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Referral to hospital |
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As part of the new National Health Service changes the process of
referring patients to hospital is changing How will we refer you to specialists?For patients needing very urgent assessment and treatment and for patients choosing to be seen privately there will be no change - we will write letters and make phone calls in the time-honoured way. Urgent and routine national health service referrals will be done using choose and book See also Ready Willing and Able leaflet How will choose and book work?
That explains "book" but what about "choose"?The government's stated aim is - "From 1 January 2006, when you and your GP agree that you need to see a specialist, you will be able to choose from at least four hospitals or clinics. In the new "NHS- speak" these are called providers and may be run by the private sector eg The Shepton Mallet NHS Treatment Centre. You will also be able to choose from a number of available dates and times for your appointment." Thus, depending on the problem triggering the referral, the doctor who makes the referral may indicate that several hospitals may be able to undertake the treatment. What about confidentiality?When we refer you to other services the referral is administered by the local NHS in a referral management centre. The referral management centre is responsible for allocating your referral to other services and may see full information about the referral, including any confidential information. If your doctor is referring you to other services and you feel there is any information you wish to withhold from the referral management centre please inform your doctor as soon as possible during normal working hours. If you experience problems with the referral management centre or wish to discuss its role further please contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) Last updated 28/04/2009
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