Referring Acutely to Hospital? 24 Nov 2017

When you send a patient to hospital acutely, do you tell them they are being sent for specialist assessment, or that they are being admitted?

When you send a patient to hospital acutely, do you tell them they are being sent for specialist assessment, or that they are being admitted?

Sometimes patients expect that a trip to the hospital will mean a stay on the ward.

It may be worth setting expectations early, and letting patients know that whilst they will be seeing a hospital specialist today, they may not be admitted to hospital, and their problem may not be solved that same day.

Some patients have complained about not being admitted or not having their problem solved 'on the spot', so hopefully a clear statement of what to expect from their GP at the start of their journey may help them understand what comes next.