Appointments
Attending outpatient appointments at one of our hospitals
Appointments
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Information on attending outpatient appointments at one of our hospitals
This page contains information about attending for your appointment, including how to cancel or change an appointment and what support is available to you.
At NUH we have appointments across Queen’s Medical Centre Campus, City Hospital Campus and Ropewalk House. Where clinically appropriate, you may be offered a remote appointment by video link or telephone.
Waiting for your appointment
At NUH we saw over 1.4 million patients in our Outpatients in 2024, of which 25% were remote appointments. However, referrals continue to rise. We are working incredibly hard to ensure that our patients are able to access the care they need. As part of this work, some of our services may contact you whilst you are waiting for an appointment to ensure you still need it. My Planned Care is a website, run by NHS England, where you can view approximate waiting times both at NUH and at other providers across England.
Under the NHS Constitution, patients have the right to receive timely treatment. This means that when you have been referred for consultant-led treatment, you should start your treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks. If your GP has made an urgent referral where cancer is suspected, you should be seen by a specialist within two weeks.
In England, NHS patients who have been waiting for longer than 18 weeks also have the right to request to move to a different hospital to receive their care/treatment. However, in some circumstances, we may not be able to identify alternative hospitals for this to happen.
As part of your care, we use smart phones and tablets to record important information about your health, your treatment and for leaving hospital arrangements. Ask a member of the team providing your care if you would like more information.
Rarely, we may turn down your referral if our services are not appropriate for your care. If we do so, we will either forward your referral on to the appropriate service or return it to your referrer with an explanation. We will endeavour to review your referral within ten working days of receiving it.
Please note that these guidelines do not mean that we will always be able to offer you an appointment within the time frames, as many of our services have lengthy waiting lists to be accessed.
Before you have been given an appointment
You may have been to see your GP who told you they were going to refer you to NUH, but you haven’t yet been sent an appointment. You will remain under the care of your GP until you have received this appointment. You do not need to contact us directly, as we know you are waiting, and we will be in touch as soon as an appointment is available.
NUH and Sherwood Forest Hospital Foundation Trust are working in partnership to offer our patients timely and equitable access across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. We will always aim to give three weeks’ notice for routine appointments. Many of our services are able to offer appointments no further than six weeks in advance and, if spaces are available, we may be able to offer appointments with shorter time frames.
You may need a diagnostic test before you attend for your appointment so that your clinician has the results when seeing you. If so, you will be told this by the service you have been referred to. If you are likely to require a diagnostic test during a clinic appointment, we will make every effort to organise this on the same day.
If you no longer require your appointment
In 2024, NUH had 106,233 appointments where patients did not attend. It may be that you feel you no longer need your appointment. if so, please let us know as soon as possible so that we may offer this to another patient who is waiting.
Contact us about your appointment
To change or cancel your appointment
Phone the number on your appointment letter or text message. Our phone lines operate Monday-Friday. Where possible, have your appointment letter to hand as you will be asked for your hospital or NHS number.
Some of our clinics also have the option to request to change or cancel your appointment via text or NHS app. If this is the case, it will be mentioned in the text or NHS app.
If you do not have the contact details for your appointment, please contact our switchboard on the relevant number below;
QMC and City Hospital Switchboard - Tel: 0115 924 9924
Treatment Centre Switchboard (available Monday-Friday, 8am to 6pm) - Tel: 0115 9194 477
Please note that if you cancel your appointment three or more times in a row, you may be referred back to the care of your GP.
Getting to your appointment
Please use public transport if possible as we have limited parking available. The Medilink 'Park and Ride' bus service is available from Queens Drive or Wilkinson Street. This drops off at the QMC and City Hospital. There is a tram service available at QMC, with a stop at Wilkinson Street for the Park and Ride. Further information: www.thetram.net.
A limited number of Blue Badge parking spaces is available at both sites.
If you have a low income or are receiving certain benefits, you may be entitled to help with the cost of travelling to receive NHS Treatment. There is more information including about getting to our hospitals (including maps)on our getting here page.
Hospital Transport
If a medical condition prevents you from using public or private transport, please ring Hospital Transport two weeks before your appointment.
If you are registered with a GP in the below areas, please contact:
• Nottinghamshire – EMED Medical: 0330 380 0570.
• Leicestershire – EMED Medical: 0300 777 1800.
• Derbyshire/Lincolnshire – EMAS: 0300 300 3434.
Digital Healthcare
NUH offers a wide variety of digital services as part of your care. If you would like more information on specific services, please visit www.nuh.nhs.uk/my-online-care
Some of our Outpatient appointment letters are now digital. Please look out for a text from telephone number +447860 039092 and follow the link to view your future letters. At first, not all letters will be digital. You will have the option to opt out of digital letters.
Video consultations are an easy way for you to have your appointment with the care team, without the need for you to travel to the hospital. This can save you time, money, and the difficulty of getting to the hospital.
You will be informed if your appointment is a video consultation. You will be provided with the video information and video links in order to join for the consultation. Find more detailed information including FAQs.
Many of our specialities are now using Patient Initiated Follow Ups (PIFU) for patients with long term conditions This is where you arrange a follow-up appointment as and when you need it, rather than at routine intervals. This means you avoid unnecessary appointments, saving you time, money and stress. If PIFU is available and suitable for you, your clinician will discuss this option with you.
Disability and Language Assistance
Disability Assistance
NUH does have a limited number of wheelchairs which are available to patients and visitors. However, NUH cannot guarantee that a wheelchair will be available at all times and recommends that visitors to our hospitals account for this when planning their journey. Please see https://www.accessable.co.uk/ for further details.
If you need assistance to reach your appointment, just ask at the main reception where staff can contact a hospital porter. However, please be aware there can be significant delay in being collected in times of high demand for the portering service.
If you have any other special requirements for your appointment, please let your clinic or ward know and we will endeavour to support these as best we can.
We also have disabled parking spaces in most of our car parks, which are free for those who display a valid blue badge. The barcode on the back of the blue badge must be scanned at either the pay and display machine or at the barrier before exiting the car park.
The parking management system at both hospitals allows up to 30 minutes for drop-offs and pick-ups. Visitors using the car parks for this purpose will need to collect a free 30-minute parking ticket from the pay and display machine on site and should display this in their car window.
Language Assistance
If you need an interpreter, your referring clinician should inform us about the required spoken language. If they do not, please let us know when you receive your appointment.
If you would like British Sign Language interpreting service, you can also contact the interpreting service directly on 0115 978 6984
Deaf and hard of hearing person can also contact trust directly via BSL interpreter utilising the below links.
Connect to BSL Interpreter — QMC
Further support
Some people may feel more comfortable with a chaperone present (another member of staff) for a consultation, examination or procedure. If you would like a chaperone, please ask a member of staff.
If you would like any further support, or have a complaint, comment or compliment, please contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) service. You can also access the following resources;