I had some blood tests at the hospital last Wednesday and Monday and Tuesday I had several missed calls that were from a blocked number. Ive not had any today. The neurologist only works Monday and Tuesday and as it has never happened like that before part of me is wondering if they were trying to contact me or if it is just a coincidence??
Hi,
Whilst it’s possible, I’ve never been phoned at home about any results - not even when I went privately. If they’ve found anything serious, guidelines usually say it should be communicated to you face-to-face, not over-the-phone.
If they haven’t found anything, there would be no cause to phone you at home anyway. They’ll just tell you at the next appointment, or send out the standard letter, saying no abnormalities found.
If you only had the tests last Wednesday, and the neurologist only works Mondays and Tuesdays, is it really likely they would all be back from the lab AND he’d already had a chance to review them, by his first day back at work on Monday?
My gut instinct is lab results take a bit longer to come back than that, and neuros a bit longer still to review and communicate them to the patient.
So my hunch at the moment is it’s just a coincidence. Only a hunch, it’s true. I can’t tell you for sure how long your tests should take to come back, or what your hospital would or wouldn’t do about them.
But there could be so many other sources of missed calls - including people just trying to sell stuff - that I don’t think it’s possible to infer it must have been the hospital.
Also, if the hospital DID need to speak to you urgently, why wouldn’t they try again today? Does everything just grind to a halt on the three days a week the neuro isn’t there? If it was anything super-urgent, wouldn’t he have asked his secretary to keep trying, or phoned your doctor, and asked them to contact you? Not just left it until next week?
Tina
Thanks. When I find out who keeps ringing and not leaving a message I won’t be happy! Just seemed odd. My gp has used my mobile to contact me for an urgent appointment for results before, so will ring them tomorrow as it would help to have the results as I’m at a different hospital with a different consultant on Monday and the two issues may be linked.