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Three different hospital appointments booked same day.. two different hospitals but same NHS trust??? I've had to prioritise and cancel two.

22 replies

SuitcaseAndSecrets · 20/05/2026 14:34

Why don't all my appointments flag up on the system?
It's the same hospital trust.. Mid Yorkshire..I'm suppose to be at gyno/ urology at 10am at one hospital... for tests then. beast clinic same time at another hospital then an hour later back to 1st hospital after taking a barium meal an hour before appointment at 11 am.
The first and 3rd appointment I've waited 2 years for .. but couldn't have gone anyhow because I'm having complicated spinal surgery in two months... and cannot get into correct position for the tests... l will just keep the breast clinic appointment.. although nothing has changed l still have 20 plus hard very painful lumps in each breast ( Fat necrosis).
I was suppose to have a new hip this month too and had to cancel that.. because my neurologist ( spinal surgeron) and my orthopedic surgeon had a meeting and l was told my spinal surgery is the most important to stop the risk of me becoming paralysed from the neck down.
I so wish I'd taken private health insurance years ago before l got ill... but then again I'm a baby boomer..

OP posts:
TuppenceM · 20/05/2026 14:36

You sound like you are balancing lots of health issues involving a number of specialities. They just want to get you in asap and if that means a bit of inconvenience your end - then so be it.

The silver lining is… you are progressing

rwalker · 20/05/2026 14:39

None of the systems /departments talk to each other

SuitcaseAndSecrets · 20/05/2026 15:15

TuppenceM · 20/05/2026 14:36

You sound like you are balancing lots of health issues involving a number of specialities. They just want to get you in asap and if that means a bit of inconvenience your end - then so be it.

The silver lining is… you are progressing

Bit of inconvenience? Have you read it right?

OP posts:

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TuppenceM · 20/05/2026 15:15

SuitcaseAndSecrets · 20/05/2026 15:15

Bit of inconvenience? Have you read it right?

I have yes.

Buscobel · 20/05/2026 16:08

Surely more than inconvenience? You can’t be in three places at once and it really should be possible to put in place something to flag up when a patient has more than one issue and requires several appointments, so that they aren’t all scheduled together and in different places.

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:01

The NHS just can’t win can it.

You have received appointments to urgently progress various different ongoing and serious health issues. Yes… it is going to require you having a day of back and forth. But then the tests are done and the next step can progress.

SecretSquid · 20/05/2026 18:06

I always find I get more sense out of them when I call and speak to the consultant's secretary (or secretaries in this case).
See if you can get something rearranged.

user3769863490 · 20/05/2026 18:07

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:01

The NHS just can’t win can it.

You have received appointments to urgently progress various different ongoing and serious health issues. Yes… it is going to require you having a day of back and forth. But then the tests are done and the next step can progress.

OP says she’s waited 2yrs for appointments 2 and 3? Not really how I’d describe “urgently progressing”!

JaneLupin · 20/05/2026 18:07

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:01

The NHS just can’t win can it.

You have received appointments to urgently progress various different ongoing and serious health issues. Yes… it is going to require you having a day of back and forth. But then the tests are done and the next step can progress.

But there’s two 10am appointments in two different hospitals, and OP’s also meant to be taking a barium meal at 10am to prepare for the 11am appointment?

That’s more than a bit of back and forth. It’s not physically possible for OP to be in more than one place at once.

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:12

JaneLupin · 20/05/2026 18:07

But there’s two 10am appointments in two different hospitals, and OP’s also meant to be taking a barium meal at 10am to prepare for the 11am appointment?

That’s more than a bit of back and forth. It’s not physically possible for OP to be in more than one place at once.

So the op makes a call on the appointments number provided and reschedules one.

Not ideal but in the time starting thread - could have made the call

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:14

Spinal surgery
New hip
breast investigations
gynae / urology investigations

that is a lot of different department all trying to get the op in

StressedStudentPara · 20/05/2026 18:16

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:12

So the op makes a call on the appointments number provided and reschedules one.

