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Gastro / Endoscopy Referral waiting time

Posted By Tick Tock

"Gastro / Endoscopy Referral waiting time"

About: New Victoria Hospital / Endoscopy

(as a service user),

I was referred to the Gastro Department ((NHSGGC) in mid April 2017 by my GP, following a colonoscopy. I accepted a Waiting Time Initiative appointment to see a private Gastro Consultant, arranged by NHSGGC, at the beginning of September 2017. He has referred me for an endoscopy and when I called the NVH to arrange an appointment for this, I was informed that bookings were now into the year 2018. To be precise, I got an appointment for April 2018. This will be a year since my initial GP referral. I have still not been allocated or seen an NHS Gastro consultant. I think a year for diagnosis is totally unacceptable and breaches current Referral to Treatment Time, which is 18 weeks. I believe this is absolutely disgraceful and a breach of The Patient Rights (Treatment Time Guarantee) (Scotland) Regulations 2014 (Amended). I look forward to hearing from you on this matter.

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Responses

Response from Nicole McInally, Patient Experience and Public Involvement Project Manager, PEPI, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde 6 years ago
Nicole McInally
Patient Experience and Public Involvement Project Manager, PEPI,
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

Submitted on 26/09/2017 at 11:21
Published on Care Opinion at 15:32

picture of Nicole McInally

Dear Tick Tock

Thank you for posting on Care Opinion.

I am sorry to read about what you have been experiencing in terms of delays. I appreciate how frustrating this must be for you.

I would like to be able to look into this further, would you please email me at Nicole.McInally@ggc.scot.nhs.uk with your name, date of birth, CHI number (if you have it) and quoting reference number: 397707?

Kind Regards

Nicole

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Response from Nicole McInally, Patient Experience and Public Involvement Project Manager, PEPI, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde 6 years ago
Nicole McInally
Patient Experience and Public Involvement Project Manager, PEPI,
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

Submitted on 18/10/2017 at 09:42
Published on Care Opinion at 09:50

picture of Nicole McInally

Dear Tick Tock

We have a high volume of referrals to the specialty of gastro-enterology, and we agree that the waiting times are not what we would wish them to be.

To deal with the high volume of referrals, we have arranged extra clinics at the weekends, this has helped us review patients and once any investigations are complete we will arrange a follow up appointment if required. If patients need ongoing care we will refer them to the appropriate consultant.

With regard to the subsequent wait for an endoscopy appointment, similarly to the gastroenterology service the endoscopy service has a high number of referrals and demand is currently outweighing capacity. We are finding it difficult to appoint patients within target.

We are continuously trying to increase capacity within the service and have put a number of actions in place to address demand, which includes extra theatre lists during evenings and weekends, 2 nurse endoscopists have been added to the team and a locum doctor has been appointed. In addition to this, we are looking at ways to redesign the service to provide additional capacity. Despite the above actions, we are still unable to meet our targets within the South Sector.

I understand that you had an appointment last week and I hope that this went well.

Please accept our apologies for not being able to meet our targets.

Kind Regards

Ann Traquair Smith

Clinical Service Manager (Theatres, Anaesthetics, Critical Care and Endoscopy)

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