Text telling me about a hospital appointment

[TiesThatBindMe]

Received a text yesterday along the lines of "We are expecting you for your appointment at XX hospital at 3pm on the 20th. If you do not attend it will cost the NHS £160. To cancel ring xxxxxxx number'.

The hospital mentioned is one I've been a patient at, but I am not aware of, nor have I received any letter regarding any outpatient appointment.

Even if it is legitimate, I don't know what department it's for! Do I just show up with some spurious text?

Does this sound dodgy to anyone bar myself?

😘

healthcare trust have switched to texting instead of calling now so check it out.
because also this does mean that scammer are obviously too now aware of this so will use it as a new way in

I received one from the hospital my daughter attends. I knew it wasn't for her as she'd just been recently. I rang and they didn't have any record on her files of an appointment. I still get the appointments coming through now and have put it down to someone misentering my number into someone else's records!
It's really quite annoying.

. Of course it could be a scam. Any text asking you to ring or text back can be a scam. Luckily op has checked it out and found it's legit. Some of these naive replies show why the scammers keep doing it. I got 3 texts in one day pretending to be from BT, asking me to text back. Check everything!

I get these reminders very frequently so of course I know it not to be a scam, and I'd obviously check by googling otherwise - which is why I wouldn't think it a scam. I was forgetting there are people out there so naive as to call unknown numbers or so paranoid as to just dismiss it without checking up, as some recommended. Either would be a foolish reaction.

I was forgetting there are people out there so naive as to call unknown numbers or so paranoid as to just dismiss it without checking up, as some recommended. Either would be a foolish reaction.

I wouldn't dismiss people as naive - scammers use trusted brands, not everyone lives online and assumes the worst. Contact by phone is something people still instinctively respond to.

I've had a lot of texts like this, most have been genuine numbers but not for me. I ignore them if I'm not expecting an appt.

The first few times I tried calling the relevant NHS facility only to be met with a frustrating degree of indifference and a substantial wastage of my time. If they want to save money on appointments having better contact verification processes would help.

Just phone the hospital. That's exactly the kind of text I get when I have an appointment coming up.

I should think the chances of it being someone else's appointment and not yours are quite high

I get these texts for my GP and hospital appointments - the exact same wording.

I get texts like this. They are not for me they are for DS.
They don't say that and they don't say what dept.

Just 'you have an appointment at xxxx hospital on xxxxx'

Scared the life out of me the first time I got one.

Best thing to do if you get something dodgy is to phone number listed on hospital/agencies website rather than anything on text.

I wonder why my missing appointments costs less than op missing them?

Different specialties attract different tariffs. It also depends what level if care you receive- if your appointment includes tests eye this will cost more than a simple face to face chat.

Also, a first (new) appointment will cost more than a follow up. There are strict rules on what constitutes new and follow up appointments.

That sounds pretty standard, and I've had a reminder by text with no letter before BUT it was a time of the week I knew I often saw my specialist nurse - and the letter had just got lost, I guess.

As for ITU follow up - it's really helpful so if that's what it is go for it. When I went several years ago after a 3 week ITU stay (and 3 month hospital stay) the follow up was in a room off the ITU not in outpatients so maybe arrive early in case you have a wild goose chase around the hospital!

I wonder why my missing appointments costs less than op missing them?

Depends who you are seeing, why and where.

If you are not expecting an appointment and haven't received a letter then the most likely explanation is that there has been an error entering someones phone number into the computer system and you have received the text in error!!
Just call outpatients on Monday morning and clear it up. I think you are jumping the gun worrying about how to get to the hospital.

Haven't read the full thread. At work when I book an appointment for someone they get a text immediately, the letter goes in the post the same day so usually the text is the first they hear of it.

I'd ring the hospital on their main number you find on the website just in case it's a scam (don't use the number on the text) and ask whether you have an appt and which department to clarify. But don't write it off as a scam until you've checked.

I quite like the addition of the cost on the text, wish we did that. Might make people think twice about not showing. Some days 50% of my appointments don't bother showing. It's an astronomical waste of time and money and prevents someone on the waiting list who actually wants help from being seen.

It is possible that the letter has been sent to the wrong address. Years ago, I moved a couple of streets away but kept the same phone number. I got a telephone call asking why I didn't turn up for my operation! I'd told of the change of address at Outpatients but the operation was at a different hospital (though same NHS board) and they hadn't updated each other so the letter was sent to the wrong address.

Now they have central booking for hospital and I get these text reminders all the time, including from my GP and dentist.

Most obvious thing to do is ring XX hospital, ask for the appointments line and ask them more details.

Very, very standard to send out a text. It's a good way of reminding people....of course if you are unaware of any impending appointments, then you any have missed a letter or they may have sent it by mistake.

Please don't walk out if it's a smear. A friend of mine has terminal cancer from missing a smear that would have shown things up in time.

Genuinely not meant to be alarmist

I received a text exactly like this a week ago, and the number came up as Barts dental clinic or something similar. I definitely haven't made an appointment about anything to do with my teeth, although I have regularly seen other types of specialists as an outpatient over the years.

I've also been out of the uk for 6 months so haven't seen a doctor, and this is a new number so I've no idea if it was meant for someone else or a scam.

Ties why would anyone scream and run away from a smear test. They take about 5 mins and possibly save lives. Think about Jade Goody, only young when she died, and left two little boys motherless.

SexLubeAndAFishSlice you can work out what hospital you go to with the picture. Our hospital reminders just say "NHS * hospital at 13:00 in outpatients. Missed appointments cost the NHS £160" DH got his text yesterday and a letter yesterday cancelling it

Could it be for one of your kids? DDs reminders come to my phone

Appointment: St Marys Community Hosp- 05/06/17, 15:20. Not attending costs NHS approx £160. Reply NO or call 02392680409 to reschedule

These are the texts I get- they are legit.

I'll cry if it's for a smear test.

I don't know, I had a smear test last week and it was the most sex I'd had in a long time.

Because I was raped last year and even having a chest exam has traumatised me since. I get really agitated and almost violent. Not a chance in hell of me going through a smear test.

@TiesThatBindMe well that changes things.

Sorry that happened to you. My fiend has her smears under GA. maybe you can ask for this too?