Homerton: Attending as an Outpatient

Patient information

Attending as an Outpatient

Welcome to the outpatients department at Homerton Hospital. We provide a consultation and minor treatment service that you can be referred to for specialist investigation, diagnosis and treatment.

Our services
Booking an appointment
Before your appointment
Cancelling your appointment
When you arrive
Seeing the doctor / nurse / dietician
When you leave
Key staff

Different medical specialities are allocated different days for clinics, therefore it may be only on a particular day of the week that a doctor could see you about your condition.

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Our services

The services available are:

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Booking an appointment

You can be referred to one of our outpatient clinics via your GP, a consultant or through the Accident and Emergency department.

There are several ways you can book your appointment with us:

Your GP can directly book your appointment through Choose and Book
Your GP can give you a Unique Booking Reference Number (UBRN) and you can book through Choose and Book on-line yourself or via the Telephone Advice Line (TAL)
Your GP can send a referral direct to our central bookings department and we will send you a letter inviting you to call us for an appointment or send you an appointment via post

Booking via Choose and Book will allow you to make an appointment at a time and date convenient to yourself.

We aim to see you within the shortest possible time, and we comply with the 18 weeks target. Any hospital appointments, tests, scans or other procedures that you may need before being treated will all happen within this maximum time limit of 18 weeks.

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Before your appointment

You will soon be visiting the outpatient department at Homerton Hospital. We understand that you may be anxious, this section gives you an idea about how to prepare for your appointment.

Things to bring with you to your appointment:

Your appointment letter
Current medication you are taking
Any samples asked for in your appointment letter
A list of questions you may want to ask

Please aim to arrive at the hospital about 15 minutes before your appointment time.

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Cancelling your appointment

Please help us to help you. If you are unable to attend your appointment please let us know as soon as possible by phoning the hospital on 020 8510 5544, and we will give you a new time and date. If possible we need you to give us 48 hours notice if you cannot attend.

By giving us notice you allow us to offer your original appointment to another patient. If you fail to contact us to re-arrange your appointment and you do not attend, we may discharge you back to the care of your GP.

We really appreciate your co-operation in helping us to make our outpatient department as efficient as possible.

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When you arrive

There are 8 outpatient reception areas at Homerton Hospital:

1. Main outpatients (ground floor)
2. Anti-Coagulation clinic (ground floor)
3. Fracture clinic (ground floor)
4. Ante-natal clinic (ground floor)
5. Women’s outpatient clinic (ground floor)
6. Paediatric clinic (first floor – Starlight)
7. Fertility clinic (first floor)
8. Early Pregnancy Assessment Unit (first floor)

When you arrive please report to the outpatient reception area on your appointment letter, you will be greeted by one of our receptionists who will check you details and book you in. The reception team will then direct you to the waiting area for your appointment.

Please remember to let us know if you have changed your name, address, phone number, or your GP, so that we can update our records. It is really important that we have a mobile or landline phone number incase we need to contact you.
Patients are seen in the order of appointment time (not on a first-come-first-served-basis).

Every effort is made for you to be seen at your appointed time, but there may be occasions when delays occur - estimated waiting times are displayed outside the consulting rooms.

Please allow up to two hours for your appointment. If you find that you are unable to wait for your appointment, the reception team will be able to make another appointment for you at your request.

If you leave the waiting area for any reason please inform the reception staff to ensure that you do not miss your appointment slot.

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Seeing the doctor / nurse / dietician

Each clinic is staffed by a consultant or a nurse lead specialist who is in charge of patient care, and a team of doctors, nurses, dieticians and nursing assistants. Your appointment may not be with the consultant but with one of the doctors, nurses or dieticians in their team.

When you see the clinician they are likely to ask you questions about your medical history and may need to perform an examination. If the clinician is of the opposite sex a nursing assistant will be available to chaperone the doctor during your examination.

The clinician may decide that you need further investigations and tests on the day of your appointment. If so, a member of the nursing team will direct you to the relevant department and give you the appropriate form to hand in.

Investigations on the day of your appointment will vary from patient to patient. These are some of the most common:

Blood test – A blood test is a very common and routine procedure. A sample of your blood is taken so we can look for any abnormalities. The sample is then sent to the laboratory to be analysed. A ticket system is used within the blood test area, so patients are seen in the order they arrive.

X-rays – An x-ray is a painless test to obtain an image of a part of your body.

Urine sample – A urine sample is a very common and routine procedure. The doctor may ask for a sample to help them diagnose or rule out health conditions. The nursing assistant will give you a container and explain to you how to collect the urine sample.

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When you leave

When you have finished your appointment please return the front sheet of your notes to the clinic reception desk before you leave the hospital. Please tell the reception team whether you or are being discharged or whether the doctor has asked for a follow up appointment to be made.

We value your opinion. Please remember to complete our Patient Experience Tracker at the end of your appointment. Your views are important to us and help us to improve our services for all patients.

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