GP surgeries across Greater Lincolnshire are feeling the impact of an increased number of missed appointments after suffering 23,549 no-shows in just one month.
The most recent data from the local NHS Clinical Commissioning Groups shows that there were 16,000 missed appointments in November 2021 in Lincolnshire alone. In North East Lincolnshire, there were 3,907 missed appointments in the same month.
In North Lincolnshire, there were 3,642 missed appointments in the same period, which was up by about 600 on the previous month. Dr Satpal Shekhawat, Medical Director of North Lincolnshire CCG, said this comes to nearly 600 hours of clinical work and equates to about 15 full-time GPS.
The total number of missed appointments at GP surgeries for the whole of East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire for November was 38,584. This also includes 7,966 in Hull and 7,069 in East Yorkshire.
Dr Shekhawat told BBC East Yorkshire & Lincolnshire: “It’s a double loss for us. One, we’ve lost that time we could have seen someone else, and that person who wanted an appointment, their problem hasn’t been dealt with so they’re going to contact us again for another appointment.”
Cheryl Gagg, Medical Secretary at Kirton Lindsey and Scotter Surgery, said: “From first thing in the morning we open at eight o’clock, the phone lines ring non-stop, and generally within the first hour you can be booked up. It just wastes a lot of time. There are patients waiting for those appointments that we may have had to turn away for that day, it is incredibly frustrating.”
Patients are being urged to use the NHS app or email so fewer appointments go to waste.
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Two men have been arrested on suspicion of possessing criminal property after being stopped by our roads crime team on the A180 yesterday (Tuesday 24 May).
A suspect vehicle was spotted on the eastbound M180 and was brought safely to a stop on the A180 near Croxton.
It is reported that a large amount of cash, cigarettes and tobacco was uncovered.
Both men remain in our custody at this time whilst our investigations continue.
An independent county councillor in Boston has been named as the new chairman of Lincolnshire County Council.
Councillor Alison Austin was elected into the role at the annual general meeting of the full council on Friday, May 20, along with new vice chairman Councillor Robert Reid.
Councillor Austin has served as an independent county ward member for Boston South since May 2013, winning re-election on May 6, 2021.
She will be supported in her role throughout the term by her husband and chairman’s consort, Richard Austin.
Councillor Austin said: “I feel immensely honoured and privileged to be elected as chairman of the county council. I’ve always held a strong sense of community service, and I will continue promoting positive change across Lincolnshire as chairman.
“Amongst my first duties, will be participating in the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. This will be a great opportunity to not only recognise the achievements of our longstanding monarch, but also to give communities the opportunity to come together and mark a return to normality after a difficult couple of years.
“As part of moving on from COVID, I want to focus on the future during my time in office. I look forward to supporting the training and development of residents county-wide. We need to ensure we have a highly skilled workforce so that we can attract and retain businesses in Lincolnshire.”
As part of her duties, Councillor Austin has selected homeless and vulnerable people charity Centrepoint Outreach as one of her chosen organisations to support during her time in office.
She has been a volunteer at Centrepoint Outreach for several years and will continue to support the organisation in this new role.