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NHS Choose and Book - not so convenient

Posted By De La Pole

"NHS Choose and Book - not so convenient"

About: Hull Teaching PCT

(as the patient),

I went to see my GP, not an experience I relish, not least because I have to take a whole day off work just to get a five minute consultation but that’s another matter, who referred me for a minor operation. He sent me to the practice secretary stating that she would be able to book me into a hospital and arrange an appointment to suit myself.

The secretary logged onto the system and offered me a choice of hospitals from a list of one. She was not, however, able to arrange an appointment but printed some pages off and told me to ring the number on the first page.

On arriving home I did as suggested but, despite the very helpful telephonist, was unable to arrange an appointment because, according to the computer, there wasn’t any. She told me that my details would be passed to the hospital and that they would be in touch shortly.

Two weeks later a letter arrived from the hospital telling me that my details had been passed to them and that an appointment would be made soon but that if I did not hear anything within 4 weeks I was to telephone the appointments clerk!

I did not get to choose my hospital and I did not get to book my appointment…yet!

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Responses

Response from Patient Opinion 16 years ago
Patient Opinion

Submitted on 01/06/2007 at 17:03

Choose and Book is the new NHS system that should give you a choice about which hospital you want to be referred to and then to book your appointment for you. Some people love Choose and Book. Others hate it. What do you think? Just hit the Share Your Story button and tell us.
  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful
Response from Engagement Section Assistant, NHS Hull 14 years ago
NHS Hull

Submitted on 21/01/2010 at 13:50
Published on Care Opinion at 00:00

Dear De La Pole Many thanks for placing your comments about the Choose and Book system on the NHS Choices website. Unfortunately we have only recently been made aware of this, hence the significant delay in our response. We are disappointed to learn of your experience and would be confident that the system has improved in the interim. However, we would appreciate you contacting us if you have had a similar experience more recently. NHS Hull is the organisation responsible for deciding how money is spent on local health services [also known as commissioning], ensuring those services are of high quality and meet local needs. We value all feedback and if you would like to discuss this matter further with us, please do not hesitate to contact our Patient Advice & Liaison Service on 01482 335409 or by email If you would like to become more involved in decisions about local healthcare, all local health Trusts are recruiting ‘members’. By becoming a member you can receive advice on keeping yourself and your family healthy, find out more about your local NHS and help us improve local services. You don’t need any special skills or experience to become a member, you just need an interest in local health services. There is no commitment, you can get involved as much or as little as you choose. For more information please either email or telephone 01482 675165. Thank you once again for taking the time to provide us with your views on local services.
  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful
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