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Unacceptable delays in childs prognosis

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"Unacceptable delays in childs prognosis"

About: St Peter's Hospital (Chertsey)

We attended an EEG at the Neurology department on 7th Feb with our 3 year old son to be told that there would be delays in feedback on findings due to the consultant being away on holiday. I appreciate that holiday cover can be an issue but to then be told 36 days later that there is still no feedback and when results are in the consultant will have to write a letter, which goes to the GP instead of to the patient's parents I am seething! When will the NHS haul themselves into the 21st century and communicate through email and phones as opposed to this archaic methodology? Parents are forced to self diagnose through the internet more and more due to these types of delays only to worry more as advice is normally to seek professional help and if your child does have x then ensure that treatment is started quickly! A classic juxtaposition if ever there was one.

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Responses

Response from St Peter's Hospital 10 years ago
St Peter's Hospital

Submitted on 27/03/2014 at 09:16
Published on nhs.uk on 28/03/2014 at 03:00

We are very sorry to read your comments about the delays you experienced with our EEG service and Neurology Department. As you mention, we have been experiencing staffing issues within the department, which has led to some delays in issuing reports. We are trying to catch up and do appreciate that waiting for results, especially for a child, can be an anxious time. When EEG reports are issued they would not routinely be sent directly to our paitents, their guardian or their GP - but rather to the consultant who initially requested the test. This is because the information given can be quite complex and difficult to interpret and is best discussed during a follow-up visit with the consultant. We apologise if the process was not explained to you very well and have fed this back to the team - so that we can ensure that future patients are clear on how they will be receiving their results. I would welcome the opportunity to speak with you in more detail about your son's care and your experiences. If you would like to do so, please contact me directly on 01932 722190. Justine Hillier Associate Director of Nursing for Medicine

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