Trust areas

Does anybody know if you can ask to be referred out of your trust area on the NHS?

D

[Hidden]

Yes you can. My optician in Yorkshire referred me to Moorfields eye hospital in London.

[jedimasterlincoln]

Yes you can. You have a right to chose where you can be treated, but you have to ask as generally you're not given a choice. Doctors and Consultants like to refer to places they know. It's possibly to do with money, but ultimately everyone still gets paid for the referral and the treatment by NHS England eventually as I understand it.

I was under cardiology at Derby and when it became clear I needed an ablation they wanted to refer me to Leicester, which was the closest hospital that carried out ablations and a trust which Derby had an "arrangement" with to refer people on.

I asked if there was a possibility I could be referred to Manchester. At the time I needed my first ablation the only family support network I had was up there, living on my own with only work friends and colleagues nearby and having no idea what my recovery would be like.

Luckily my Cardiologist trained with an EP who worked up there so he had a point of contact. Unluckily his waiting list was almost 12 months and I was contacted to see if I would allow another EP to carry out my ablation.

[meadfoot]

Yes. I live in the north of England and asked to be referred by my GP to a London hospital on the NHS where I have remained for my cardiac care. Also having a second opinion from London regarding my gastro issues shortly.

It used to be called 'Patient Choice', I assume it still is. Good luck, go see your GP and please don't be put off as it says it's your choice.

[Hidden]

Many thanks to all of you for replying so promptly.

Di

[wilsond]

Yes my friend was able to choose online where she had a knee op,was able to get intoa BMI hospital!good luckxxx

[Mrspat]

Yes. I have a congenital heart condition and insisted on going to a London hospital that has a specialist clinic just for adults like me. There isn’t a similar clinic locally and I wasn’t getting what I needed from the general cardiology team here.

[Hidden]

Some of us are obliged to travel out of our trust area for treatment.

[opal11uk]

I my experience, yes you can, I was diagnosed with breast cancer and asked to be referred out of Essex to The Royal Marsden Hospital in London/Sutton.

[RobertTonkiss]

It should be possible to be referred to another nhs trust. Sometimes an individual trust has nobody qualified to treat a condition or a particular treatment is not offered within your local trust, and a referral to another trust is required.