Referrals and advice and guidance (A&G)

From October 2021, GPs wishing to refer a patient into some of our services will first need to use advice and guidance (A&G). The change is being trialled across 13 specialities.

eRS Advice and Guidance service

Advice and guidance is for GPs and other referrers only. Patients should use the contact details in their hospital appointment letter or information leaflet, or call the Trust switchboard on 020 7377 7000.  

Whipps Cross Hospital

The following services offer advice and guidance via eRS.  

  • Cardiology  

  • Children's and adolescent services  

  • Diabetic medicine  

  • Ear, nose and throat  

  • Endocrinology and metabolic medicine  

  • Gynaecology  

  • Infectious diseases  

  • Nephrology  

  • Neurology  

  • Orthopaedics  

  • Pain management  

  • Respiratory medicine  

  • Surgery - not otherwise specified  

  • Surgery - vascular  

If the service you require is not listed above please contact them directly via the hospital Switchboard on 0208 539 5522.  

Newham Hospital 

The following services offer advice and guidance via eRS:  

  • Cardiology  

  • Children's and adolescent services  

  • Endocrinology and metabolic medicine  

The Royal London and Mile End hospitals  

The following services offer advice and guidance via eRS.  

  • Children's and adolescent services  

  • Colorectal surgery  

  • Dermatology  

  • Diabetic medicine  

  • Gastro (adult)  

  • Geriatric medicine  

  • GI and liver (medicine and surgery)  

  • Gynaecology  

  • Haematology  

  • Immunology  

  • Neurology  

  • Neurosurgery  

  • Ophthalmology  

  • Oral Surgery  

  • Pain management  

  • Rheumatology  

  • Surgery - plastic  

  • Surgery - vascular  

  • Urology  

St Bartholomew’s Hospital  

The following services offer advice and guidance via eRS.  

  • Endocrinology and metabolic medicine  

  • Diabetic medicine  

  • Haematology  

  • Pain management  

  • Surgery – vascular 

Contacting services not on eRS advice and guidance

Contacting services not on eRS advice and guidance

Alternative contact details for services not using eRS Advice and Guidance are listed below:

Advice and Guidance on eRS should be used for non-urgent clinical advice. The details below should only be used for non-urgent queries where services are not using eRS:

Email addresses for services without eRS advice and guidance: 

 

Services not on eRS advice and guidance

Specialty

Alternative contact details for services not using eRS Advice and Guidance

Breast surgery

A&G provided by NUH for urgent cases only.  Email advice provided by SBH: bhnt.breastappointments@nhs.net

Geriatric

Hotline at WXH available 9am-5pm: 02085356644

HIV

Email advice available on ghuappointments.bartshealth@nhs.net

Nephrology

Advice available via virtual CKD services, accessed through GP clinical systems

Neurosurgery

Please use Refer a Patient to seek advice: https://www.referapatient.org/refer-a-patient

Paediatric Rheumatology

Please direct A&G requests to the Paediatric General service

Paediatric Respiratory

Please direct A&G requests to the Paediatric General service

Sexual Health*

Email advice available on BHNT.Advice-Sexual-Health-Barts@nhs.net

Imaging

Email advice available on Radiology.gpsupport@nhs.net

Musculoskeletal services

Email advice available on bartshealth.physiotherapyadvice@nhs.net

Maternity at Whipps Cross Hospital

Email advice available on bhnt.wxantenatalreferrals@nhs.net

Chronic Kidney Disease

 For URGENT CLINICAL KIDNEY QUESTIONS  - significant rise in creatinine, hyperkalaemia, nephrotic syndrome - you can call the renal consultant hot phone 02035945751 Mon - Fri 8.30 to 5pm

*Urgent sexual health including contraception (emergency contraception) and HIV post-exposure prophylaxis can book a telephone appointment via the dedicated ALL EAST sexual health website (https://www.alleast.nhs.uk/).

If the service you require is not listed above please contact the department directly via Switchboard on 020 7377 7000. 

Service or hospital telephone numbers for urgent advice

The numbers below are direct contact numbers for specific services or appointment booking lines. If the service you need is not detailed below or you are unable to get through, please contact the hospital’s switchboard:  

  • For Mile End, St Bartholomew's or The Royal London: 020 7377 7000  

  • For Newham: 020 7476 4000  

  • For Whipps Cross: 020 8539 5522  

Royal London Hospital and Mile End Hospitals  

Acute medicine  

(8am - 9pm Monday to Friday/9pm - 8am out of hours)  -  020 3594 5642  

Clinical immunology  -  0207 377 7039  

CWHS  -  0207 377 7307  

Mobile phone number for women going through EMA - 07720 948394  
All other urgent queries.   

Hepatology    

  • For medication issues– 0207 377 7090  

  • Clinical Nurse Specialist -  020 7377 7088  
    Phone answered 9am – 5pm.  

