To ask the Minister of Health to detail (i) the number of red flag gynaecological oncology appointments that have been cancelled in the last 12 months; and (ii) the reasons for the cancellations.

There is currently no centralised system for the regional collation of data on gynaecological oncology appointment cancellations. The information held by individual Trusts is variable and recorded across different systems this is in part due to the phased implementation of the Encompass electronic patient record system over the past two years. As a result, the data cannot be easily collated or used to produce a consistent, accurate regional figure.

Looking ahead, the Encompass system will be further explored to assess how cancellation data can be more effectively coded, collated, and analysed to support future regional reporting and service improvement.

While all Trusts diagnose gynaecological cancers, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust (BHSCT) provides the specialist regional Gynae- oncology service. All Trusts transfer patients requiring specialist gynecologically surgery to this service.

Table 1 below shows the number of red-flag cancellations over the last 12 months for the Belfast Service (local and regional) and the reasons for these cancellations.

828 cancellations were made of which 527 were cancelled by the service and 297 were cancelled by patients.

Table 1 – No. of Gynae oncology cancellations and reasons for these cancellations in the last 12 months: BHSCT local and regional gynae-oncology service.

It should be noted that cancelled appointments cannot be directly correlated to reduced activity. BHSCT appointment teams will maximise all capacity and ensure even last-minute cancellations are filled.

The BHSCT is proactively managing the reduction of outpatient cancellations and the percentage of patients who ‘do not attend’ to focus on maximising productivity within outpatients.