When a patient has an appointment and does not attend, it is stopping another patient, with genuine medical reasons, seeing a clinician.
If you cannot attend an appointment please contact the surgery as soon as you know that you will not be available so that this can be released to another patient.
Hastings & Rother Healthcare has a DNA policy in place. Patients who do not attend appointments will now receive DNA warnings, on the 3rd DNA Warning patients will be asked to find another practice and removed from our patient list.
If a patient fails to attend an appointment on one occasion, an informal warning letter will be sent to the patent. This letter will be printed by the Duty Receptionist and posted to the patient.
If the patient fails to attend another appointment within a 12 month period, a formal warning letter will be sent reminding them that should they miss another appointment they risk being removed from the practice list.
If the patient fails to attend 3 appointments within a 12 month period, this patient’s details will be brought to the senior GP’s attention and the senior GP will make a decision as to whether the patient is removed from the list.
A significant number of appointments per week are classified as ‘Did Not Attend’ (DNA). DNA means that the patient does not turn up for the appointment and does not contact the surgery in advance to cancel/change appointment.
© Hastings & Rother Healthcare 2023
