The Two-Week Wait Head and Neck Clinic: Do We Know What Our Patients Think?

Abstract

Objectives:

Explore patients’ views on hospital communication when patients are referred to the two-week wait head and neck clinic (2WWHNC).

Methods:

A prospective qualitative study in the form of questionnaire handed to new patients attending the 2WWHNC. The study ran for six weeks (October - November 2011) and included 104 patients.

Results:

25.9% of patients said the hospital information letter provoked anxiety. 29.8% of patients said they were not informed by their general practitioners (GPs) that they would require further specialist assessment and investigations.

Conclusions:

A significant minority of patients were unaware they were attending the 2WWHNC to investigate the possibility of an underlying head and neck cancer. Although patients recognized that hospital communication was informative, perhaps reconsideration of the wording of the information letter as well as providing clearer information by the GPs may help to reduce the level of anxiety.