Preparing for a Parent's GP and Hospital Appointments

If you help a parent with their health care, you'll know how much organising sits around each appointment: getting through to the surgery, finding the hospital letter, sorting transport, remembering the questions, and then explaining it all to your brother on the phone afterwards. Appointments are often short, and it's easy to come away realising the most important thing never got mentioned.

This guide covers practical ways to prepare for GP and hospital outpatient appointments, support your parent on the day, and share what happened. It isn't medical advice. It's about making sure the right information gets to the right people, with your parent firmly in charge of their own care.

Getting set up: permissions and access

Talk to your parent first

Agree with your parent how they'd like you to be involved. Some want you to book appointments and come along; others just want a lift and to be left to it. Their wishes come first, and it's worth asking again as things change.

Family and carer (proxy) access

With your parent's agreement, their GP surgery may be able to give you family and carer access, also called proxy access, so you can help manage some of their GP services online through the NHS App or NHS website. The NHS explains that you usually start by contacting your parent's GP surgery, that you may both need to complete a form and show photo ID, and that the surgery decides what level of access is appropriate.

This can make booking appointments and ordering repeat prescriptions much easier, especially for a relative who lives some distance away.

Let the surgery know you're a carer

It's also worth asking the surgery, with your parent's consent, how they record family members or carers who are involved in a patient's care, and what they'll need from you when you ring on your parent's behalf.

Booking GP appointments

The NHS says you can usually book a GP appointment through the NHS App or NHS website, a form on the surgery's website, by phone, or in person at reception. Appointments may be face to face, by phone or online, and your parent may be seen by a GP, nurse, clinical pharmacist or physiotherapist depending on what they need.

A few tips:

• Note the reason clearly when booking, so your parent is directed to the right person.
• Ask what type of appointment it will be. If your parent struggles with phone calls because of hearing difficulties, say so.
• If there are several issues, ask the surgery how best to handle that. Practices have different approaches.
• Put the appointment straight on the shared calendar so everyone knows who's going. Our care schedule tool helps here.

Before the appointment

Prepare a short list of concerns

Sit down with your parent and write down what they want to discuss, most important first. The NHS outpatient guidance suggests writing down symptoms, allergies, questions and anything the GP asked them to raise. The same approach works well for GP appointments.

If your family keeps a carer's log, skim the last few weeks for changes such as falls, sleep, appetite or mood. Notes are far more reliable than memory.

Medicines list

The NHS suggests listing all medicines your parent takes, including prescriptions, over-the-counter medicines and alternative treatments, and bringing the packets, prescriptions or photos of them to hospital appointments. Keep one up-to-date list and bring it to every appointment.

What to bring: a checklist

• The appointment letter, text or email
• Your parent's NHS number
• An up-to-date medicines list (or the packets, or photos of them)
• The list of questions
• Glasses and hearing aids
• Our printable appointment sheet, or a notebook
• Water, a snack, and anything needed for comfort or mobility

Hospital outpatient appointments

According to the NHS, the hospital will send a letter, email or text with what you need to know, and requirements vary between hospitals, so read it carefully. Other points from NHS guidance:

• Your parent can bring a carer, family member or friend.
• To cancel or rearrange, contact the hospital or clinic and have the NHS number ready.
• For video appointments, use a charged device with a camera, microphone and internet connection, and test it beforehand. For phone appointments, make sure the hospital has the right number.
• On the day, register at reception or the kiosk, and allow extra time, especially for a first visit.

Transport

Plan the journey and parking in advance. The NHS says some people can get free patient transport if, for example, their condition means they need extra medical support during the journey or they have difficulty walking. Ask your parent's healthcare team or the local patient transport service whether they qualify.

Separately, people on certain benefits or low incomes may be able to claim back travel costs for hospital appointments they've been referred to, through the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme. Check the NHS website for the current rules.

During the appointment

Your job is to support, not to take over. Speak to your parent, not about them, and let them answer questions first. If the clinician starts addressing you instead, gently bring your parent back in. Be ready to step out if your parent wants to talk privately.

Take notes on:

• Anything new that's been found or ruled out
• Changes to medicines, including anything to stop or start
• Tests, referrals or follow-ups, and who will arrange them
• What to look out for, and who to contact if it happens

Before you leave, read back the main points to check you've understood.

After the appointment

The NHS says you should usually receive a summary letter or email after a hospital outpatient appointment. If you don't understand it, contact the hospital, clinic or GP. If you're waiting for test results, contact the hospital or clinic; the GP may also have access to them.

Then, within a day or so:

1. Write a short summary of the appointment in your shared carer's log.
2. Update the medicines list if anything has changed.
3. Add any follow-up appointments to the shared calendar.
4. Send a brief update to the rest of the family. Our printable handoff notes make this quick.

If your parent is admitted and then discharged

If a hospital appointment leads to a stay, the planning carries on. The NHS says that, with the patient's permission, family or carers will be kept informed and given the opportunity to contribute to the discharge assessment. It also says patients are usually sent home with a seven-day supply of medicines, so order a repeat prescription from the GP before the hospital supply runs out.

When something isn't right

If you have concerns about hospital care or discharge, start by speaking to the staff involved. The NHS Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) offers confidential advice, support and information for patients, families and carers, can help sort out problems, and can explain the NHS complaints procedure. You can find your nearest PALS through the NHS website, your GP surgery or hospital, or by calling NHS 111.

Build a routine

Keep one folder, paper or digital, with your parent's medicines list, appointment letters, contacts and past summaries. Use the same checklist every time. Over a few months it becomes second nature, and you'll have a clear record that helps every professional your parent sees.