"Irritated by Phlebotomy Services systems"

I am liaison between my mother who is a new user to the domiciliary phlebotomy/ blood service. The telephone number is an answer machine and is difficult to listen to and use - and I have no hearing problems.

I left an important message in September explaining that my mum would be available a few days later until after 2pm as she had a hospital appointment at St. Pauls eye hospital. This message was not acknowledged.

On the day, on returning home from St. Pauls- a while you were out message was left by the nurse.

A couple of days later the Phlebotomy nurse rang me as well to say that the domiciliary service finishes at 2pm each day and if a patient requires additional appointments the GP has to fax a form to the phlebotomy service. I had taken my mum to Huyton Park for an additional blood test on the way to St. Pauls hospital.

It is my opinion that the phlebotomy service should ring back patients/carers acknowledging non routine blood appointments eg. hospital appointments/holidays? Where I work (in a similar service) we had email boxes set up to receive emails.

Could the phlebotomy service set up an email address which might alleviate some problems?

I feel my mums health was put at risk, as the delayed warfarin blood test showed her INR was high. The nurse contacted my mum late on the day the Phlebotomy nurse had rung earlier on, and advised my mum mum not to take her warfarin.

The nurses do a good job, but I feel the telephone response system is poor.