France imposing a fine for no-shows at GP surgeries.

kate1949

What I don't understand is why so many appointments (apparently!) need to be cancelled.

Almost everyone has a phone or internet access these days so cancelling an appointment is not difficult, bring on the fines

Have you tried to get through to some of these places by phone to cancel?

Or they send you a "reminder" text with no option to cancel or reply? You have to do it on the phone and then wonder why people dong show up.

I usually cancel by using the Patient Access or NHS apps but not everyone has it.

Cancer treatment

My husband missed an appointment with the nurse at our practice. We had it written on the calendar. We have never missed an appointment before.

It was for a B12 injection. He had been through 50 hospital/ doctor appointments in 10 months for xance treatment, including 37 days of radiotherapy. He had been through the mill. He forgot one appointment. The nurse was lovely about it but he was mortified. Things happen. We're not perfect. He would willingly have paid a fee if required.

5 euros isn't a lot, but it might make people stop and think.
We have to pay £35+ fine for a no show parking ticket, hardly anyone slips up on that.

As a nurse running my own clinic sessions we used to book extra patients in between appointments as we knew we would never have full attendance. They don’t seem to do that now in case they overrun ( it never happens!) I have been on the phone this morning waiting for ages to book an appointment as requested by the GP herself , only to be told after 45 minutes that she is on holiday for 3 weeks . Pity she didn’t tell me that when she asked me to book an appointment a week after my blood test!

When I worked in the NHS almost every clinic had 'no shows'. Sometimes the patient would ring to explain that they were unable to keep their appointment but most didn't even have the courtesy to let the hospital know they would not attend. That means a wasted appointment that someone else could have been given. Charging those people who don't phone or keep their appointment would be a good idea. Also charging for unnecessary ambulances. Some people treat them like taxis.

Witzend I think you’re right. And I bet no other countries think ‘our NHS’ model is that wonderful any more!

I will never be a no show for an NHS doctor's appointment.
The reason is that I no longer have access to a GP appointment. Booking for appointments opens at 8am - the phone is constantly engaged, then, at around 8.30am I finally get through to an answerphone message saying that there are no more appointments available that day and as only same day appointments are available, try again tomorrow. I have a number of problems which are, I suppose, trivial but could develop into something serious if untreated for long enough.

I was a practice manager in a previous existence back in the 1970s and patients used to bend my ear about appointments not being soon enough or at a more convenient time for them or if they had to wait too long past their appointment time, also if the doctor took too long to arrive for a visit. Those were the days!

Incidentally, the 'turn up and wait' system was thought to be largely unnecessary once telephones became common. The big disadvantage of this system was that surgeries could go on indefinitely and eat into the time set aside for visits between and after surgeries. There is a horrible (true) story of a women whose little boy had swallowed something poisonous so she took him to the surgery and as they politely waited their turn the little boy died in the waiting room.

We hand over money for our GP appointments in France, but it is refunded into our bank account via our medical cards and top-up insurance automatically, minus 1€.
DH does not pay at all because his long-term condition means that everything connected to that is 100% free of charge for him.
We use the online booking system DoctoLib and they send loads of reminders.

It’s ironic that there’s often so much talk of how much better health care is in other countries - when in many such countries people are expected to pay for e.g. GP appts. and visits to A&E (as in Sweden).

But let there be any talk of introducing such charges here, and hands are held up in horror - ‘free at the point of use’ being such a sacred cow.
I doubt that any govt. of whatever colour would ever have the guts to introduce such charges here - they’d be too petrified of haemorrhaging votes at the next election.

This makes me wonder why GPs don't go back to the old system where one just turned up at a surgery and waited one's turn

I agree Baggs. 😁
Queue up. Be seen. No DNAs (did not attends).
Sorted.

Proposed in Françe to come into force next January, €5 for a missed appointment, the Dr’s unions and patient groups are against it.
CoolCoco our txt appointment reminder gives a cancel option.
Perhaps a trial of fining here in one area would be a useful exercise.

Such high numbers of no shows also suggest to me that many people make appointments for trivial things which clear up by themselves.

My surgery used to put up the no-show-numbers on a small blackboard each month, and frankly the numbers were horrifying. About 200+ people a month not bothering to turn up for their appointments.

This makes me wonder why GPs don't go back to the old system where one just turned up at a surgery and waited one's turn.

I realise it probably isn't as simple as that but still, it does seem as if the system in place now is not working very well.

CoolCoco

You could have a text message to confirm an appointment with a "cancel this appointment" button, which would be super easy to do.

We're changing broadband provider. I've had 3 reminder texts with a link to cancel or change the appointment day. It would be an easy option for surgeries for those patients with mobile phones, which will be the majority.

You could have a text message to confirm an appointment with a "cancel this appointment" button, which would be super easy to do.

Almost everyone has a phone or internet access these days so cancelling an appointment is not difficult, bring on the fines.

In theory it makes perfect sense, but I think in practice it would cost more to look into complaints, mistakes, misinformation and general f* ups.

Then there will be people who have waited so long for an appointment that they have been taken onto hospital...

People who don’t cancel are selfish.

What of they had been unable to get to see a gp, though?

A lot of people won't phone 111 because they will almost always advise A and E.

It's very true that we value something more when we have to pay for it. eg. supermarket carrierbags. Suddenly people were making sure they had a bag with them, even though the charge was only 5p.

I had an afternoon hospital appointment between Christmas and New Year. The consultant said I was the only patient who had turned up. Not a single one had gone that morning. It really is disgusting and is costing the NHS a fortune.

My surgery used to put up the no-show-numbers on a small blackboard each month, and frankly the numbers were horrifying. About 200+ people a month not bothering to turn up for their appointments.

If we value our NHS (and all of us insist that we do), then we must treat it with respect and be grateful for an appointment and turn up for it.

I think dentists charge for no shows.