Patients miss appointments about 7,000 times each month

AVERAGE OF ONE IN 15 PATIENTS NOT TURNING UP - SLOTS WHICH COULD REDUCE WAITING LISTS

THOUSANDS of people a month are missing out on a chance to get NHS treatment because others are failing to show up for appointments.

Around 7,000 appointments a month at Leicester hospitals are recorded as “did not attend”, an NHS spokesperson said.

In December, there were 129,944 patients on the waiting list for all treatment types across hospitals run by the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust (UHL).

Some of these people had been waiting for more than a year for their care.

The trust said people miss appointments for a number of reasons, including struggling to get to the hospital and work commitments.

It is working on a programme to reduce the number of slots that are wasted.

Where a patient cancels at the last minute, people on a “short notice” list will receive a text or a call offering them the appointment instead.

The lists are currently in place in some services, such as orthopaedics, urology and general surgery, but UHL is hoping to roll it out more widely.

Dr Ruw Abeyratne, director of health equality and inclusion at Leicester’s Hospitals, said: “We know there are many reasons why patients in Leicester and Leicestershire may not attend an appointment, from transport issues, to difficulty taking time off work and caring responsibilities.

“Working with patients and communities, we have begun to try and make it easier for patients to access our services, whatever their need.

“People’s circumstances can also change. By empowering patients with choices over their care and making it easier to decline appointments and waiting list positions that are no longer needed, we are better placed to ensure the right patients are in the right places, at the right times, for them.”

Nationally, around 650,000 hospital appointments are missed each month.

NHS England has said it is vital that people let their hospitals know as early as possible if they cannot make their slot.

“Every appointment freed up could be used to see other patients, including those who have been waiting the longest for an appointment or treatment”, the organisation said.

Dr Jess Sokolov, regional medical director at NHS England in the Midlands, said: “The NHS is aiming to make it easier for patients to cancel and rebook, offer remote appointments where appropriate and preferred and send more and better appointment reminders, while drilling down and tackling the root causes that lie behind non-attendances.

“We want to make the best use of every available slot we have – and that means more use of short notice lists, so that patients who are willing to be ‘on standby’ can be ready to fill any empty appointment.

“With around one in 15 appointments missed it is important that where possible, patients let hospitals know as far in advance if they think they aren’t able to attend and share their experience with local NHS teams of any barriers impacting their ability to access care.”

■ Have an opinion on this story? Email us at: