When you need to access healthcare, there are a number of national requirements that we have to comply with.
In primary care these are:
When you are referred from primary care to secondary care (acute hospital):
Waiting Times – Your new legal rights
Introduction
The NHS is making sure that you are seen as soon as possible, at a time that is convenient for you.
To do this, the NHS Constitution gives you the right to access services within maximum waiting times, or for the NHS to take all reasonable steps to offer you a range of suitable alternative providers if this is not possible.
This right is a legal entitlement protected by law, and applies to the NHS in England.
What this means for patients
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You have the right to start your consultant-led treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks from referral for non-urgent conditions.
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You have the right to be seen by a specialist within a maximum of two weeks from GP referral for urgent referrals where cancer is suspected.
If this is not possible, the primary care trust (PCT) or strategic health authority (SHA) that commissions your treatment must investigate, offering you a range of suitable alternative providers that would be able to see or treat you more quickly than the original provider.
You will need to contact the provider you have been referred to, or your local PCT before alternatives can be investigated for you.
Your PCT or SHA must take all reasonable steps to meet your request.
18 Weeks
18 weeks is about delivering the right care, at the right time, of the right quality.
The reasoning behind the 18 week target is that patients should be able to receive excellent care without any unnecessary delays.
In December 2008 the 18 week target was implemented. Now, the longest patients have to wait after being referred by their GP until they start treatment is 18 weeks, unless it is clinically appropriate to wait longer, or the patient chooses to delay treatment. Wherever possible, patients will wait less than this.
Any hospital appointments, tests, scans or other procedures that patients may need before being treated will all happen within this maximum time limit.
The 18 week target focuses closely on pathways that involve consultant led care, setting a maximum time of 18 weeks from the point of initial referral to the start of any treatment necessary and clinically appropriate.
Urgent Two Week Referral
The right applies to all patients who are urgently referred by a GP for suspected cancer to a specialist for diagnosis or treatment of cancer.
An urgent referral means that:
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Your GP feels your symptoms need further investigation.
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Treatment your GP has already prescribed has not been effective.
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Investigations your GP has arranged have shown unusual results.
The great majority of people referred in this way do not have cancer, but it is important to see a specialist as soon as possible to confirm or exclude a cancer diagnosis.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is 18 weeks?
18 weeks is an initiative from the Department of Health which states that “by December 2008, the longest you will wait after being referred by your GP until you start your treatment will be 18 weeks. Wherever possible you will wait less than this.” Any hospital appointments, tests, scans or other procedures that you may need before being treated will all happen within this maximum time limit.
2. What does 18 weeks mean to me?
18 weeks means:
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A focus on ending the ‘culture of waiting’ in the NHS to improve the overall patient experience through building on record low waiting times
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Everyone who chooses to be treated within 18 weeks, and for whom it is clinically relevant, will be treated in that timeframe
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With these much lower waiting times and other changes taking place across the NHS - like patient choice - GPs are likely to only refer patients on for treatment when they are fit and their personal circumstances allow them to be treated
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High quality care will continue to be provided
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Diagnostic tests and outpatient appointments will be carried out closer to home as more services are provided in the community and by GPs; increasingly, patients will only need to go to hospital for specialist treatment
3. Do I need to do anything?
Yes. 18 weeks is a partnership between patients and healthcare professionals, each of whom has their own responsibilities. For example, if you have a holiday booked or any other appointments please make your GP aware before being referred for Hospital treatment.
4. Will I always be seen within 18 weeks?
Yes, unless it is clinically appropriate to wait longer, or you choose to delay treatment.
5. What does an urgent two-week referral mean?
An urgent referral means that you will be seen within two weeks by a specialist or in a diagnostic clinic. This referral is made because:
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Your GP feels your symptoms need further investigation.
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Treatment your GP has already prescribed has not been effective.
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Investigations your GP has arranged have shown unusual results.
The great majority of people referred in this way do not have cancer, but it is important to see a specialist as soon as possible to confirm or exclude a cancer diagnosis.
6. Does the urgent two week referral apply to all services?
Services not covered by the right:
Contact us
For further information about the rights for patients regarding the 18 week target and the 2 week target please contact:
Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
Telephone: 0300 1000 891
Email: hr-pct.pals@nhs.net
There are also targets if you attend Accident & Emergency (A&E):
Our performance in most of these areas in reported to the Board at their bi-monthly meetings.
