Shocking NHS Wait times
Discussion
I was urgently referred to Urology at a large London Hospital, The Royal Free. This was on 22 June 23, heard nothing rang and eventually got through last week was told they would ring me back as they were shocked at the wait time they never returned the call. So far I'm 5 months in to the urgent referral.
Rang again today and the Lady told me that urgent wait times is 30-80 weeks and no one is getting the 30 week times it's the latter 80 weeks, she said do the maths.
She told me I will definitely not receive an appointment until at least August 2024.
What an utter shambles.
Rang again today and the Lady told me that urgent wait times is 30-80 weeks and no one is getting the 30 week times it's the latter 80 weeks, she said do the maths.
She told me I will definitely not receive an appointment until at least August 2024.
What an utter shambles.
Yep just had similar with an Orthopaedic referral. I'm barely able to walk. 5 months for a consultation. Luckily I got a quick MRI and paid to see a doc privately but it was an eye opener. If I was unable to pay for that consultation I would have caused far more damage for the NHS to sort by waiting 5 months. I honestly thought it would have been a week or two. The country is is in just such an appalling mess.
My mother has waited more than six months for the results of a spinal scan she had. I presume if it had been serious they would have told her but I can't be sure. However now six months have passed presumably her condition has changed somewhat and the results aren't really relevant. It just seems wholly pointless and a huge waste of time and resources.
souper said:
I was urgently referred to Urology at a large London Hospital, The Royal Free. This was on 22 June 23, heard nothing rang and eventually got through last week was told they would ring me back as they were shocked at the wait time they never returned the call. So far I'm 5 months in to the urgent referral.
Rang again today and the Lady told me that urgent wait times is 30-80 weeks and no one is getting the 30 week times it's the latter 80 weeks, she said do the maths.
She told me I will definitely not receive an appointment until at least August 2024.
What an utter shambles.
It's absolutely ridiculous. Rang again today and the Lady told me that urgent wait times is 30-80 weeks and no one is getting the 30 week times it's the latter 80 weeks, she said do the maths.
She told me I will definitely not receive an appointment until at least August 2024.
What an utter shambles.
No idea what the answer is but I blame the politicians for giving the NHS sainthood status. Anyone who suggests changes is accused of selling off "our beloved NHS".
I also think we need a grown up debate about assisted suicide as I suspect a huge amount of resource is dedicated to keeping people alive when they would probably prefer to be allowed to choose a dignified exit on their terms.
zbc said:
My mother has waited more than six months for the results of a spinal scan she had. I presume if it had been serious they would have told her but I can't be sure. However now six months have passed presumably her condition has changed somewhat and the results aren't really relevant. It just seems wholly pointless and a huge waste of time and resources.
For £200 I would be paying for a private consultation just to go over the results. Urology has had massive waiting lists since pre covid so adding on the stoppage of electives for 2 years you can see we are in a mess.
We know have the additional issue of most trusts running massively over budget due to the uplift of 5.5% which doesn’t cover the increased costs in wages, utilities, food, drugs etc etc.
We know have the additional issue of most trusts running massively over budget due to the uplift of 5.5% which doesn’t cover the increased costs in wages, utilities, food, drugs etc etc.
You can thank the continuous cuts in NHS funding, the 'new' contracts for consultants, an aging population and the increasingly unhealthy lifestyle a lot of people have adopted for the increased waits for everything. Been a crisis of decades in the making and accelerated by the current lot in Westminster. The whole system has just not been funded or expanded to cope with the higher case loads caused by the elderly living longer, people being more unhealthily so getting ill earlier and more often and the population increase.
Cases where sore throat was the chief complaint rose by 77% between 2021-22 and 2022-23, from 191,900 cases to 340,441. Patients going to A&E with coughs rose by 47%, from 219,388 to 322,500, while attendances for nosebleeds rose by a fifth, from 47,285 cases to 56,546.
The data further showed that complaints for backache rose 2%, from 317,149 to 324,443, and cases of earache rose 22%, from 191,387 to 233,723. People also went to A&E requesting medication, with such cases rising by a fifth from 31,960 to 38,435.
Overall, 8.6m attendances resulted in the patient being discharged with written advice.
The data further showed that complaints for backache rose 2%, from 317,149 to 324,443, and cases of earache rose 22%, from 191,387 to 233,723. People also went to A&E requesting medication, with such cases rising by a fifth from 31,960 to 38,435.
Overall, 8.6m attendances resulted in the patient being discharged with written advice.
I've lost 4st waiting on this so called urgent appointment, I wonder how many die on these Urgent lists.
Can't talk to GP its an app and keeps coming back with the same answer , ring the hospital, all the app based questions are loaded to not get you anywhere near a GP not that they can do anything, I was seeing another Consultant at another London hospital Charing Cross diabetics, he was absolutely disgusted even though my normal follow-ups with his clinic were cancelled to over a year . This ain't all about money!
Can't talk to GP its an app and keeps coming back with the same answer , ring the hospital, all the app based questions are loaded to not get you anywhere near a GP not that they can do anything, I was seeing another Consultant at another London hospital Charing Cross diabetics, he was absolutely disgusted even though my normal follow-ups with his clinic were cancelled to over a year . This ain't all about money!
Candellara said:
fridaypassion said:
For £200 I would be paying for a private consultation just to go over the results.
Pay for a private consultation. You'll probably see the same NHS Consultant anyway but in 2 weeks rather than 12 to 18 months.souper said:
I was urgently referred to Urology at a large London Hospital, The Royal Free. This was on 22 June 23, heard nothing rang and eventually got through last week was told they would ring me back as they were shocked at the wait time they never returned the call. So far I'm 5 months in to the urgent referral.
