If we need to reschedule your appointment, surgery or test we will contact you to notify you and explain why. We will either provide a new date for your appointment or advise you when we expect to be able to contact you to re-arrange your appointment and provide you with details of who to contact whilst you are waiting.
We take all reasonable steps to avoid cancelling appointments if they have been cancelled before however, this is unfortunately sometimes necessary and we apologise for any inconvenience caused during this difficult time.
What this delay means for you
We are carefully prioritising all of our patients. This means we assess the impact of any delay you are experiencing, and care is prioritised for patients at the greatest risk.
This means we may not be able to give you a concrete answer on how long you will wait. We apologise for any frustration and disappointment this causes.
Please find below further information and advice on what you should do if you are worried about changes in your condition.
If you have concerns about worsening symptoms or your health changes, please refer to the list below to find out who you should contact depending on the type of appointment you’re waiting for.
If you are waiting for your first outpatient appointment and have not yet been seen by anyone at our hospitals, please contact your GP to let them know if your symptoms have worsened.
If you have already been seen by someone at our hospitals and are waiting for a follow-up appointment, please contact the team at the hospital who are caring for you to let them know if your symptoms have worsened.
If someone at our hospitals has referred you for a diagnostic appointment, such as a scan, x-ray or endoscopy please contact the team at the hospital who are caring for you to let them know if your symptoms have worsened.
If your GP has referred you for a diagnostic appointment, such as a scan, x-ray or endoscopy procedure, please contact your GP to let them know if your symptoms have worsened.
If you are waiting for an outpatient procedure or surgery please contact the team at the hospital who are caring for you if your symptoms have worsened.
If you feel you no longer need or wish to be seen or have treatment, please contact us on the numbers below to let us know. This will mean we can provide your appointment slot to someone else who may need it urgently.
Upon arranging an appointment for you, if you find you are not able to attend, please notify us with as much notice as possible using the numbers below. We can try and arrange for another patient to be given your appointment slot.
We are currently losing around 2000 appointment slots per month due to appointments being missed or cancelled within 24 hours of the appointment.
Outpatient booking team
01737 784000 (Option 1)
You can contact the Outpatients booking office to change or cancel your appointment. The office is open for calls between 8am – 6:45pm Monday to Friday and 8am – 1pm Saturday.
Diagnostic Imaging (x-rays and Scans)
01737 784000 (Option 2)
You can contact the Diagnostic Imaging booking office to change or cancel your appointment. The office is open for calls between 8am – 5pm Monday to Friday.
Endoscopy
01737 784000 (Option 3)
You can contact the Endoscopy Booking Team to change or cancel your Endoscopy appointment. The office is open for calls between 8am – 4:45pm Monday to Friday
Suspected cancer referrals
The office is open for calls between 8am – 6:45pm Monday to Friday and 8am – 1pm Saturday.
Cancer patient navigators
The office is open for calls between 8am – 6:45pm Monday to Friday and 8am – 1pm Saturday.
If you have been referred by your GP on an urgent suspected cancer basis we have a specialist admin team who can support with any queries related to your appointments.
You can contact the Cancer Information Team to change or cancel your urgent cancer appointment or to ask questions related to your appointment or pathway. The office is open for calls between 8am – 6:45pm Monday to Friday and 8am – 1pm Saturday.
For all other queries please contact the team who are caring for you.