Referral - how long?

[Splishysploshy]

I am fully aware that this could be a how long is a piece of string question. My DD has been referred to the paediatric department at our local hospital. We have been told by our GP that it is likely that she will eventually be seen by GOSH but that this is the only way to et referred to there. As this is the beginning of our journey I am being impatient, does anyone have any experience of how long it can take to get an appointment? Are there any guidelines that they have to see you in X weeks? Thanks.

Anyone any ideas?

I think you have answered the question yourself - how long is a piece of string. However, didn't want to see you unanswered :)
DS1 was referred to an anxiety and autism team - was seen by both teams within 4months. On his diagnosis DS2 was referred as an urgent referal to the same team. Took 18months to be seen - they had changed staffing and structures during this time and it shows!
DS3 was referred to the paeds for asthma, he was on the list about 4months before the referal came through, although actually he ended up being seen as an urgent case within a few days as he was admitted several times as an A&E patient and was bumped up the list, but they forgot to cancel the inital referal, iyswim.

when we have been referred I have followed it up with phone call to consultants secretary to find out how long it will be, they've been helpful - worth a try and at least it will give you some idea

Thank you....my plan was to ring the secretary to get some idea but unfortunately the GP has referred her to the paediatric department and not a named consultant so am not sure if that plan will work. Obviously the quicker the better but even if we have to wait a while so be it but I am just impatient to know when.

If you can afford it you can see one of the consultants at the Portland Hospital in London who also works at Great Ormond Street Hospital. They can directly refer you to themselves at GOSH.

Depending on what the concern is you will first need to identify the correct consultant at the Portland Hospital but their reception desk can help you with that as they will know the consultants specialities and know who works at which other hospitals.

That may just be an option. My parents have offered to pay for a private consultation but I was trying to hold off if we were likely to be seen on NHS soon. Do you have idea of costs?

Do you have any idea which department your child is likely to be seen?

We got referred to our local paed in the local hospital the moment DS' blood results flagged something up (I insisted on the tests). The paed there referred me onwards to GOSH pretty quickly. She told me she was doing it on a Tuesday. I received a phone call on a friday evening from the consultant there. On Monday I had an appointment and we were warded that same day.

So... It may be dependent on the dept. good luck. I appreciate it's v worrying.

Cardiothoracic department.....DD has funnel chest. Think I will call local hospital tomorrow and see if they know where we are at.

Best to ask how much it will cost when you make an appointment. It really varies. Just an initial consultation can be approx £175 (this will take roughly 1 -1.5 hour in my experience) and any tests, X-rays etc come on top.

It is a lot of money, however, in our case we had such bad experiences with the NHS that it was worth every penny.