Rang again today and the Lady told me that urgent wait times is 30-80 weeks and no one is getting the 30 week times it's the latter 80 weeks, she said do the maths.
She told me I will definitely not receive an appointment until at least August 2024.
What an utter shambles.
Supposed to be nearer the lower figure on average. August 2024 seems crazy. Worth trying to get referred elsewhere?Rang again today and the Lady told me that urgent wait times is 30-80 weeks and no one is getting the 30 week times it's the latter 80 weeks, she said do the maths.
She told me I will definitely not receive an appointment until at least August 2024.
What an utter shambles.
https://www.myplannedcare.nhs.uk/london/royal-free...
768 said:
Supposed to be nearer the lower figure on average. August 2024 seems crazy. Worth trying to get referred elsewhere?
https://www.myplannedcare.nhs.uk/london/royal-free...
Then their website is lying, I was an urgent case referral due to prostrate, but do have a low PSA test. I'll see if i can get a different referral. Bloody crazy as you say.https://www.myplannedcare.nhs.uk/london/royal-free...
Edited by souper on Tuesday 14th November 16:23
aterribleusername said:
You can thank the continuous cuts in NHS funding, the 'new' contracts for consultants, an aging population and the increasingly unhealthy lifestyle a lot of people have adopted for the increased waits for everything. Been a crisis of decades in the making and accelerated by the current lot in Westminster. The whole system has just not been funded or expanded to cope with the higher case loads caused by the elderly living longer, people being more unhealthily so getting ill earlier and more often and the population increase.
Except that by every measure there have been no cuts in funding. The NHS funding has continuously been increased above inflation in real terms every year. This includes per head, so immigration etc is counted. The reality is it is a terribly managed, poorly designed organisation that only really cares for its own continued existence, not its customers.Zaichik said:
Except that by every measure there have been no cuts in funding. The NHS funding has continuously been increased above inflation in real terms every year. This includes per head, so immigration etc is counted. The reality is it is a terribly managed, poorly designed organisation that only really cares for its own continued existence, not its customers.
The aging population is a problem though. People living longer with more complex conditions. No where to send old dears waiting for care home places so they sit in acute hospital wards. No one wants to be a paramedic because the pay is rubbish. GPs are responsible for managing health and associated admin of 1000s of people and work part time or quit due to stress. NICE guidelines recommend more and more diagnostics for everything with shorter time scales which adds to pressures. These issues are raised constantly and not tied just to funding. Not wanting to go into too many details, I have required 3 surgeries in the last two years, the majority of NHS staff have been brilliant. However the whole process has been an absolute joke, the time and money that must have been spent and wasted jumping through hoops must be huge. Pretty much none of what I've had to go through was incorrectly organised. If I hadn't done my own lengthy research I would currently be in a terrible immobile state waiting and hoping for some kind of intervention. Thankfully things got so bad I was admitted to hospital.
In the past I have also been at the mercy of NHS mental health care. After incredible lenghty waits I was misdiagnosed 3 times and put on some pretty nasty, incorrect medication. In the end I used my savings for private care. I am now on two separate NHS waiting lists for neurdivergent conditions one 3 years and one with no date yet in site.
Last year my mother died. She required carers to go into her 3 times a day, she was a disabled type 1 diabetic. There was some confusion over what was going on and care was stopped, a meeting was held and it was agreed that care would recommence. In the 7 days it took them to sort it all out she died stuck between her bed and the radiator. We were never told that her care had been stopped until the inquest. That's a pretty big NHS cock up right there. It's still being investigated.
My wife has had a condition that has been constantly misdiagnosed for over 20 years, they are still proceeding to make colossal mistakes and going around in circles. It's now looking like they have misdiagnosed the start of breast cancer, which should have been picked up much earlier despite battling with them constantly. Thankfully an amazing nurse spotted something that wasn't right. No idea at the moment how bad it is as we were waiting for some test results, they lost the first biopsies.
The NHS from my experience is broken beyond all repair. I have no idea how you go about fixing something that is so damaged. If the NHS was a car it would have been scrapped long ago and something completely new would take its place.
In the past I have also been at the mercy of NHS mental health care. After incredible lenghty waits I was misdiagnosed 3 times and put on some pretty nasty, incorrect medication. In the end I used my savings for private care. I am now on two separate NHS waiting lists for neurdivergent conditions one 3 years and one with no date yet in site.
Last year my mother died. She required carers to go into her 3 times a day, she was a disabled type 1 diabetic. There was some confusion over what was going on and care was stopped, a meeting was held and it was agreed that care would recommence. In the 7 days it took them to sort it all out she died stuck between her bed and the radiator. We were never told that her care had been stopped until the inquest. That's a pretty big NHS cock up right there. It's still being investigated.
My wife has had a condition that has been constantly misdiagnosed for over 20 years, they are still proceeding to make colossal mistakes and going around in circles. It's now looking like they have misdiagnosed the start of breast cancer, which should have been picked up much earlier despite battling with them constantly. Thankfully an amazing nurse spotted something that wasn't right. No idea at the moment how bad it is as we were waiting for some test results, they lost the first biopsies.
The NHS from my experience is broken beyond all repair. I have no idea how you go about fixing something that is so damaged. If the NHS was a car it would have been scrapped long ago and something completely new would take its place.
Cabsi said:
Candellara said:
fridaypassion said:
For £200 I would be paying for a private consultation just to go over the results.
Pay for a private consultation. You'll probably see the same NHS Consultant anyway but in 2 weeks rather than 12 to 18 months.OP - hope you get it sorted, 80 weeks is absolutely shocking
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