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Hospital/Specialist Expedite Letters

Due to increasing waiting times for hospital outpatient appointments, GPs have seen a rise in patient requests to “expedite” their appointments.

Hospitals often request patients obtain a letter from their GP so their appointment can be expedited. This is frustrating for you and for us and rarely results in your appointment being brought forward. Waiting a longer time for an appointment does not deem your request urgent.

As a result, we are no longer able to write letters to expedite your appointment.

If your condition has worsened and you feel you need to be seen sooner than other patients on the waiting list, this is not something a GP can measure – only the hospital can compare your needs with those of other patients on their waiting lists.

Therefore, we advise you to contact your specialist directly so they can assess your condition and make the necessary arrangements if an “expedite” of your appointment is appropriate. If you have difficulty in accessing your consultant, we advise you to contact the hospitals Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) department for assistance.

For all hospital appointment enquiries please call the Community Patient Contact Centre (CPCC) on 01539 716998 as we have no access to their appointment system so would be unable to assist with this type of request.

However, if the hospital is insistent that they require a letter, we have completed the below templates for you to complete. You may need to save the letter to your device before you can edit the template. Letters to expedite are generally best written from the patient’s perspective, rather than us providing information second hand to the consultant.

Expedite Letter First Appointment

Expedite Letter Follow Up Appointment

(Paper copies of these letters are available at the surgery. Please ask at reception)

Where to send your letter

You should post your letter to the secretary of the speciality you have been referred to, e.g. Gastroenterology Secretaries (For first appointments), or your named consultant’s secretary (For follow up care). If you are unsure who your consultant is, then please look at a recent clinic letter to find this information.

Royal Lancaster Infirmary | Website - click here

Royal Lancaster Infirmary

Ashton Road

Lancaster

Lancashire

LA1 4RP

Furness General Hospital | Website - click here

Furness General Hospital

Dalton Lane

Barron-In-Furness

Cumbria

LA14 4LF

Out of area specialities

If you are under a speciality outside of the local area, for example Wrightington Hospital, then please ensure the letter is sent to the department secretary or your named consultant at that hospital.

Please click on the links below to find the right address:

• https://www.blackpoolteachinghospitals.nhs.uk/patients/public-transport/victoria-hospital-site-map
• Contact Us - Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust
• Furness General Hospital :: University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust
• Contact details - Royal Preston Hospital - NHS
• Plan your journey - RJAH
• Contact details - Wrightington Hospital - NHS

Interim management or emergencies

If you need interim management or feel acutely unwell, please contact our surgery and our clinical team will try our best to help you.