Failure to maintain patient access to GUM clinics

We read with interest the article published by Cassell et al 1 about the maintenance of patient access to genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics following a switch to an appointment based system. Their data show no significant change in the age, ethnic mix, symptom status, and disease mix following the change to appointments. In addition, such a system of 35% prebooked appointments produced an increase in the number of patients seen over that time. A new appointment based system was introduced at the John Hunter genitourinary medicine clinic at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in October 2001. This comprised 80% of appointments which were prebooked …