Retinopathy shocking...

[Pipp]

Maybe it is not always the patients who default. I had a letter telling me Of an appointment for eye screening that I was not able to attend. I phoned immediately left a message on answer phone explaining I would be away, gave full info on date, contact details etc, asking for new appointment to be sent. Nothing arrived. Several phone calls to department at regular intervals achieved nothing. Always left message. Never got a call back. Now two months late for screening. Finally managed to talk to someone last week. She had received my recorded messages, even relayed to me the dates and times of the messages, and their content. Just that nobody had taken responsibility to rearrange the appointment. She was not able to arrange my appointment on the phone, so I told her the one time this year that I would not be able to attend, due to having an important medical appointment, and today received a letter inviting me to attend for an eye screening appointment on the one flipping day I said I would not be able to attend.

Anyone less persistent, or with less time to faff about would give up.

 

[pavlovsdog]

Our service has a text alert system as a reminder. If peeps consistently miss appointments they are discharged, but this would be difficult for other services, especially those working with potentially life threatening conditions.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Maybe it is not always the patients who default. I had a letter telling me Of an appointment for eye screening that I was not able to attend. I phoned immediately left a message on answer phone explaining I would be away, gave full info on date, contact details etc, asking for new appointment to be sent. Nothing arrived. Several phone calls to department at regular intervals achieved nothing. Always left message. Never got a call back. Now two months late for screening. Finally managed to talk to someone last week. She had received my recorded messages, even relayed to me the dates and times of the messages, and their content. Just that nobody had taken responsibility to rearrange the appointment. She was not able to arrange my appointment on the phone, so I told her the one time this year that I would not be able to attend, due to having an important medical appointment, and today received a letter inviting me to attend for an eye screening appointment on the one flipping day I said I would not be able to attend.

Anyone less persistent, or with less time to faff about would give up.

But your appointment, sorry.. Would at least have been cancelled on the system, so not a DNA....

We have text reminders to everybody that gives their mobile numbers but still last 28 days 170 appts were not cancelled... Only 10 are going through the txt system to cancel... And we have online cancelling too, and still 170 appts in one month.

I do appreciate the patients side of NHS **** ups... (Scuse slang language)....and your example should go to PALS at your hospital for them to take official notice and for improvements to be made in the future.... Have you considered telling PAL dept at your hospital? They should be informed at least, even if the matter may be resolving or resolved....

 

[donnellysdogs]

Our service has a text alert system as a reminder. If peeps consistently miss appointments they are discharged, but this would be difficult for other services, especially those working with potentially life threatening conditions.

Ours get a letter after 3 missed appts at GP. Hospital is 2 failures and referred back to GP.

Still doesn't work. I was at hosp this morn when a young lad came in. I was filling out a satisfaction survey.. He said "glad your happy with service, I'm not". Whilst filling out rest of survey... He was talking to nurse... He had missed two retinopathy appts and moaning cos he back to gp care...so what the heck was she meant to do?

 

[Kezzer4321]

I think its swings and roundabouts. I get a letter every year telling me the time and date of the test - asking me to call if I cant make it. Personally I always make myself available and I am lucky to have a boss who is happy for me to take the time I need. However my sister, who has kids, lives her life in a permanent state of disarray, and she would be one of those people who would mean to call and cancel but never got round to it... or who would forget on the day because she didn't put it in her phone.

However I think it is a terrible waste of time and money for everyone involved when people dont cancel or dont turn up. No wonder the NHS is running out of money. Not sure what the solution is either...

 

[Pipp]

But your appointment, sorry.. Would at least have been cancelled on the system, so not a DNA....

We have text reminders to everybody that gives their mobile numbers but still last 28 days 170 appts were not cancelled... Only 10 are going through the txt system to cancel... And we have online cancelling too, and still 170 appts in one month.

I do appreciate the patients side of NHS **** ups... (Scuse slang language)....and your example should go to PALS at your hospital for them to take official notice and for improvements to be made in the future.... Have you considered telling PAL dept at your hospital? They should be informed at least, even if the matter may be resolving or resolved....