Endoscopy  -  020 3594 5743  

Emergency Gynaecology Unit  -  020 3594 1579  

(8am - 6pm, Monday to Friday/ 8.30am - 1.30pm on Saturdays. Call ward 8B outside of these hours)  

General Surgery  -  020 3594 5690/1  

Geriatrics  -  020 7377 7000   ( ext  45799 via RLH switch) 

Gynaecology  -   020 3594 5719  

Rheumatology  -  0208 223 8859 (7.30am – 4.30 pm)  

Gastro  

  • IBS helpline: for patients with Inflammatory Bo wel Disease only – 0203 5943700  

  • For general Gastroenterology enquiries - 020 3594 3400  

HIV  -  020 7377 7039  

Neurology (on call)  -  020 3594 5652  

Neurosurgery (on-call)  -  020 3594 5649  

Obstetric (on-call)  -  020 3594 5635  

Oncology  -  07715050735  

Sexual health  

Service call  centre  number  -  0207  377 7307  
 

TIA/Stroke on-call team  -  020 3594 5651/020 3594 5672  

Haematology   

  • Haemophilia -   020 35941769  

  • Haemoglobinopathy (Sickle cell and thalassaemia)  -   020 35941877  

  • Anticoagulation -   020 35941885  

  • Haematology Day Unit -  020 35941858  

St Bartholomew’s Hospital  

Fertility -  020 346 56093 / 55098  

Diabetes  -  020 3594 6058  

Cardiology Arrhythmia  -  0203 765 8646  

General Cardiology  -  0203 765 8715  

Inherited Cardiovascular Disease  -  0203 765 8611  

Grown up congenital Heart  -  0203 765 8765  

Oncology  -  07940499062  

All  other  services  -   0203 765 8000  

GP surgeries can also contact Cardiology with urgent queries via  bartshealth.covid-19-advice@nhs.net  . T his email is monitored throughout the day and any queries will be forwarded to the appropriate service to respond.  

Whipp’s Cross Hospital  

Appointment Call Centre (for all queries unless outlined below)  -  0208 535 6768  

Breast Clinic Services  -  020 8535 6933  

General  Surgery  -   020 8539 5522 Bleep number 2900  

Gynaecology  

Emergency Gynaecology Unit  -  0208 535 6499  

Gynaecology   SpR  -  020 8539 5522  Bleep number  2203  

Obstetric sho   -  020 8539 5522  Bleep number  2429  

Obstetric spr   -  020 8539 5522  Bleep number  2430 -  

Gynae Secretaries  -  020 8539 5522  Extensions  5181 &  6591  

Haematology  

  • Anticoagulation -  020 8535 6815  

  • General haematology  -  0208-535-6687  

  • Haemoglobinopathy  (Sickle cell and thalassaemia) -  020 35941877  

Maternity - 020 8535 6861  

Pain  -  020 8539 5522 Extension 5360  

Paediatric Services  -  020 8539 5522  Bleep number   2137  

Oncology  -  07703469211  

Ophthalmology  -  020 8539 5522 Extension 6888  

Urology  -  020 8539 5522  Bleep number  2500  

Newham Hospital  

Specialist Medicine (Endocrinology, Diabetes, Infectious Disease, Respiratory medicine, Nephrology, Infectious disease)  

0207 3639013  

Acute Medicine (Gastroenterology, Hepatology, Neurology, Care of the Elderly, Memory, Tia /Stroke)   

0207 363 9012  

Endoscopy –  0207 363 8042  

Gynaecology   

02073639015  

Emergency Gynaecology Unit  02073638691  

Haematology  

  • Anticoagulation: 02073638730  

  • Gen haematology 02073639413  

  • Haemoglobinopathy (Sickle cell and thalassaemia): 020 35941877  

Maternity   

0207 3639302/8011  

Oncology  

07930220095  

Paediatric (children’s services)   

02073639019  

Surgery (General Surgery, Colorectal, Breast, Vascular Surgery, Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT), Ophthalmology, Paediatric Ophthalmology, Urology)  

02073639021  

Trauma and Orthopaedics (and podiatry)  

0207 3639022  

 

 

Referrals

Referrals 

GPs referring patients to our hospitals must use the NHS e-Referral Service (eRS). From 3rd September 2018 we stopped accepting referrals sent by other means. 

Please use the NHS e-Referral Service for all GP referrals into Barts Health, including urgent two week waits.  

In the unlikely event that e-referral service is  unavailable, please contact the relevant appointments team using the options below, who will advise on how to refer your patients. 

Information and links to referral forms can be found on the dedicated website page.

Written and exception referrals 

Some specialist or urgent services may be exempt from Paper Switch Off. Please check our website page on a regular basis for details. Guidance on how to refer to these services will also appear here.  

Urgent cancer referrals 

All cancer two week wait services are available on eRS and must be sent this way. If e-RS is not available then primary care should email the referral form to the provider using the directory at the top of each referral form. Fax is an unsafe referral method and should not be used. 

Urgent care centres, out-of-hours primary care providers, hospital clinicians, dentists and optometrists are advised to use the MS Word version of the Pan London Suspected Cancer Referral Forms to refer patients with a suspected cancer.  When referring a patient, a copy should also be sent to the patient’s GP.  

Dental referrals 

To help dentists refer to our services, we have set out careful guidelines and special referral forms which must be read carefully and used appropriately. 

Paper Switch Off for GP referrals 

We have implemented paper switch off. Please contact our teams for further information.