"Continued lack of 18-week target"

I was referred by my GP in March 2023 for a chest x-ray to Lincoln County hospital. At the time I had a severe virus but showed similar symptoms to that of my mother who died from cancer in 2021. My GP sent the referral through as standard, which I was happy with as I didn’t believe I had cancer. However, I was being diagnosed with Long Covid and the team needed this x-ray to rule anything else out. 

I never got an appointment!!! I chased once and told I would get one but here I am over a year later still without an appointment. So thankfully I don’t have cancer!!

You can forget the x-ray now because there is no point doing it. But I have to show people how appalling I feel ULHT as a trust is. There are good people working in the trust, but as a patient my experiences have been shocking. 

I accessed Rheumatology and they did nothing whatsoever to help me except do x-rays to say I have osteoarthritis. Yet now I am struggling to do my job and I am only in my 40s. I was dismissed by the doctor. 

I want others to see how bad I feel this Trust is in general. There are good people, certainly healthcare workers who are the backbone yet can be treated dreadfully and only get paid pittance. I want the trust to listen to these stories because I believe it is killing people and is dismissive of those who are more vulnerable in society. I do now request to be referred to out-of-area services where possible because to not even get a chest x-ray over a year later is not acceptable.