Due to increased waiting times for outpatient appointments, GPs have seen a rise in patient requests to “expedite” their appointments. We urge all our patients awaiting hospital appointments to be patient and wait to be contacted.
As a GP surgery, we are not notified of any waiting times for clinics or provided with hospital hotline numbers. If your appointment has been delayed please contact your consultant secretary for any updates. If you are waiting for your first appointment with a consultant and have not heard for a long time, please contact the outpatient department in the first instance and then the consultant secretary. If you have been unable to contact outpatients or the secretary, please contact the Western Trust https://westerntrust.hscni.net/
Written Requests to Expedite Appointments
Patients are often requested by the Hospital to obtain a letter from the GP so their appointment can be expedited.
Please note that waiting a longer time for an appointment does not deem your request urgent.
The waiting times for out-patient appointments have exponentially increased over the last few years. As a result, we are unable to write letters to expedite your appointment for this reason. Further information can be found on https://datavis.nisra.gov.uk/health/ni-outpatient-waiting-times-dec-22.html
If you are experiencing worsening of your symptoms, we advise you to contact your specialist directly so they can assess your condition and make the necessary arrangements if an expedite of your appointment is appropriate. If you have difficulty in accessing your consultant, we advise you to contact the Trust (often the Western Trust) you have been referred to https://westerntrust.hscni.net/
However, if the hospital are insistent they require a letter, we have created a Template for you letter to expedite appointment
Once you have completed this, you can post your letter to Outpatient Appointment (first appointments) or your consultant secretary (booked appointments or follow-ups).
