"Still no date for urgent skin cancer surgery"

Following a biopsy in early January, I was diagnosed with having skin cancer and was referred over to the Maxillo Facial Surgery team by the Dermatology team – this review has no relation to the good service and professionalism I received from the Dermatology department.

I was seen by the consultant on the 20/02/2019, who explained the surgery procedure and stated that I would be having this surgery in the next 2-3 weeks as an urgent case. Having not heard anything from the hospital after 2 weeks, I called the Maxillo Facial Department and was told they couldn’t find me on the waiting list and I may not hear anything from them until June and advised I should speak with my GP. My GP then sent Lincoln Hospital an urgent expedite fax the following day and I was told the hospital would contact me. Again after a week and not hearing from the Maxillo Facial Department, I contacted my GP and the PALs team at the hospital.

A member of staff from the PALs team left me a voicemail late on 15/03/2019, explaining I now appeared on the waiting list as an urgent case and ask if I would also consider being placed on the late cancellation list. I returned their call the following Monday and left a voicemail for someone to call me back, this didn’t happen. I called PALs again on 19/02/2019, spoke to another member of the team and explained the situation yet again, she tried contacting the waiting list officer, but couldn’t get an answer, so explained she would keep trying and call me back later that day, still waiting for a call back from the PALs team nearly 3 days later!

I'm disgusted with PALs – not the first time I’ve had to chase them from a promised call back, plus the Maxillo Facial Department at Lincoln County Hospital. A consultant has diagnosed that I need urgent surgery and nearly 5 weeks on, these teams do not have the decency to update a patient that is clearly concerned about their health. After this appalling patient experience, I’m now inquiring whether I can be referred to another hospital for treatment.