Before your appointment
We may check your hospital records, Emergency Care Summary or family doctor (GP) summary records before your appointment. This is to make sure we have your latest up-to-date clinical information.
Special arrangements
Please contact the Referral Management Service as soon as possible if you need us to arrange support for your appointment. This might be:
- A language interpreter, or someone to sign if you are deaf.
- Assistance if you are visually impaired.
- Lifting equipment if you have difficulty standing, or transferring from a wheelchair.
Guide and hearing dogs are permitted within the outpatient department.
How you can help
You can help by:
- attending your agreed appointment – if you can’t attend, or if you are going to be unavailable for a period of time, you should contact us as detailed in your appointment letter
- following any instructions to prepare for your appointment as detailed in your letter
- bringing the letter or card with you
Travel information
Full details of public transport services can be obtained from the Traveline website, or by phoning Traveline on 0871 200 22 33.
Disabled parking facilities are available at all NHS Ayrshire and Arran hospitals.
Please note that our car parks in the main hospital sites are extremely busy so please ensure you allow time for parking.
Facilities
Toilet facilities, including wheelchair access are available within the outpatient departments, as are baby changing facilities and breastfeeding facilities.
Wheelchairs
Wheelchairs are available. If you need a wheelchair please speak to staff when you arrive.
Smoking policy
Smoking or use of electronic cigarettes is not allowed at or around doorways or anywhere on hospital grounds. If you feel you need to smoke please allow extra time for your visit and smoke away from the entrances and completely off the hospital grounds before arriving and after you leave.
Mobile phones
Please comply with any signs displayed in the department you are visiting and switch your phone off before your appointment. Please be respectful of the confidentiality of other patients and members of the public attending our services and do not take photographs or videos whilst within our premises.
Your appointment
Please arrive at the department on time for your appointment so that you can book in. If you need to have tests such as an x-ray, you may need to go to other departments before or after seeing the clinician. If this is the case, your clinic visit may take longer.
You can help in the development of new treatments for disease by joining SHARE – The Scottish Health Research Register & Biobank.
SHARE is a register of people aged 11+ who are willing to be invited to take part in research, like completing a lifestyle questionnaire or testing a new treatment for a condition you may have. Help make a difference and sign up today.
After your appointment
If the clinician asks you to make another appointment, please arrange this with the receptionist before you leave the department. Your GP will receive a letter about your outpatient visit.
In some instances, the letter may not be sent until investigations have been carried out and the results received.
The clinician may:
- write directly to you advising of findings and next steps
- send a copy of the letter that has been sent to your GP
Expenses
If you think you may be entitled to travel expenses, please go to the hospital cashier at University Hospital Crosshouse or University Hospital Ayr. Take any relevant benefit documents with you, along with your travel tickets.
If your appointment is out with the hours the cashier’s office is open or at acute clinics that are held at other sites where no cashier function is provided, you can fill in an HC5 NHS Scotland Refund Claim Form. The receptionist at the clinic will be able to provide you with this form.
Confidentiality and the use of patient information
NHS Ayrshire and Arran take care to ensure your personal information is only accessible to authorised people. Our staff have a legal, ethical, and contractual duty to keep personal health information secure, and confidential.
To find out more about current data protection legislation and how we process your information, please see our Data Protection Notice.
It’s okay to ask questions
We encourage you to ask questions about your condition, your treatment, and care options.
Shared decision making is about moving away from the ‘doctor knows best’ culture. This means your doctor or health professional should understand what matters to you personally and what your goals are.
Here are the NHS Inform BRAN questions which you may want to think about when asking your clinician about any proposed tests:
- B: What are the Benefits?
- R: What are the Risks?
- A: What are the Alternatives?
- N: What if I do Nothing?