Almost one in three people waiting for physiotherapy in Grimsby and Scunthorpe are failing to turn up for hospital appointments, a new survey has discovered.
Missed appointments at Scunthorpe General Hospital, Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby and outpatient clinics across Northern Lincolnshire have soared from 5pc to 30pc in the past year, costing NHS Humber Health Partnership tens of thousands of pounds.
Hospital appointments cost around £160 and almost seven per cent of patients fail to show up for their appointments every week. In October alone, 136 Musculoskeletal (MSK) physiotherapy appointments for back, knee, shoulder and other joint pain and hand therapy sessions were missed. That meant 68 clinical hours were lost which could have been used to help other patients on waiting lists for treatment.
Now, Hollie Iggleden, MSK clinical expert and improvement lead at Scunthorpe General Hospital, is undertaking a project, supported by Health Watch, to understand why so many patients are failing to show up for their appointments.
Hollie said: “Missing your appointment has a significant impact on the NHS. Not only does this cost us money which could be used to fund patient care, staff’s time is taken up waiting for someone who isn’t going to show up when they could be helping someone else.
“That time could have been used to see other patients, reducing the length of time people living in pain or are in desperate need of treatment are spending on waiting lists.
“We’re appealing to the public to attend their appointments if they’re still needed – or let us know if they no longer need their appointment so we can offer the time slot to others.”
As well as reviewing data to uncover themes in cancelled appointments, Hollie will also be working with Healthwatch to interview patients, conduct surveys and host focus groups to try to uncover reasons for the widespread non-attendances. Assessments of clinical locations and referrals into physiotherapy services will also be undertaken to make sure those in need of treatment are seen more quickly.
If you need to cancel your appointment, please contact 03033302385.