I am on first name terms with PALS after all the foul ups I have had with our hospitals in last two years. They don't seem to be able to get improvements to admin. Chief exec and MP been involved. Been to meetings with hospital managers. Verbal apology for one major error, but that did not improve things. Added insult to injury when MP sent copy of letter from chief exec, telling her the matter had been resolved. It hadn't. It was a letter about someone else! MP didn't challenge it either. No wonder people rush to ambulance chasing law firms for compensation. Not a route I intend to take, but I can understand people who do.

My point about the missed appointments is that sometimes people won't even know they have the appointment. Often the fault of the patient, but sometimes it is admin depts to blame.

 

[donnellysdogs]

I find it annoying, because these are the type of people we are all judged by.
I know there are genuine people amongst those who can't make it, who can't get to the phone or are held up in traffic etc..
I think that must have been a very bad day though, I can't imagine that most diabetics don't care about their eyesight.

Just in two weeks I've now heard of one patient missing 7 appts and another yesterday missed two!

You're right, we all end up being tarred with the same brush! I know when I worked in Management I made sure that I never took sick days because I never wanted another diabetic to be tarred by me...

 

[rubold]

At my last screening there were certainly a lot of names being called out in the waiting room with no response. I say quite simply 'use it, or lose it'. I thought Medical Imaging Ltd had been awarded the contract at least in England, but there seem to have a few different arrangements described in this thread, so I'm not certain how widespread this contract is.

The appt. system was far superior before automatic appt. letters were sent out about 4-8 weeks in advance. I used to receive a letter form my local optician reminding me that my annual eye test and retinal photography were due and to please contact and make an appt. So for a start the appt. was at a convenient time/date and was more likely to be attended.

 

[Fallgal]

Coming from a country where healthcare is horribly expensive, I cherish the NHS and each and every appointment I have. I would never dream of missing an appointment without a phone call.

My mom, who manages a large dental practice in the States, has a receptionist call every patient on their list that morning to remind them of their appointment. She says the hour or so it takes the receptionist to do this has drastically cut down on no-shows and has saved the practice a lot of money from very highly-paid dentists, hygienists and assistants just standing around doing nothing when a patient doesn't show.

Still (from experience, as I used to interview clients in my home), some people will not show up no matter how many times they are reminded. They are simply rude, completely disrespectful of others' time and oblivious to the cost factor and nothing - fees or fear of blindness - can cure that.

 

[McMittens]

Hi everyone

I had my retinopathy appt today and I was shocked.

The person screening said that she had phoned 1 patient today as he had missed another screening.. He had missed 7 appointments and not been bothered to even cancel them.

They screen every weekend and last Saturday7 patients did not arrive for their appointments and did not cancel them.

They are purely for diabetic retinopathy screening.

Are diabetics really not realising they need these eye checks and they can lose their sight?

Are they too **** busy to txt that they can't attend or lift a phone to call?

I'm so mad that despite the nhs being in crisis with money that the patients just don't turn up or value their eyesight..

Moan over, but still angry.
Told again that no problems with eyes, **** good for T1 30 + years...

I'm not sure if you've seen my previous posts, but anyway I'm a screener for diabetic retinopathy and type 1 diabetic myself and I have NEVER had a clinic where everyone turns up, in certain clinics I've had 35 patients booked in and seen 8, which is really shocking but unfortunately that's how it is, we can only invite these people to appointments and hope they turn up and understand how important it is...

 

[donnellysdogs]

I'm not sure if you've seen my previous posts, but anyway I'm a screener for diabetic retinopathy and type 1 diabetic myself and I have NEVER had a clinic where everyone turns up, in certain clinics I've had 35 patients booked in and seen 8, which is really shocking but unfortunately that's how it is, we can only invite these people to appointments and hope they turn up and understand how important it is...

That is appalling!! Amazing that people just do not value their sight!! Bet they value their private parts more!!
Makes me mad.

I would so love to do more but apart from putting details in my GP on the walls, newsletters then I can not see how to improve this unless local media/
news could go through a hospital appointments list for a day. It would make national news I reckon!

 

[Pipp]

I'm not sure if you've seen my previous posts, but anyway I'm a screener for diabetic retinopathy and type 1 diabetic myself and I have NEVER had a clinic where everyone turns up, in certain clinics I've had 35 patients booked in and seen 8, which is really shocking but unfortunately that's how it is, we can only invite these people to appointments and hope they turn up and understand how important it is...

