Information about telephone clinics for post-operative patients in urogynaecology

What is a telephone clinic?

Telephone clinics are outpatient appointments that take place over the telephone rather than you attending the hospital.

A dedicated time slot on a specific date will be allocated to you and the person doing the clinic will aim to call you on the contact number you have registered at this time.

Why have they been set up?

• Some patients travel very long distances to attend follow-up clinics.
• Often the appointment is a routine follow-up to discuss your recovery. Normally it doesn’t involve any procedure or test that needs to be done in a hospital.
• The telephone clinic is designed to be more convenient to you and save you time and the inconvenience of travelling to Addenbrooke’s.
• We are keen to find out the true outcome of the surgery. If patients are seen early in the post-operative period, this may overlap with placebo effects of surgery giving a false impression to both patient and doctor. Hence the follow-up phone call will be made six months after surgery.
• Telephone follow-up clinic will significantly reduce waiting times for all our patients in the long run.

How do these clinics work?

As with any other clinic, you will be sent your clinic date and time in the post. During your allocated appointment time we ask you to remain close to your telephone and ensure it is not in use so we can contact you. It is important that you update our records if you make any changes to your telephone number.

We can contact you on a different number providing you make us aware of the number. We would recommend you choose a number where you can talk easily and feel comfortable talking to us.

The telephone consultation will normally be done by the urogynaecology specialist nurses. This will be under the indirect supervision of the consultant for your care.

We will ask you some security questions to confirm we are talking to the correct person. Due to patient confidentiality issues we will only be able to hold the consultation directly with you, the patient.

You will be given a face to face appointment earlier if your quality of life questionnaires show suboptimal post-operative results or if you have any concerns about outcome in the interim.

What if I prefer to come to clinic?

The choice is entirely yours at any time through this process. The telephone clinic is offered as an alternative for you to choose which option suits you best.

If you prefer to attend clinic and have a face to face consultation you are very welcome to request at the pre-assessment visit.

What if others want to listen to our conversation?

We will need to hold the initial consultation with you, as you are the patient. However should you have a speaker phone or wish others to listen to our conversation that is entirely your choice and decision.

You will receive a letter following the consultation which will provide details of what was discussed and what the future follow up plan is.

Will I always be followed up by telephone?

Our policy is to offer patients telephone consultations for some follow up appointments where the urogynaecology team feel this is suitable. You may still need to attend the hospital if there has been a complication.

If you wish to change your mind at any time about telephone clinic appointment, please contact the urogynaecology specialist nurses (details below).

What if I have any questions or require further information?

If you have an administrative query about your appointment, please contact the clinic co-ordinator on 01223 216221.

If you have any questions about telephone clinics please contact the urogynaecology specialist nurses Monday to Friday, 08.00 – 18.00 on 01223 349 239