Online NHS referral system risks people dropping off waiting lists, probe finds

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By Storm Newton, Press Association

People referred for hospital treatment in England are at risk of falling off NHS waiting lists after six months without warning, according to a new report.

This is down to a function built in to the electronic system widely used by GPs to refer patients for specialist care, the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB) said.

It warned that the system “was not designed to manage the current volume of referrals” in the health service.

It comes as an investigation found that a number of incidents involving thousands of patients disappearing from waiting lists have happened since 2018.

The NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS) generates digital worklists for services such as hospitals.

Referrals are automatically removed when an action, such as booking a patient an appointment, is performed.

Referrals are also removed when 180 days pass with no action, which was designed to slash the risk of large worklists impacting performance.