Meanwhile, someone like me, who never misses appointments is unable to get an appointment for eye screening, even though it is two months overdue. Also was on waiting list for two major operations for two years. If some of that time waiting is due to time wasters who have appointments they fail to attend then that makes me rather angry.

 

[secundaw]

I went for mine and they couldn't do it as I was not on the contractors system wasted my time and the person who took me.

 

[greyposter]

I have my test tomorrow at the eye hospital. Seems my previous test didn't come out ,down the health centre.

 

[vit90]

I must thank the ophthalmology guys at my local hospital for my diabetes being spotted. I was referred by my opticians because they could not get decent eye-puff glaucoma pressure test results and they were obviously concerned I had glaucoma. With more technical tests at the hospital I was declared glaucoma-free (instead I have thicker than average corneas, which is not at all of any concern) but the doc did spot a couple of very tiny spots on the retina of one eye caused by microvascular bleeds. No idea when they happened or even if they were a diabetic complication but that was the suspicion so a blood test was ordered and that's when my high HbA1c was discovered.

Not had any further problems with the retina but I am grateful for the system for finding the diabetes. There is a lot of moaning about the NHS and but a lot of us do abuse what is really a fantastic, if flawed, resource.

 

[Pipp]

I must thank the ophthalmology guys at my local hospital for my diabetes being spotted. I was referred by my opticians because they could not get decent eye-puff glaucoma pressure test results and they were obviously concerned I had glaucoma. With more technical tests at the hospital I was declared glaucoma-free (instead I have thicker than average corneas, which is not at all of any concern) but the doc did spot a couple of very tiny spots on the retina of one eye caused by microvascular bleeds. No idea when they happened or even if they were a diabetic complication but that was the suspicion so a blood test was ordered and that's when my high HbA1c was discovered.

Not had any further problems with the retina but I am grateful for the system for finding the diabetes. There is a lot of moaning about the NHS and but a lot of us do abuse what is really a fantastic, if flawed, resource.

Likewise, I am very grateful to the majority of people working in our NHS. It is a creaking service that probably needs a radical overhaul, but the individuals working under pressure in our health service generally do an excellent job with the resources available.

Some of the 'service users' take our health service for granted, and need a lesson in good manners, and respect. The NHS has saved my life several times. When you consider that in some countries people walk for days then wait for more days outside ramshackle buildings to be seen by a medical professional, we in UK are so very fortunate.

 

[Scardoc]

Interesting thread and one I am glad to see. For many years one of my biggest pet hates has been the refusal of some people, Barbara Young - talking to you, to acknowledge that the poor statistics for T1 diabetic care is not purely down to NHS failings but also down to T1's failing themselves.

 

[Flowerpot]

In my area I was receiving a retinal screening appointment even though I have been going to the vitreo retinal clinic for years after losing most of my sight due to proliferative retinopathy. I had to ring and try to cancel the screening appointment saying I was seen regularly at the eye hospital and was told that I was risking losing my sight by cancelling the appointment and they would keep me on the screening list. I don't know if I was counted as a DNA even though I rang each time to cancel the screening appointment. I asked that as I was on a consultants list could I be removed from the screening list to save duplication and so far this year I haven't received an appointment. Another reason why maybe some people don't turn up/don't cancel as they assume a hospital ophthalmology appointment automatically overrides a screening appointment. The two systems don't seem to be linked.

Whatever the reason it doesn't excuse not cancelling appointments though.

 

[Fallgal]

Meanwhile, someone like me, who never misses appointments is unable to get an appointment for eye screening, even though it is two months overdue. Also was on waiting list for two major operations for two years. If some of that time waiting is due to time wasters who have appointments they fail to attend then that makes me rather angry.

I waited 6 months for my eye screening, despite my GP chasing it up twice after the initial request. It is really maddening if it is due to no-shows.

 

[noblehead]

I'm not sure if you've seen my previous posts, but anyway I'm a screener for diabetic retinopathy and type 1 diabetic myself and I have NEVER had a clinic where everyone turns up, in certain clinics I've had 35 patients booked in and seen 8, which is really shocking but unfortunately that's how it is, we can only invite these people to appointments and hope they turn up and understand how important it is...

That is shocking, what a waste of your time and that of your colleagues, do these people just automatically get sent another letter to attend another appointment, if so what happens if they fail to turn up again?