We run many different clinics for our patients from our outpatient departments. Based mainly at the University Hospital of North Tees and the University Hospital of Hartlepool we also provide a smaller range of specialty clinics at Peterlee Community Hospital.
These clinics include:
- medical clinics including respiratory, diabetes, rheumatology, gastrointestinal, haematology, cardiology, chemical pathology, nephrology
- surgical clinics including orthopaedics, gynaecology, breast, urology, colorectal, upper GI, thyroid, vascular, bariatric and pain services
- visiting consultants from neighbouring trusts provide clinics for oncology, ophthalmology, ENT, dermatology, oral surgery
How will I receive my appointment?
Once you have your outpatient appointment booked with us you will receive an appointment letter to inform you when your appointment is and where you need to go. This will tell you which consultant you will see or which specialist clinic you will be attending. You may see the consultant or a member of their team including specialist nurses, allied health professionals (physiotherapist, dietitian, podiatrist) and trainee doctors.
You may be offered the opportunity to receive your appointments and letters electronically via the NHS App. We will be able to help you organise this if you would find this more convenient than our current paper system. Just ask our reception team, who will be happy to help.
Waiting list validation
We know that sometimes circumstances change and you might not need your appointment with our outpatients team anymore. Now we have a new quick and easy online waiting list validation system for you to manage all your outpatient referrals in one place.
If you’re a patient who has been waiting more than 12 weeks for an appointment with our outpatient team, you will receive a text inviting you to use the waiting list validation system.
Find out more about waiting list validationWhat do I do when I arrive for my appointment?
The outpatient departments are divided into different clinic waiting areas. When you arrive for your appointment you should go to the main reception desk to let them know you have arrived and they will point you in the right direction.
You will also have the opportunity to use one of our self check in kiosks as a convenient alternative to waiting for one of our reception team. You can do this by entering your details in to the kiosk and checking in.
Chaperoning
A chaperone is a Health Professional who can be with you during a physical examination or procedure to offer support and reassurance and answer questions.Please ask a member of staff for support
Let us know if your GP practice or home address has changed
During your appointment, if your GP practice has changed or you have moved address, please inform the healthcare specialist.
What should I bring to my appointment?
When you come for your appointment please bring:
- your appointment letter
- list of medications
- anything specific will be asked for in your letter, such as a urine sample
It can also be helpful to think about what questions you might want to ask our teams in advance of your appointment and make some notes. We understand that appointments can be stressful and often having pre prepared some things that you want to discuss will ensure you get the answers you are looking for.
Will I be reminded about my appointment?
One week before your appointment you will be contacted either by our automated appointment confirmation system or by a text message to your mobile phone to remind you about your appointment. This will ask you to confirm your appointment or give you an option to cancel and re-book. If you need to cancel your appointment, please let us know as soon as possible by ringing our central booking office on 01642 383838. Occasionally we may need to re-arrange your appointment date or time and we will try to give you as much notice as possible.
Can I have a virtual appointment?
We offer virtual appointments across a number of specialities. Depending on your preference this could be via telephone or video. If a virtual appointment is more convenient for you than travelling to the hospital, please discuss this with your consultant team who will advise what would be possible, safe and effective for you. Taking into consideration your specific condition and circumstances.
Video appointments can be accessed via our Video consultations area. It is great if you can prepare for your virtual appointment as you would a face to face appointment in our hospital.
What are patient initiated follow-ups?
A Patient Initiated Follow up (PIFU) is a new way of arranging your hospital outpatient appointments.
Currently, regular follow-up appointments are arranged by the hospital within a specific timeframe. For example, every six months or every year. Some patients find these regular visits useful and reassuring. For others, it can be frustrating or stressful coming to hospital if they do not feel they need to.
Through your PIFU plan you can arrange follow-up appointments with your hospital care team when you feel you need them, or if your symptoms get worse. This puts you in control of your follow-up appointments and gives you access to support and guidance when you need it most.
Please be aware that PIFU appointments may not suitable for every condition, your hospital care team will be able to discuss this further with you.
Further information on patient initiated follow-ups (PIFU)We Make Every Contact Count
We understand that lots of different factors have an impact on our health and wellbeing – the physical environment in which we live, our homes, our jobs, our finances, our social networks, genetics, education and our behaviour (smoking, activity levels, our diet). It is important that we understand if there is anything else that we can do so support you to improve your health and wellbeing.
We encourage our staff to ‘make every contact count’ with you and that might mean that they ask you about your lifestyle – how much you move each day, if you smoke or even how well you are sleeping. We would encourage you to embrace those conversations and if you would like some further support to explore how you could start to make changes that could improve your lifestyle we will be here to help.
We have lots of useful information that our teams have pulled together in our Live Well section, that we hope you will find informative and useful.
Live well resources Making Every Contact Count
