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Why do they ever make appointments??

H

hanadr

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I get my eyes tested at the Diabetic Retina clinic. When I went last November, I was told my slight retinopathy is totally stable ( It's probably from pre-diagnosis) and I need only be seen every nine months instead of the usual six. today I received a letter from the hospital appointments department to say they've had to move my appointment from August to December. this has happened to every appointment so far. What I don't understand is why do they ask me to make my next appointment before I leave the clinic from my previous one, Why don't they just send me one when they think they can fit me in? I hope that they think I'm so stable, I don't need to be seen very often, but now I'm getting my retinas checked only once a year.
 
This is... troubling, but not surprising. You'll find a lot of hospitals will sacrifice "good" patients when shuffling appointments.
 
being on the other side - it is a mega problem booking appointments so far in advance. Patients are not robots cancel appts, dont turn up at all - staff get sick go on hols etc so often there are reasons why. Problem as well with the retinal screening service it is being overwhelmed by numbers!

I thnk you would actually be shocked by the number of patients who fail to attend - known in the trade as DNAs!! It is an enourmous number across every clinic and ward across the land - yes pts even dna operations!
 
Since I low carb to keep my BGs tight, I hope by next time I go to see them, I may have reversed the retinopathy. Mind you when I last went to the optician for glasses, a couple of years ago, I caused her to panic and send a letter to my GP. I have worn glasses from childhood. I've made do with this pair of glasses, because it caused such a hoo ha! which I might write about sometime, that I fear going again. And As I age, I need a new pescription. That's without thinking of the cost of new glasses.
 
Well I know what you mean about appointments, and some health authorities after they have changed your appointment and you phone up to cancel as you have a previous committment like an operation at a differing hospital, send you another appointment with quite a rude sentance that if you do not attend this appointment then you will be removed from the outpatients list. And it's not just for your eyes.

I was reliably informed that this is due to the ridiculous targets that the UK govt insist that the health authorities meet and that all the letters issued are templates. After two cancellations either by you or the hospital the computer cannot distinguish which is which and hence you receive the letter telling you that you are not likely to be kept on the outpatients list.

It seems to me that when the hospital calls we have to jump to fit their schedule, probably due to the fact that there are not enough indians and too many chiefs (Hospital Managers).
 
I have had one of these appointments moved twice, but no-on has threatened to remove me from their list. Also in the case of the one I missed,that I would have attended if I'd ever got the letter :lol: they were quite nice about it. and the one I turned up for after I didn't know they'd cancelled it. Those dear sweet people in the eye clinic( who don't make the appointmeents) fitted me in at the end anyway. It's only the central appointments system that is a problem. I appreciate what ally5555 wrote about making appointments months ahead. I don't see how the DNAs make a difference, other than just making time for the clinic to catch up on itself. why can't we go back to each department making its own appointments and leave out that converted Georgian houseful of office persons across the road entirely?
 
well they do because then people ring and apologise and some trusts re send once - people dna all sorts of appt and take up time for those who will turn up - in some clinics it can be up to 40-50%.

Even my own gp has around 100 appointments per week that are dnas - they are a real nuisance.

my gp clinics with no waiting list have around 4-5% of dnas - it is very frustrating.

I recently had to cancel an appointment myself at the Uni hops in cardiff and I must admit they had an excellent call centre.
 
I've had mixed expereinces with appointments, I went in May 2007 and they said they would send me another in a years times, it got to May and I hadn't heard anything so rang up the secretary and she booked me one in 3 weeks later and there was a choice of times.

waiting for a podiatory appointment was a nighmare of about 6 months. they sent me an appointment that I couldn't do because i was working and couldn't swap my shift. so I cancelled and asked them to call me to rearrange it, they didn't bother, and my GP had to re-refer me. now i'm waiting for them to make me some insoles, has been 5 weeks when they said it would take 2, have left messages on department answerphone and not heard anything, very frustrating.

being ont he other side DNAs are frustrating, some clincs where i work are going with a one strike you're out policy. whereas I think that's a little harsh, missing 2 appointments isn't acceptable.
 
I was told by the podiatry department that as a diabetic, I can self-refer and don't have to go through the doctor. I had a spell a couple of years ago when I had recurrent ingrowing toenails. It's not my shoes, but the shape of the nailbed combined with extra-long second toes. I'm so careful with my feet. I wear the socks with separate toes, which help and I haven't had the trouble for a while.
 
podaitry appointments are a nightmare - and dont call them chiropodists!

They are so short staffed and in Wales all the gp run services were withdrawn about 4 years ago so pateints deluged the local depts!

One other problem with appiontments is sending them too far ahead = people forget to go!

I really do not think they will ever get it completely right !
 
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