Your Hospital Referral - What happens next…

Two Week Wait Referrals

If you have been referred under the 2 week wait system, your referral will be faxed to Ipswich Hospital within 24 hours. You can expect to be contacted with an appointment by telephone within 2 weeks.

Please ensure that you are available during this period.

If you are not contacted by Ipswich Hospital within 2 weeks, please telephone the Appointments Centre on 0845 8400 200 and explain that you are waiting for a 2 week wait appointment.

Urgent Referrals

If an urgent referral is appropriate in your case, the referral letter will be typed by the end of the next working day and dispatched for review by a Consultant who will grade it and place it on the appropriate waiting list.

The approximate waiting time for an urgent referral is 8 weeks. However, if you have not been contacted within 4 four weeks of your referral please telephone the Ipswich Hospital Appointments Centre on 0845 8400 200 for an update.

Please note: Occasionally the Consultant may downgrade a referral from urgent to routine – this is beyond our control.

Routine Referrals

If your referral is for a routine appointment, we will aim to type and dispatch your referral within 3 working days. A Consultant will review and grade the referral and place it on the appropriate waiting list.

The average waiting time for a routine appointment is 13 weeks, although this can sometimes be as long as 18 weeks. You are unlikely to hear from the Hospital until around 6 weeks prior to your appointment.

If you have not been contacted within 8 weeks of referral, please telephone the Ipswich Hospital Appointments Centre on 0845 8400 200 for an update.