Not ideal but in the time starting thread - could have made the call

one can presume she’s already made the call after she stated in the title that she’d had to cancel two and prioritise one?

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:18

StressedStudentPara · 20/05/2026 18:16

one can presume she’s already made the call after she stated in the title that she’d had to cancel two and prioritise one?

not rescheduled?

StressedStudentPara · 20/05/2026 18:24

different trust to mine, but where I am they’ll just cancel and you have to wait for a new one in the post 🤦🏼‍♀️ either way it’s a shambles this day in age when everything’s digital

SuitcaseAndSecrets · 21/05/2026 18:54

Somememorable · 20/05/2026 18:12

So the op makes a call on the appointments number provided and reschedules one.

Not ideal but in the time starting thread - could have made the call

There is no more appointments until 2027 now🤷‍♀️ so had to forego 2.

OP posts:
SuitcaseAndSecrets · 21/05/2026 18:56

SecretSquid · 20/05/2026 18:06

I always find I get more sense out of them when I call and speak to the consultant's secretary (or secretaries in this case).
See if you can get something rearranged.

Yes I've done that.. unfortunately the gynae secretary is never available so you just get put through to general appointments.

OP posts:
SMDX3 · 21/05/2026 18:59

Even if same trust - they don’t have the same computer systems so they don’t know what you have booked in. I work for a trust that has three different hospitals across region and they use different systems for each

SecretSquid · 21/05/2026 19:09

SuitcaseAndSecrets · 21/05/2026 18:56

Yes I've done that.. unfortunately the gynae secretary is never available so you just get put through to general appointments.

I'm so sorry OP, unfair doesn't even begin to cover it.

EBearhug · 21/05/2026 19:38

It's really crap, if it's like north Hampshire. Every department has its own booking system and login usernames. Everything looks the same, because it's all on NHS-headed paper/webpage, but there are no links across the different systems. If you have comorbidites, which a fairly high percentage of patients will, there is just no coordination, and some health issues will affect others.

It's also inefficient. You can't coordinate to have cardiac in the morning and gynae in the afternoon. Things would need to be spaced because of the risk of over-running, but still, something could be better. You get total clashes as you have, or you have to be at the hospital on several different days - which might be better for some people, if they are going through tiring procedures. A lot of people also need to coordinate with transport and carers.

I'm IT and bureaucracy-literate, but I've been confused by cancellation letters which don't actually state which clinic they're for - I had to work it out by checking what I was expecting, but they coukd have stated it on the communication.

If someone isn't very literate, doesn't have English as their first language, finds planning and thinking abilities are impaired because of pain or the side effects medication - they don't stand much chance, and it's not a surprise the NHS has so many no shows. It must be really annoying for staff, too.

We all have individual NHS numbers. IT systems shpukd use this to link across different departments so that existing appointments could be seem for that patient, even if it didn't show you for what - like at work, if I'm arranging a meeting, the scheduling assistant shows when others have time blocked, but doesn't show for what. It woukd only show health appointments, not that you're on holiday or whatever, but at least it should avoid everything at the same time.

But NHS IT isn't something anyone wants to properly invest in (or anything else in the NHS.)

Buscobel · 21/05/2026 20:31

But that’s so inefficient, time wasting and expensive, not to mention the stress because patients aren’t getting the treatment they need at the time they need it. It must mean that some conditions worsen, others become a permanent disability or worse.

These days, money can be moved instantly, communication in various forms is instant, communication across the world is instant, yet the NHS are unable to join their systems to be coherent across departments and trusts.

AstonUniversityPotholeDepartment · 21/05/2026 21:48

That is ridiculous. I am so sorry, OP.

LarksAscending · 21/05/2026 22:44

SuitcaseAndSecrets · 21/05/2026 18:54

There is no more appointments until 2027 now🤷‍♀️ so had to forego 2.

Put in a complaint to PALs. They shouldn’t be delaying treatment for 6 months because they gave you 3 appointments at once.

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