Missed appointments

[Newbie]

6 hours ago, HeliX said:

Maybe we're only one or two rounds of austerity away from the NHS suggesting people dying as a viable cost saver though.

To a certain extent it could be argued that we are already there. The fact that NICE will sometimes restrict access to the most expensive drugs and treatments on the grounds that the cost outweighs the benefits is in effect just that. Currently it is only at the margins, but there are regular comments that because of increasing costs, ageing population etc the NHS may not be able to do everything for everyone. Excessive waiting lists for treatment have the same effect, although admittedly, not deliberately or overtly.

[offshoremanxman]

8 hours ago, Passing Time said:

So in this week’s local rag, hooperman talks about the number of appointments not fulfilled and the cost thereof. In the same breath immediately states they won’t be looking to recover the costs. If people make an appointment then can’t be arsed turning up then bill them. Give them seven days to pay and if they don’t then remove them from the GP list

What a way to preserve the NHS free at the point of access concept. People who go frothing at the mouth about these “costs” (which aren’t really costs at all) generally make me laugh. I would imagine a lot of these “cancellations” are people who booked appointments so far into the future they then became superfluous. My own GP is three weeks now minimum for a non emergency appointment. For most things people will probably feel better in three weeks time and not follow up. Imagine if plumbers or electricians starting making up “costs” in respect of work that has had to be rescheduled for one reason or another? It’s called managing your workload and you should always factor in the fact that a % of appointments over a week or a month will need to be rescheduled for any number of reasons because people aren’t robots. 

Also, again with my own GP, you can’t get through on the phone anyway so how do you easily cancel your appointment if you need to when it takes 10 calls or more to get through to speak to the receptionist every-time you try? Easier to blame the patients for being slack though when it’s your own systems that are poor. 

Edited December 12, 2022 by offshoremanxman

[Harry Lamb]

4 minutes ago, offshoremanxman said:

What a way to preserve the NHS free at the point of access concept. People who go frothing at the mouth about these “costs” (which aren’t really costs at all) generally make me laugh. I would imagine a lot of these “cancellations” are people who booked appointments so far into the future they then became superfluous. My own GP is three weeks now minimum for a non emergency appointment. For most things people will probably feel better in three weeks time and not follow up. Imagine if plumbers or electricians starting making up “costs” in respect of work that has had to be rescheduled for one reason or another? It’s called managing your workload and you should always factor in the fact that a % of appointments over a week or a month will need to be rescheduled for any number of reasons because people aren’t robots. 

Plumbers 'making up costs'? Surely not!

[De nada]

8 hours ago, The Voice of Reason said:

Agreed this needs sorting badly but it’s a different issue from ...

It's already been sorted badly...

It needs sorting properly!

[Gladys]

23 minutes ago, Manx17 said:

When you get an appointment at the GP they send a text message and a reminder text a day or two before. All they have to do is set up free text messages to reply with a yes you still need that appointment or no you don’t. A person could have ended up going into hospital or went to out of hours. The out of hours (MEDS) are fantastic and that seems to be one doctor for the whole island on weekends and through the night.

So how can MEDS can get it right and the whole GPS across the island can’t?

Manx Telecom are making more money than the mafia did out of people. But this is people in ill health they are preying on. Why has that been able to go on for so long  and no one has stepped in. 
Also  how can one of hours Doctor serve he whole island and you can’t get an appointment with a whole clinic full?

can’t see the wood for the trees.

How do they manage GP appointments where you now live?

[0bserver]

Was the island left with no emergency GP cover last night?

 

 

[AOR]

I hate the acronym MEDS. Our GP banged on and n about it and I thought she was talking about a resource for medicines, like a 24 hour pharmacy or something. Its a silly and confusing acronym.

[Jarndyce]

1 hour ago, offshoremanxman said:

Easier to blame the patients for being slack though when it’s your own systems that are poor. 

I might be wrong - but I get the impression that this line is trotted out whenever public criticism of GP appointments/Manx Care in general gets to a particular point.   Apparently they need to deflect some of the fault back at the patients; or the previous regime (“Cheeky sods - expecting a system that works, considering the mess we inherited…”); or covid; or culture; or…etc.

Time they took some responsibility for where we are right now - and actually did something.

[0bserver]

1 minute ago, Jarndyce said:

I might be wrong - but I get the impression that this line is trotted out whenever public criticism of GP appointments/Manx Care in general gets to a particular point.   Apparently they need to deflect some of the fault back at the patients; or the previous regime (“Cheeky sods - expecting a system that works, considering the mess we inherited…”); or covid; or culture; or…etc.

Time they took some responsibility for where we are right now - and actually did something.

The simple fact is we have way too few GPs for the population and Airmiles Alf wants to throw another 15,000 people into the mix (with no guarantee that any of them will be new GPs).

[Jarndyce]

9 minutes ago, AOR said:

I hate the acronym MEDS. Our GP banged on and n about it and I thought she was talking about a resource for medicines, like a 24 hour pharmacy or something. Its a silly and confusing acronym.

I’m sure whoever came up with it thought it was VERY clever.   Perhaps we need a competition - the best new hip and groovy name/acronym for the service.   Best answer wins a hip replacement (OK with you, Wrighty?).

[Jarndyce]

5 minutes ago, 0bserver said:

The simple fact is we have way too few GPs for the population

Aye - the fact might be simple, but the solution will be multifactorial!

[cissolt]

9 minutes ago, Jarndyce said:

I might be wrong - but I get the impression that this line is trotted out whenever public criticism of GP appointments/Manx Care in general gets to a particular point.   Apparently they need to deflect some of the fault back at the patients; or the previous regime (“Cheeky sods - expecting a system that works, considering the mess we inherited…”); or covid; or culture; or…etc.

Time they took some responsibility for where we are right now - and actually did something.

It does seem that way.  Nobles enters opel4, wheel out the old go appointments press release.

[cissolt]

https://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/health/missed-gp-appointments-cost-the-manx-health-service-ps28m-562641

Hiding bad news behind this scaremongering?

The frequency of GPs closed for training seems to have increased markedly in recent year.  Are they being trained or is this a cost saving measure?

[0bserver]

11 minutes ago, Jarndyce said:

Aye - the fact might be simple, but the solution will be multifactorial!

And it won't revolve around missed appointments.

[The Voice of Reason]

1 hour ago, De nada said:

It's already been sorted badly...

It needs sorting properly!

Yes you’re quite right. I stand corrected.

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to point that out 😊