Missed appointments are classified as ‘Did Not Attend’ (DNA) - i.e. the patient did not turn up for the appointment and did not contact the surgery in advance to cancel/change appointment. The effects of these are:
- An increase in the waiting time for appointments
- Frustration for both staff and patients
- A waste of resources
- A potential risk to the health of the patient
Please note: Due to an increase in the number of wasted appointments, through patients failing to attend appointments without informing the surgery, it has become necessary to implement the following policy:
If you repeatedly fail to attend appointments you will be removed from this practice list and required to find an alternative GP practice as per our policy.
If you cannot attend your appointments for any reason please let us know as soon as possible, giving at least 24 hours’ notice. We can then offer the appointment to someone else.
Explanation
Due to the number of patients failing to attend appointments, it may be that you are not able to see the doctor on the day that you wish to.
In an attempt to try and resolve this, the practice has developed the following policy:
- If you fail to attend appointments without informing us, we will write to you informing you of your missed appointments.
- If you repeatedly fail to attend your appointments, you may be removed from the practice list and have to find an alternative GP practice.