Hospital Waiting Times – Requests to Expedite Appointments
Dear Patients,
We have noticed an increasing number of patients requesting GP appointments or GP letters asking for outpatient appointments to be expedited. This seems to be mostly due to extended waiting times and after having spoken with hospital secretaries.
We very much understand and share the frustration caused by current waiting times for outpatient appointments. Please be aware, this is entirely outside of our control and is the making of a struggling NHS with an imbalance of demand and capacity (workforce).
It is important to note that seeking an expedite letter based solely on waiting time will not get you seen any sooner. When you are referred to hospital, the request is reviewed and ‘triaged’. This means the hospital team decide on the timescale they feel is appropriate for your condition. Another letter from the GP without any new information will not change this.
However, if you believe your symptoms have changed or progressed and therefore require a more urgent outpatient appointment, you can use the following letter template:
Please provide details about the changes in your symptoms or clarify why you feel a more urgent referral is necessary. This will then be shared with the relevant department but please be aware the decision to change the level of urgency still lies with the hospital team.
If your query relates to cancelling, booking or chasing appointments please directly contact the department you were referred to as we just do not have the capacity to make these requests on your behalf. This is also applicable if you are waiting for results from a test organised by a hospital specialist.
There is lots of information available including telephone numbers and information on the following links:
Our commitment is to providing the best and most comprehensive medical care to our patients in a timely fashion.
The use of GP appointments solely to discuss waiting times or chasing up when you may get seen means our team then have less capacity to deal with other medical problems and this has a knock on negative effect on waiting times.
Thank you for your understanding,
