What is patient initiated follow up appointment?

Patient Initiated Follow Up puts you in control of your follow up care, following on from discussions you’ve had with your clinician.  Here your clinician will:

• Discuss your condition or treatment with you, as well as any other symptoms that are a cause for concern
• Advice you on how to contact the service directly
• Give you a set period of time to contact the service

Why and when I should contact the service

Most patients with long term conditions do not need regular follow up by the hospital team. Some patients are glad to stop coming to appointments, while some patients feel anxious about losing regular contact with the hospital. Everyone has different feelings when they no longer need to be seen regularly by their clinical team.

Patient initiated follow up will give you direct access for review should this be needed, within 6 months for the same condition you are currently seeing your clinician for.

You can contact the service directly to book an appointment and your GP will be informed that you have been given a patient-led follow up and the timeframe you have to access the service.

If no contact has been made within the agreed timeframe you will automatically be discharged back to your GP and you and your GP will receive a discharge letter.

For more information please click here.

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