Appointment Management and Cancellation Policy

It is the aim of this practice to provide quality dental care to our patients and to use clinical time effectively. To achieve this aim, we have an appointment management and cancellation policy.

Management of appointments

We invest in the latest technology, including modern telephone equipment and an online booking system, to allow our patients to make or reschedule appointments easily. Our appointment system supports timely access to care and treatment, allows patients to access services at a time that suits them and minimises the length of time people have to wait. Appointments can be made or rescheduled by calling our dedicated appointments line on 01473 257379 or by accessing our online booking form.

Appointment Deposits

We will take a booking fee for any appointment that is booked at the practice to confirm the booking. A patient will pay a booking fee of £30.00 for any routine appointment that is booked, and for treatment appointments, a minimum of 50% of the treatment fee for that appointment time.

Reminders

E-mail and text reminders are sent to patients 2 weeks and 3 days before any appointment, and patients are requested to inform the practice of any changes to their contact details.

Cancellation or delay of an appointment by the practice

We will only cancel or delay a patient’s appointment in unavoidable circumstances. In such cases, we will take the following steps:

• The patient will be contacted as soon as the practice is aware of the need to cancel or delay the appointment. We will explain the reason for the cancellation or delay.
• At the time of contact, the patient will be offered a new appointment at the earliest time available.
• If the patient is unable to commit to a new appointment during that contact, we will ask them to get in touch at a later time, when we will offer them a priority appointment.

Cancellation of an appointment or missed appointment by a patient

Patients are requested to give at least 48 working hours’ notice to cancel a dental appointment. Cancellations should be made by telephone on 01473 257379. Late cancellations and missed appointments may represent a cost to the practice, when other patients could have been seen in the time set aside for the patient.

We do not make a charge for NHS patients for a late cancellation or missed appointment. However, we reserve the right to ask a patient to find another dental practice if they continue to miss appointments.

If no more than one NHS dental appointment is missed or cancelled with less than 48 working hours’ notice, we do not guarantee being able to complete a patient’s NHS treatment or offer them NHS treatment in the future.

There is a fee for private dental appointments that are missed or cancelled with less than 48 working hours’ notice. The fee is based on the length of the appointment and can be found in the private fees list.

It is our aim to telephone or write to patients after a missed appointment to understand the reason for non-attendance and to inform them about any fee or decision about their NHS dental care. We understand that cancellations are sometimes unavoidable due to illness or emergencies and we will take account of all valid circumstances.

Any appeals about missed or cancelled appointment decisions by a patient should be made in writing to the Practice Manager, Katy McAllister.