],
      "env": {
        "API_MANAGEMENT_ENDPOINT": "https://nhsuk-apim-int-uks.azure-api.net",
        "API_MANAGEMENT_SUBSCRIPTION_KEY": "your-subscription-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "nhsuk": {
      "command": "python",
      "args": ["-m", "nhsuk_mcp.server"],
      "env": {
        "API_MANAGEMENT_ENDPOINT": "https://nhsuk-apim-int-uks.azure-api.net",  
        "API_MANAGEMENT_SUBSCRIPTION_KEY": "your-subscription-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop

After updating the configuration, restart Claude Desktop. The MCP server will be available with 5 tools.

Available MCP Tools

1. get_organisation_types

Lists all NHS organisation types with descriptions.

Returns: Dictionary of organisation type codes and their descriptions.

Example types:

• PHA - Pharmacy
• GPP - GP Practice
• HOS - Hospital
• DEN - Dentists
• CLI - Clinics

2. convert_postcode_to_coordinates

Converts a UK postcode to latitude/longitude coordinates.

Parameters:

• postcode (string, required): UK postcode (e.g., "SW1A 1AA")

Returns: Latitude and longitude coordinates

3. search_organisations_by_postcode

Search for NHS organisations near a specific postcode.

Parameters:

• organisationType (string, required): Organisation type code (e.g., "PHA", "GPP", "HOS")
• postcode (string, required): UK postcode
• maxResults (integer, optional): Maximum number of results (1-50, default: 10)

Returns: List of organisations with name, address, postcode, distance, and coordinates

4. search_organisations_by_coordinates

Search for NHS organisations near specific coordinates.

Parameters:

• organisationType (string, required): Organisation type code
• latitude (number, required): Latitude coordinate
• longitude (number, required): Longitude coordinate
• maxResults (integer, optional): Maximum number of results (1-50, default: 10)

Returns: List of organisations with name, address, postcode, distance, and coordinates

5. get_health_topic

Get detailed information about a specific health condition or topic from the NHS API.

Parameters:

• topic (string, required): The health topic or condition slug (e.g., "asthma", "diabetes", "flu", "covid-19")

Returns: Comprehensive information including name, description, last reviewed date, URL, and content sections

Example topics: asthma, diabetes, flu, covid-19, heart-disease, stroke, cancer, depression, anxiety

Supported Organisation Types

The server supports 24 NHS organisation types:

Code	Description
CCG	Clinical Commissioning Group
CLI	Clinics
DEN	Dentists
GDOS	Generic Directory of Services
GPB	GP
GPP	GP Practice
GSD	Generic Service Directory
HA	Health Authority
HOS	Hospital
HWB	Health and Wellbeing Board
LA	Local Authority
LAT	Area Team
MIU	Minor Injury Unit
OPT	Optician
PHA	Pharmacy
RAT	Regional Area Team
SCL	Social Care Provider Location
SCP	Social Care Provider
SHA	Strategic Health Authority
STP	Sustainability and Transformation Partnership
TRU	Trust
UC	Urgent Care
UNK	UNKNOWN

Docker Deployment

Build Image

docker build -t nhs-orgs-mcp-python .

Run Container

docker run -i \
  -e API_MANAGEMENT_ENDPOINT="https://nhsuk-apim-int-uks.azure-api.net" \
  -e API_MANAGEMENT_SUBSCRIPTION_KEY="your-key" \
  nhs-orgs-mcp-python

Example Usage

Once configured in Claude Desktop, you can ask questions like:

• "What NHS organisation types are available?"

• "Find pharmacies near postcode SW1A 1AA"

• "Show me GP practices within 5 miles of London"

• "What's the nearest hospital to coordinates 51.5074, -0.1278?"

• "Convert postcode M1 1AE to coordinates"

• "Get information about asthma"

• "Tell me about diabetes symptoms and treatment"

• "What is the NHS guidance on flu?"

Development

Local Setup

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/sinclr4/nhsuk-mcp-python.git
cd nhsuk-mcp-python

# Create virtual environment
python -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate  # On Windows: venv\Scripts\activate

# Install in development mode
pip install -e .

# Set environment variables
export API_MANAGEMENT_ENDPOINT="https://nhsuk-apim-int-uks.azure-api.net"
export API_MANAGEMENT_SUBSCRIPTION_KEY="your-key"

# Run the server
python -m nhsuk_mcp.server

Project Structure

nhsuk-mcp-python/
├── nhsuk_mcp/
│   ├── __init__.py          # Package initialization
│   ├── server.py            # MCP server implementation
│   ├── models.py            # Data models (Organisation, PostcodeResult)
│   └── azure_search.py      # API Management service integration
├── pyproject.toml           # Project metadata and dependencies
├── Dockerfile               # Container build configuration
└── README.md                # This file

Requirements

• Python 3.10 or higher
• Dependencies:
  • mcp>=1.0.0 - Model Context Protocol SDK
  • httpx>=0.27.0 - HTTP client
  • pydantic>=2.0.0 - Data validation

License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details

Links

• PyPI: https://pypi.org/project/nhsuk-mcp/
• GitHub: https://github.com/sinclr4/nhsuk-mcp-python
• Issues: https://github.com/sinclr4/nhsuk-mcp-python/issues

Author

Rob Sinclair - rob.sinclair@nhschoices.net

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.