UK patients going private to escape referrals ‘black hole’, say GPs
by Jon Ungoed-Thomas from World news | The Guardian on (#6Q7NM)
Doctors warn of rationing' as latest monthly figures show no available appointments for about 400,000 cases
Patients are increasingly turning to private healthcare to escape a referrals black hole", GPs have warned, as the NHS struggles with a shortfall of available appointments.
The most recent figures show GP practices make about 400,000 referrals a month to outpatient clinics that are fully booked. Some patients will be able to choose an alternative provider, some will be booked at a later date, but many end up being bounced back to their local surgery.
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