NHS urgent referrals - waiting time

[Borderline77]

Hi,
Last month my GP referred me to an urologist , he marked it as urgent after the ultrasound found something on my kidney,
On my NHS account it said the review by the hospital was due on Jan 9th , if they hadn't contact me to call them. They didn't contact me so I called them she said she saw it as urgent but I still have to wait months for an appointment.
Is that right?

I read somewhere for non urgent is 18 weeks , so urgent should be less

still says review by clinic overdue on my NHS account

Go back to GP and tell him/her that the Urgent referral has not been actioned!

I was referred for an 'urgent' gastrointestinal appt in July. Contacted the hospital and their response was that average waits were 14 months but they noted that my referral was urgent so 'hoped' it might be sooner than that. Still no appointment. I think that's just how it is now and it's frightening

I'm on a 2 week cancer pathway. 4 months wait. Absolute shambles

Oh I'm so sorry that's just awful. I'm on it too but I've been so lucky, they've been absolutely brilliant tbf. Really hope you get seen soon 🙏

DH is on urgent cardiac referal. 16 month wait list!

I'm on an urgent referral to neurology as an MRI scan found something. Was told by the department that urgent referrals are treated no differently to normal ones and the wait is approximately a year. No doubt it will be longer than that.

The "app" has no idea how many people are already waiting for urgent appointments.

Routine patients should be seen in 18 weeks, by are currently waiting over a year.

The dept will have a target for how soon urgent patients should be seen. They may be missing that target as well.

Let them know you if you can accept a short notice appointment.
Asked them to check that a clinician has triaged your referral.
Let your gp know you haven't heard anything
Update ANY changes in symptoms.
Ring regularly to see when your appointment will be.

Keep your gp updated
They can cinapsis your case if needed

Gosh this is frightening indeed. I will update my GP but I don't think she'll be able to do much. I don't even know what I have other than an obstruction and dilatation

😟Hope they will see you soon . ❤

Unfortunately the reality is if you have the ability to scrape together the money, then you need to pay. Speak to staff in the NHS and Consultants in the key areas are regularly shown being absent undertaking private work instead of undertaking NHS procedures. I find it strange that senior doctors such as this can be "full time" but absent, but that is the system dating back to the origins of the NHS.

If you look at dentistry now in that many sections of the population cannot obtain treatment, this is the direction of travel.

I found that the 2 weeks seemed to reset when I got moved on as part of the referral. So urgent referral for ultrasound scan made by GP, actioned within 2 weeks. Results sent to clinic, then a 10 week wait to see consultant, followed by another urgent referral, this time for MRI, which was actioned v quickly (scan and results in less than a week).

Bollocks. There's not a single consultant in my department who does any private work, and still there are waits. The main problem is over a decade of the Tories deliberately destroying the NHS.

I got an urgent ENT referral for sudden onset hearing loss in October, phoned the hospital to follow up a couple of weeks later similar to what you were advised to do and was told they were currently processing urgent referrals they'd received in January and I was looking at 18 months for an appointment.

I paid privately and saw the same consultant I'd have probably seen on the NHS within two weeks.

Don't vote Tory folks

@nocoolnamesleft

"Bollocks. There's not a single consultant in my department who does any private work, and still there are waits. The main problem is over a decade of the Tories deliberately destroying the NHS."

I don't know what dept you are in. Emergency Dept we don't have private work evident but for all the elective ones like Ortho, Urology, ophthalmology etc most of our consultants unless they are less than full time do private work. I don't object in principal, but find it a strange system that means they are paid for 10 sessions +, ie 40 hours plus per week usually and it means they are routinely scheduled for private work during the week. Not evenings or weekends.

If you don't see that then look wider as it is evident in most hospitals

Sadly in our department Urgents are 23 weeks. Cancer pathways (so 2WW) are about 15-20 days for first consultant appointment at the moment. Routine - well that could be 18 months. It’s awful. And we also have no space for follow up appointments to be booked.

Private kidney mri with vista health likely 600 gbp ish

I had an mri with them for a different body part in dec

Consider that if u can ?

If you think throwing more money at the NHS will solve this, then you have sadly swallowed the mantra of Saint NHS. The whole thing needs reform and it is a 10-15 year project ideally with some cross party agreement. The waste and inefficiency is incredible. The lack of digitisation in some areas just defies belief. Some hospitals still have paper records!!!!! They can't even email patients or combine letters in one envelope!

When you go to ED your file has to be brought down. Having worked for long periods outside the NHS and also the private sector, this monolith is just incredible.

Actually Wes Streeting (shadow Labour Health Secretary) is now openly agreeing this and seems up for it, although whether this will happen when reality bites is another issue. Think Frank Field when appointed by Tony Blair to think the unthinkable and got disposed of when it was difficult. But he is now looking at other international health systems now that trumpeting that "the NHS is the best in the world" attracts international derision and laughter.

My urgent referral to have my wisdom tooth removed under general anaesthetic was done in July 23- I still haven't heard anything from the NHS . Luckily I dipped into my savings and went private and had it taken out just before Christmas as it was getting that infected that regularly the antibiotics were stoping working. I asked the dentist what can I do of the antibiotics don't work and I don't hear about the urgent referral soon and she said stronger pain medication!! I said what for the possibility of a year! It's a mess - know I'm very lucky and could afford to go to private it's people who can't that I feel sorry for!!

is that just for the MRI scan on top of any consultation and follows up?
I've never been to a private doctor so I'm not sure how it works. But I can't be paying that kind of money , maybe just one off but not more

My advice OP is to ask your GP to organise for you to have a CT scan of your kidneys. An ultrasound scan is not reliable in detecting kidney stones, etc.

I was put as urgent referral to gynae.

The hospital downgraded it to non urgent.

I went back to GP and asked why and they re wrote to hospital stating it was assessed as urgent by them who had been treating me for years and asked why they didn't think it was urgent.

Upgraded to urgent again. Took a few months for appointment and then 3 months fr results but I had the surgery 6 months later which I was surprised about it being so quick!

I work in referrals, waiting lists and patient flow.

This is how it works in our hospital:

Regardless if whether or not the GP has marked the referral as URGENT it will still need to he triaged by the consultants.

Once triaged it will go on an URGENT or ROUTINE waiting list (our longest for routine is 12 months).

URGENT waiting lists are shorter.

To expedite you can either go back to your GP and get them to write an EXPEDITE LETTER to the department or you can contact the consultants secretary's directly. Or go to PALS but they might not be as effective.

Call the bookings centre, kick up a fuss, and they will put you through to the secs.

I'm on the urgent list and have been for a year 😢