Appointment scandal

Statistics obtained by the Sentinel show that health chiefs are grappling with a massive problem caused by people who waste doctors' and nurses' time by simply not showing up.

The figures show that in 2009 a total of 13,134 people failed to turn up for an appointment arranged with a consultant or nurse at Altnagelvin hospital - a non-attendance rate of 8.5%.

In that period a total of 141,562 outpatient attendances for such appointments was facilitated by the Western Trust at the hospital.

Also, in relation to appointments with allied health professionals - for example physiotherapy, occupational therapy and podiatry - the non-attendance rate at Altnagelvin during 2009 was 11.7%, accounting for 16,472 people not turning up.

This means a total number of 29,606 did not turn up for their appointments at the hospital in 2009.

Health chiefs at the Western Health and Social Care Trust admitted that the failure of people to cancel or rearrange appointments was a burden on the system.

Sarah Groogan, Western Trust Director of Planning and Performance, said when a person does not keep their appointment, it means valuable time is wasted which could be used by another patient.

Mrs Groogan said: "The Trust has been taking action to reduce the number of patients not turning up for an appointment and failing to notify the hospital. The cooperation of the public is essential if this non-attendance rate is to be reduced further. There may be good reasons why people are not able to make an appointment and the Trust acknowledges that on occasions it may have to reschedule a clinic, for example if an essential staff member is sick. However, where possible we would ask patients with an appointment to let the hospital know if they won't be able to attend and to do this at the earliest opportunity.

"As part of its attempts to reduce non-attendance, the Trust has in place a system for booking outpatient appointments where patients are given a choice of dates and times of clinics so a time to best fit their schedule can be arranged. The Trust has also been alerting people to the numbers of missed appointments by publicising non-attendance figures in outpatient areas."