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

Eh?!?!?!?

Pointless idea. You'd need to have exceptions for being too unwell to attend, so everyone will simply lie and say they had diarrhoea.

I've just started chemo & I was absolutely shitting myself. Someone of less robust spirit might easily cave - it doesn't mean you let them rot. I've often notice that there is far less real empathy around than we fondly believe; it really shows on MN!

I’m sceptical how many no-shows are actually really no-shows. It’s been a bit of an eye opener since getting ill as other than pregnancy, I hadn’t had much dealing with doctors etc. I’ve turned up for appointments to be told it’s meant to be a follow on appointment for an appointment I haven’t even had yet, I’ve had appointments come through by text saying to attend some department somewhere on same day as meant to be at another appointment elsewhere - I text back rebook with plenty of weeks warning and find out when cc’d into letter to doctor that I’m down as a no-show, I had an appointment in summer holidays and spoke to someone to ask for a different date and was told it would be sent in post - it wasn’t, I’m down as another no-show.

I work in the nhs. Every day in outpatients there are about 30 no shows. Thirty appointments that could have gone to a person who has been waiting for a very long time. Most don’t ring with a reason why they are not coming. I think they should definitely be fined and unless they have rung to explain why they can’t come, they should go to the bottom of the list.

I’m sceptical how many no-shows are actually really no-shows

I'm glad somebody's said this.

Whilst the hospital admin staff on this thread seem united in their judgemental attitudes towards patients, they also appear resolutely determined to never consider that many, if not most, "no shows" may actually be because of incompetence and system failure.

Telling us we should all try working for the NHS before we criticise poor practices, whilst they merrily load the blame onto patients.

My mum recently had a letter for an appointment, the letter was dated (as in the letter, not the postmark) three days after the appointment.

Have you listened to any of the people on here who have shared their experiences of not receiving appointment details in time, or being unable to contact departments in order to cancel, or do you just not believe them?

30 no shows indicates massive failures somewhere in the process. Plenty of us have had enough of the NHS blaming patients when their own shortcomings are so obvious.

should be charged a cancellation fee every single time £50 unless they have a sick note/note from the aa whatever - proof!

drives me mad people do not care and cancel for stupid reasons

Yes I do. But part of the problem is people just not turning up to appointments.

Hey, aren't you the clever girl. Well, now you've been in the job for 10 minutes, perhaps you can explain why the overall appointment system is so shambolic? Almost all of the appointments I've had in the last two years have been cancelled & remade at financial loss to me. So it's a two way thing, baby. Should I be recouping my costs from the NHS ? By your reasoning, it would be fair enough!
PS - I wouldn't do it, of course because I'm not a shit even though I, too, have lots of O levels & an A level

🙌🏻

I can go one better. I was once sent an appointment for a date that physically didn't exist think 32nd April or something 😂. I can't remember when the appointment was actually for on the live system.
When I got through to them, even the admin team saw the funny side (they could see the digital copy of the letter they'd sent) and rebooked me.

Yeah, but does that mean I can get my lost train fares/hotel costs. Or the wages my daughter lost because had to drive me to an appointment that was cancelled on the day. No, I thought not.

You’ve got me mixed up with the OP there. I’ve been in the job 9 years!

Nor have I advocated for charging people for missing their surgery date baby!

The appointments system is flawed, we outsource the letters which is why they don’t always get out. Once they’ve gone to the system they are out of our control! They get cancelled for any numerous reasons but I can assure you the admin staff you all seem to be running down have absolutely no control over it!

I had to cancel a scan on the day - in fact dh called for me as I’d just had a seizure. They were ‘off’ on the phone until he explained and I got an appt 3 weeks later. The 111 Dr that DH rang said I should go to the scan - j was half dead in bed!
Agree that cancelling or not turning up is not good practice and patients would be referred back to their GP or referring consultant - it usually says that in letters

What about when the NHS cancel on you? I waited 2 years for an operation. I was due in at 11am all ready to go, they rang and cancelled at 9am. I lost pay and had to wait months for a new date 😡

You shouldn’t have had to wait, the rules are 28 days after cancellation on the day. The hospital will have been fined heavily for not re dating you within 28 days not that it makes you feel much better.

Not everybody has the NHS app . Not everyone has a smartphone. Twice I've had a breezy phonecall giving me an appt only to receive a letter confirming - a different time, a different day &, in one instance, a different place! Do I get to charge for my time wasted in sorting it out? My time & money is important too, I'm not just a piece of meat.

When the NHS cancel on you, its most likely down to equipment failing or staff shortages. <bitter experience>

I think you're right, I knew I'd do it one day. Apologies x

My Mother is 100 I can never tell how she is going to be on the day and I am afraid we have cancelled on the day because she wasn’t up to making the journey.

Apology accepted, we all make mistakes ☺️

I’d certainly agree that patients should attend appointments whenever possible, and that they should call to cancel when they can’t make the appointment, but I’ve had enough experience with appointment letters being late / non-existent to believe that no shows are always the patients fault.

Once we even got another patient’s appointment letter in with DC’s hospital appointment letter.
And we’ve had text reminders about appointments we hadn’t been previously informed about. Although at least the text reminder scenario gives you the opportunity to call and ask what’s going on. Assuming you can get through to someone on the other end of the line, of course!

Im a nurse working on an elective surgical ward, and where I work if we have a no show, they do go to the bottom of the list or in some cases taken off it all togther