The casecof the missing hospital appointment

Goodness yes, go direct to the consultants secretary, they are usually very helpful.or get your G.P to chase it up if he's reliable & helpful.But me? I'd go straight to secretary. Especially if you feel you are more urgent now than before.Good luck.

I'd have loved to have seen your face Marydoll when you realised it was the hospital.

PALS have contacted her for me.
She hasn't phoned me back, as yet.

Been there, seen it and got many T shirts, MissA. The best bet is always the consultant's secretary, as Espee suggests.

I was once in Rome, when I had three missed calls, which I ignored, thinking they were scams. I knew they weren't hospital messages, as they use a generic 0800 number.
However, I thought the number seemed familiar, so decided to Google it. It was the National Heart hospital phoning to confirm that I was attending for my operation in two days time! ?I knew nothing about it at all. There had been no letter.

Whenever I have a hospital appointment, even if the letter goes astray, I receive a call asking me to confirm that I will be attending, followed by a text a few days beforehand to remind me. A good system.

Persistence is the key, Miss A, don't be foobed off. I hope you get it sorted soon.

You contact the secretary of the consultant you have been placed under ( regardless of whether you will see a registrar or other doctor) .....consultant secretaries are usually very helpful

Oh, not even A&E worked then.?

Your MP?

Mine worked wonders with the DVLA.

Yes...
That's me.
I am aware of the backlog, and staffing, and that mistakes can and do happen, and I think I have been very patient considering I was discharged from hospital last summer and have been waiting ever since, with ongoing and worsening symptoms.

It is utter chaos, isn't it!
There have been some right cock-ups here too.

MissAdventure

You know I'm a cowardy custard about these things, don't you?

Yes, but we're not!
A posse of Gransnetters, calm, composed but insistent and persistent!

The message on my nhs app about my overdue referral has now gone.
Wiped away.
It had a reference number and told me to phone if I hadn't heard by the 6th January.
This was the second referral, because the first one turned out to be to the wrong department.

Similar thing happened to me. Waited 8 months for an orthopaedic appointment but aware of long waiting list. Then friend with same issue had appointment within 6 weeks of seeing GP. I contacted my GP who rang hospital and appointment magically appeared for following week. My referral acknowledged on NHS Pathway but never picked up. Only apology from GP who was not at fault, nothing from hospital and had to join surgery waiting list when I should have been at least 6 months a head

You know I'm a cowardy custard about these things, don't you?

Don't let this go, don't be pushed around.
Think of us all behind you, urging you on.

The whole saga of my ailments is a long list of being accidentally missed out, things not being picked up, being referred to the wrong department, and so on.
To find out I may now be written off as someone who didnt bother to go for the appoinment I've been so desperately waiting for is just too much.

I had a similar problem but on top of a ridiculous wait to be seen my nearly teenage son's notes were mislaid and it was suggested that we'd have to start again! I rang hospital reception and asked for the consultants email - I wrote explaining how it was affecting DS and all that he'd been through. He rang me back that afternoon and apologised. He said the notes being lost was inexcusable and although they would need to be redone he would ensure the utmost speed - and he did. Sometimes you have to fight your corner.

PALS have contacted the secretary of the relevant department on my behalf.
Every day since Tuesday (when I got home from collapsing and being in A & E, coincidentally - again!)

The proper thing to do is as Espee says, to contact the Secretary again.

The improper thing to do would be to go to A &E with an acute problem related to your condition.

?

I agree with being polite but I would be phoning every day to get this sorted

Yes, PALS have asked the clinic to contact me, urgently, every day, since Tuesday.

Yes, I agree. Contact the secretary. Most referrals aren't on paper nowadays so should be showing on their computer. The other person who you could contact would be the Outpatient manager. Hope you get it sorted.

I am never, ever rude.
I realise they have made a mistake, and I have been overlooked, but I will not take on the blame for it.

They have all of my details, and I have politely phoned them every now and then to enquire how my refferal is progressing.

Something similar happened to DH a few weeks ago although he did get a text and email followed by a letter the next day, all sent at times after the actual appointment time.
He rang the department, not the appointments clerks and was given one for the following week.

You do need to check that they have all the correct contact details for you. Follow Espee's advice. Always be polite, the people you are speaking to are just trying to do their jobs. If there has been any sort of admin. error it is not the fault of the person you are talking to.

So, you think the appointment was originally made after you had contacted PALS (that is the way I read what you have written). Have you contacted them again?

Honestly, no-one at the hospital or at your GP practice is deliberately trying to make life difficult for you. Mistakes do occur even in the very best run organisations, and the NHS is dreadfully understaffed at the moment.

I presume it is the secretary of the department who is pretending I have missed an appoinment.
PALS have asked her to phone me, and I have waited a week so far.

Very good advice from Esspee. that’s exactly what I would do too.