Two-thirds of patients referred under Choose and Book are not being given a choice of appointment date or time, say researchers at University College London.

When the "Choice" of Consultant is included in the process then "choice" will be available to the patient at the point of referral, at present it does not. Many secondary care providers do not display appointments so they can achieve, as they see it, the 18 weeks target. Many of our patients have been left with no appointment only the promise that "someone" will call them back ......in many cases this does nto happen and the Practice staff are left to fight the system to get the patient an appointment. Not really as CAB was intended I am sure.

I absolutely agree with Dr Rose, this is exactly our experience ( Herts).On the other hand we have to employ additional secretary, and this cost significantly more, than the money received for CAB. Another way of clawing money back from practices, I think.

It's the same in south Notts too. No choice of Consultant, only of the specialty; and if waiting times for that specialty creep over 6 weeks (common in several areas) then no appointments available on CAB and the practice often has to pick up the pieces, despite there being a mechanism to put the work on the Acute provider trust to sort it.

Choice has been misinterpreted by central government anyway I think. Certainly in Nottingham patients do NOT want to travel elsewhere for care (Derby and Mansfield are only 10 miles away, Leicester sl further). They want a choice of date and time and often they'd like choice of who they see, especially when they've seen a consultant before e.g. 1 hip done in 2004, the other needs doing. it's a real phaff to get them back to the same team.