Graham reports back from Friends of Scholes Park meeting
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by Lib Dem Team on 26 August, 2016
Iain writes:
Have you recently booked an outpatients appointment at Wythenshawe Hospital (UHSM)? Until now I either got given an appointment at the desk or they wrote to me with the details.
Today, for the first time, I’ve received a letter telling me to phone their appointments service. On my seventh attempt I got through and, after just 25 minutes on hold (in what they describe as their quieter period), they are sending me a letter with the appointment date. Under the previous system they sent me the letter directly, missing out the whole call-centre bit.
It’s a real pain for me and I can’t see how it saves money for the hospital. Anyone else had a similar experience, as I’m taking it up with hospital management and find out what’s going on.
3 Comments
UHSM has had that system for quite a while, at least for some outpatients appointments.
Often it says that you have an appointed time to ring them to make the actual appointment. I’m a volunteer at the hospital and it’s not unknown for patients, who havent read the letter properly, to turn up thinking they have an appointment to see the doctor and they have to be sent away.
The only benefit I can think of is that, if the patient phones, then the date is being agreed with them, rather than a date being given “on spec”.
My wife has been trying to get through for three days without success. This is far from satisfactory and something needs to be done about it. Please take this forward on our behalf as short of going to Wythenshawe Hospital ourselves we don’t know what we can do.
I am having the same problem.the booking desk was closed after my last appointment so I was told an appointment would be sent to me.I have tried also to access appointment online without success.