Hospitals have been accused of 'secretly closing their doors' by turning away thousands of patients for surgery unless they live nearby.
At least four major NHS trusts have stopped accepting patients for routine procedures because they cannot deal with soaring numbers of referrals.
The move appears to breach the legally-binding NHS Constitution, which gives patients the right to be treated wherever they want, however far they have to travel.
Many patients choose to bypass their local district hospital in favour of a larger teaching trust that specialises in an area of medicine.
Hospitals have been accused of 'secretly closing their doors' by turning away thousands of patients for surgery unless they live nearby
Yet bosses say they have no choice but to prioritise people from the catchment area to cope with rising referrals.
Read more »
0 comments:
Post a Comment