To think that if you cancel on the day with the NHS, you should be put to the bottom of the list?

[SaltAirAndTheRust]

Unless you have a good reason of course!

I’ve just started and I’m in my first week, in this week we’ve had multiple cancel due to nerves or just not turning up. Seeing the amount of work that gets them to this point, it’s staggering! I just can’t get my head around it

@jamimmi

How many clinics do you hold per week?
Do you work for the NHS full time?
Do you do any private work?
How average do you think your schedule is compared to consultants overall?

Yes I think no shows should be charged a fee - it costs £60 for every missed appointment in figures that were published last year if I recall? Of course there will be excusable reasons - that can be proven. However as a society we have to cover the cost for people ‘forgetting’ or just not showing up for a variety of reasons.

I had a private appointment as NHS was such a long wait. I stupidly put it in my calendar for the wrong date so missed it. I had to pay £45 and then rebook and pay the consultation fee for the followup. Entirely my fault and stupid of me, I paid as I should have as people along the line had time and resources wasted.

Charge them

Perhaps if people have to reschedule it might be a good idea to ask them if they had any dates to avoid and then they wouldn't have to adjust their plans. I've had reschedule a scan several times (don't worry, I gave them plenty of notice) because it clashed with holidays. It was only on the last occasion that I was asked if there were any dates I couldn't do, previously I was told it would be after a certain date and when the actual appointment came through it was earlier and wasn't suitable.

I worked for the NHS and just recently left.
People do have to understand it's not the case of just going on line to book an appointment.
To set up a clinic involves lots of people,which include , Doctors nurses healthcare assistants , administrative staff,imagining departments and lots more.
Imaging has to be authorised by a qualified health care provider which is usually a consultant,registrar or clinical nurse.
There has to be enough slots in the day for people to be fit in which then has to coincide with their clinic appointment.
I know what the OP means. People have very poor reasons for cancelling their appointments and it beggars belief if you have waited so long why cancel. One can get sick on the day and that is understandable but cancelling because your bus hasn't arrived is foolish.
You are put back on the waiting list and you should get an appointment within the next 6 weeks but if your need is not urgent it can be longer.
All clinics in hospitals are constantly being triaged and if your need is deemed not urgent you're put back.
You have to work in the system to truly understand. It's a constant game of chess and you have to work within the system. It's stressful and god damn tiring for managers to reach government targets and the targets set by your trust.
Please think before you cancel as someone will come along and maybe deemed more urgent than yourself.

I was to have a cat scan after my first chemo. I had to cancel on the day as I’d been vomiting for three days straight. I then had to cancel another time because of snow so deep I couldn’t get the car out of the drive. They were not kind on the phone and said I’d be discharged if I cancelled again. Luckily nothing else happened. These were both out of my control.

This is why you need to charge for NHS procedures. Not the full cost of course, but at least some amount.

As soon as people pay something towards an appointment / consultation/ procedure, they’ll make a lot more effort to turn up for it. And on time.

I’m not sure you’re cut out for the NHS…do you have any concept of what crippling anxiety is like??

That's all very well @ednakenneth but it needs to work both ways.

I was due to have a follow up appointment with a specific consultant. The appointment was on a Friday and on the Monday I got a text to tell me it was cancelled and to call to rebook. When I got through to someone I was told it was cancelled due to an emergency case (emergency 4 days later?) and I was given a new date. When I queried it was with the same consultant I was told no, it was with a different one despite it being clear on the notes who I was supposed to be seeing. When I pointed that out they told me to go along on the original date and I'd be seen! If I hadn't asked I would have wasted everyone's time by going to an unnecessary appointment.

Definitely a fine, they wouldn't do it if they'd paid private. The NHS is abused.

When the NHS sort out their horrendous communication and admin issues they can start complaining about missed appointments. I wonder how many of your no shows are because the letter was never sent out, or the single letter they sent didn’t arrive, or because the patient or doctor told the service the appointment was no longer required and that hasn’t been noted at all or in the right place. I have chronic illness and the amount of time I spend sorting NHS admin fuck ups is almost a full time job. Perhaps be in the job longer than a week, and get to see all the issues before you start passing judgement on the patients.

From recent experience. Was due an operation that had been cancelled by the hospital twice at short notice (including once while actually in gown waiting to go into operating room) decided i was able to go private so contacted hospital to inform them & cancel 3rd op appointment. I was then contacted by hospital for pre ops (informed again that i had cancelled as now private) contacted again day before op to “confirm instructions” that operation appointment could have gone to someone else but was wasted by the hospital. Does that mean I should go to the top of the list? Alot of the NHS problems are pure mismanagement of funds. Wasted money on wasted appointments is not always patients faults but its the patients that suffer as the cuts due to lack of funding are made to equipment, nurses etc. I strongly believe that all management should have worked the jobs they manage. If you have never worked the job how can you understand what is needed to manage it?

I know. I am chronically ill and have to cancel or move appointments due to illness a fair amount and often have this reaction. Like they assume I’m lying even through they know my medical history! I’m sure they wouldn’t like it if you had turned up to the hospital vomiting.

It would also help if the app actually worked properly and all appointments were in it.

Do you have any idea what it costs the country, and how many people are on a waiting list for that appointment? And who are massively anxious because they haven’t got an appointment? If you are too anxious to attend, seek the relevant help or cancel the appointment.

Wow…and pray tell us what your experience of NHS admin is that you can make such a sweeping statement?

You do get letters and texts. If people had to pay or were fined I’m sure appointments would be met no problem.

I have never ever had a text. Not ever.

That's a shame that appointments get wasted.

I hope this gets looked into and a standby list measure put in place. Maybe inform 1/2 people that they could be called up to go to the hospital that day so have their bags packed and be ready to go in. I suppose people could opt out of a standby list if they aren't able to drop everything without notice.

Thank you 🙏.

Everyone would have a much better understanding if they worked in the NHS for a year.

I swear I had a patient not turn up for his procedure on the day and call later to tell us he didn’t want it because he wanted to have a joint in the morning so thought he’d best not come!

You aren’t registered for them then. This is usually done at the GPs and then pulls through the nhs spine to all providers.

Just nerves?
Had months?
You do realise how it works wren someone gets anxious or nervous?

I’ve registered at the gp for text reminders. I’ve even checked with the receptionist that I’m registered for them. She’s said I am. But I don’t get them. I don’t get the repeats sent to the chemist either and I’m set up for that too. I don’t even have the right drugs on the repeats either. Even though I ask for that every 28 days as well.

why don’t you believe me?

they even have a thing on the voice mail holding music that says if you don’t want to receive text reminders let us know. But I want the damn reminders and don’t ever get them.

I can’t ever get a gp appointment only a phone call but that’s ok coz sure it’s only a gynae issue and it’s not as if the fact I’ve been telling them for 9 months I’ve been bleeding is any sort of an issue yeah?

I was recently booked for a hysteroscopy at a local hospital. I was astounded to find they sent me a text with the date and time which required a yes or no reply. Then I got a reminder text a week prior and another the day before. Excellent service.

I never said I didn’t believe you, you offered no context in your previous post!

And don’t come at me about GP appointments-that’s not my fault. I work in a hospital not a primary care setting and I too have trouble getting hold of my GP….i think the record was 187 attempts one morning just to get past the user busy tone - and then was 37th in the queue.