We are aware that patients are often told by the hospital to 'get a letter from the GP' so that their appointment can be expedited. This is in fact unnecessary and creates an additional administrative burden on already stretched GP services.

As already indicated above, hospitals are contractually obliged to communicate directly with patients and respond directly and appropriately to their queries, including specifically questions about appointments. Failure to do so represents a breach of their contract.

Please be aware that simply waiting a longer time than you would wish does not make your request urgent. Unfortunately, in the current situation, everyone is waiting longer. We cannot write letters to expedite your appointment for this reason.

If, however, your condition is actively deteriorating, we advise you to speak to your specialist so that they can assess if you need to be seen sooner. We do find that an initial response might still be 'get a letter from your GP', however we are finding that we are merely reporting exactly what you have told us and it seems more sensible for patient and consultant to have a direct conversation. Should you continue to have difficulty in accessing your consultant, we advise that you contact the PALS department of the hospital for advice and assistance (see bottom of page for link).

Expedite Appintment and Follow Up Letter - Dr.Rasib and Partners (1).docx