Recommendation 15

The number of missing referrals and the size of the waiting list make for a daunting situation when it comes to the needs of patients. Thinking about the recent changes to GPs’ workload to allow them to focus on booster vaccinations, we asked how members of the public could know in advance whether a GP appointment was routine or urgent, particularly with regard to potential cancer symptoms. NHSE&I told us that it was trying to encourage an increase in cancer referrals across the whole NHS and that it was most worried about the patients it did not know about. It urged anyone with worrying symptoms to come forward.34 We agree with this call but it does not answer our question about how patients can tell in advance of seeing a medical professional whether their problem is urgent or routine. The C&AG’s Report estimated that, as at September 2021, there were 240,000 to 740,000 missing urgent GP referrals for suspected cancer since February 2020.35