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opthalmology dept. communication needs reviewing

Story from nhs.uk

"opthalmology dept. communication needs reviewing"

About: Conquest Hospital

I had an appointment on 7th August 2018 at 10am. I received a letter confirming my appointment and two telephone reminders.

I checked in via the booth and made my way to Area A as instructed.

After waiting for 40 mins and seeing people called who had not been waiting for very long, I spoke to the lady on the desk to see if there was a clinic delay. She took my letter and checked on the computer and then went to the office. I was then invited to speak to the person in the office. The lady in the office said the Doctor had left 3 months ago and that she had worked very hard cancelling his appointments. I pointed out that I had received two telephone appointment reminders and that the booth found my appointment too. Is it not possible to receive appointment cancellations by phone? The lady booked another appointment for 29th August at 14.20. The letter says it is with a consultant but a friend says he works for Spire, so I hope it is not a wasted journey. I have received a telephone reminder but feel this is meaningless. My husband has to book leave to take me to the opthalmology appointments as the letter says "do not drive" and he was very annoyed at his waste of time. I have normally found the department run very efficiently and the staff keep you informed of delays etc. However on this occasion clearly communication failed.

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Responses

Response from Conquest Hospital 5 years ago
Conquest Hospital

Submitted on 29/08/2018 at 10:27
Published on nhs.uk at 12:06

Thank you for taking the time to leave us some feedback about your recent experience of communication from the Ophthalmology Department at Conquest Hospital regarding clinic appointments; we are very sorry to read of the concern and inconvenience caused to you and your husband, and wish to offer our apologies to you both. The Trust strives to provide a high standard of care to all patients, and effective communications should play a key part of this.

We understand from speaking to the Ophthalmology Service Manager that unfortunately a Locum Doctor left the department at short notice, and a number of patient clinics had to be cancelled as a result. However, the feedback you have left confirms that the appointment booked for you was not cancelled on the patient administration system, and will explain why you continued to receive the appointment reminders and why your appointment came up at the Self Check-In booth. We are confident this was simply human error but nevertheless, it was an inconvenience to you and your husband and caused you to have a wasted journey for which we apologise.

In terms of your concern that you have an appointment booked with us but the Doctor whose clinic the appointment is booked under works for The Spire, you will find it helpful to know that several of our Doctors practice with both the NHS and privately with organisations such as The Spire. If you have been booked an appointment to be seen in the Ophthalmology Department, please be assured the appointment will take place at the venue confirmed to you. However, if you have any concerns about your appointment, please do not hesitate to contact the Ophthalmology Department direct or alternatively, you can contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on 01424 758090.

Please once again accept our apologies for your experience, and our thanks for giving us an opportunity to review the quality of communications from the Ophthalmology Department who you have previously found to be highly efficient. We wish you all the very best in your ongoing and future good health and well-being.

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