A DOCTOR has said the cost of patients missing appointments is a ‘tragic waste of money and resources’.

Dr Paul Fourie, who runs Witton Medical Centre in Blackburn, was speaking after data shows that missed GP appointments cost the NHS nationally more than £216 million a year.

NHS data show that more than 15 million general practice appointments are being wasted each year.

Health chiefs are now calling on people to cancel their appointments if they cannot attend them rather than just not show up.

Dr Fourie, who has previously suggested fining patients £10 if they keep failing to attend appointments, said: “The figure of £216 million pounds is a tragic waste of money and resources that should be put to better use.

“It’s costing hours and hours of nurses and doctor’s time and patients need to cancel appointments if they can’t make them.”

Dr Fourie said his GP practice had dozens of no-shows who failed to cancel appointments every week.

It has also emerged in an audit of eight GP practices in Pendle, that in one week in December last year, 137 GP and 113 practice nurse appointments were not attended by patients.

Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said patients missing appointments can be a frustrating waste of resources.

She said: “This includes for GPs and our teams, but also for other patients who are struggling to secure an appointment for themselves.

“There may be many reasons why a patient might miss an appointment, and in some cases it can be an indication that something serious is going on for that individual – but we would urge patients to let us know if they can’t attend as soon as possible, so that we can offer that time to someone else who really needs it.

“To this end, practices are using electronic methods, such as SMS reminders, to encourage patients to keep their appointments, or cancel them in a timely manner.”

To help free up more appointments health chiefs said that evening and weekend access to GP services has been available across the country since December.

It means there will be an estimated nine million extra appointments each year.

The appointments are available across seven days and through designated local NHS services, or in some cases a patient’s own GP practice.

Dr Nikki Kanani, acting director of primary care for NHS England, said: “We know that timely access to general practice appointments are a priority for the public which is why we are growing the workforce and offering evening and weekend appointments.

“The NHS long term plan will set out how we will build on this progress but patients can do their part by letting the NHS know if they can’t make their slot – freeing up doctors, nurses and other professionals to see those who do need care and attention.

“This is particularly important as we go in to winter. Our message is clear: if you cannot make it to your appointment or no longer need a consultation, please let your GP practice know in advance so the appointment can be filled by another patient.”