Referrals

Electronic Referral System

Research has shown that patients want to be more involved in making decisions and choosing their healthcare. The NHS is changing to give you more choice and flexibility in how you are treated. With this in mind, the NHS has introduced the Electronic Referral system. This system is only used when your GP has referred you onto a specialist.

If your GP decides you need to see a specialist for more treatment you will be referred to a consultant at the hospital. If the speciality you are being referred to is available under the Electronic Referral system, the following will happen:

You will receive either at the surgery or in the post, a reference number and password.
You will be given a telephone number to ring and arrange your appointment.
Where possible you will be offered a choices of hospitals, you can then make a decision on which hospital you would like to attend.

More Information on the E-referral service is available on the following website:https://digital.nhs.uk/services/e-referral-service

NHS e-Referral Tracking

If your doctor has referred you to a specialist for further care you will be asked to book your appointment using the ‘NHS e-Referral’ system.

You will receive a letter from us within 2 weeks giving details of how to book your appointment and any passwords you may need.

To track your e-Referral you will need the following details to log into the e-Referral website:

Your date of birth
Reference number – this will be on the first page of your letter
Password – this will be on the second page of your letter
To track an e-Referral, click here.

Private Referrals

You may wish to see a specialist consultant as a private patient. In this situation, the patient is responsible for making the appointment with the specialist at a private hospital themselves. Your Doctor may be able to advise you on which consultants hold private clinics.

You may need to request for your GP to write a referral letter for you to take with you to your appointment. The private clinic will advise if this is required. There may be a charge for such letters and you must allow adequate time for us to process your request and produce the letter. You will be required to collect the letter from the surgery and make the required payment if appropriate.