"Wasted appointment and lack of internal communication"

I had an appointment recently  with a doctor at Clinic 11 who advised I would need an operation but first they wanted me to go for an MRI scan. I then had an appointment with occupational therapy. When I arrived at this department, they discharged me within a minute saying that as the doctor had already made a decision for the next step forward that this appointment was no longer necessary.

I had also received a second letter confirming another appointment at Clinic 11 with the same doctor. I went to Clinic 11 after my appointment with occupational health to find out what this appointment  was for, and if this was actually my MRI scan. I was told that it wasn’t my MRI scan and it was actually my post MRI appointment with the consultant. The receptionist told me that as I hadn’t received my MRI scan appointment that I should therefore cancel this appointment. Had I have not been in the hospital and checked this, I would have turned up for this appointment unnecessarily .

I then went through to the x-ray department to find out if they had a date for my MRI scan and they confirmed that they didn’t. They also confirmed that there was a six week wait for this which meant that any other appointments that Clinic 11 were scheduling for post MRI scans would be pointless. I then went back to Clinic 11 who postponed my appointment for eight weeks to allow time for the MRI scan to come through.

As a patient I don’t feel that we should be checking the services of the NHS admin procedures as we are unaware as to which appointments are necessary, and which are acquired at what stage. If a letter does not say that it is for a post MRI appointment then we have no knowledge of this. Other patients might be travelling to the hospital for unnecessary appointments which is a complete waste of time and resources. My only hope is that communication within hospital departments  improves to avoid wasted appointments for both the NHS and the patients.