National Health Service

Why does the National Health Service (NHS) bother to give times for appointments?

In the doctors surgery there’s a notice to say how many patients fail to keep their appointment. Last month it was 9.2%. Not surprising you have to wait so long for an appointment, by the time it comes, either the complaint has cleared or you are dead.

You have to wait months for a hospital appointment.

On one occasion I had to queue for 1 hour to make a hospital appointment only to be told they had lost my files and I would have to come back the next day to make an appointment.

You turn up early for your 10.00 am hospital appointment, and if you are lucky you might see the doctor by 11.30. Then you are told you have to allow 10 days for the result of the consultation to be sent to your GP.

So you make an appointment for 9.30 to see your GP; 10.45 you see the doctor, results, what results??

Five times I had blood tests taken, because on each occasion the results were lost.

The NHS is spending £3 billion on a new IT system. £3 billion that’s £3,000,000,000. Haven’t they heard of Hotmail which they could use to send results? Why does it take 10 days, even a pigeon could walk from to the hospital to the GP surgery in half the time?