Cardiology e-mail service

• Non-emergency queries.

• Patients with cardiology conditions or potential cardiology conditions being managed by the GP.

• For queries on community/direct access investigations eg. ECG, holter monitors, echo reports

Exclusions

• Routine advice for patients already under the care of a named cardiologist (advice correspondence in writing to named consultant).

• Advice already published on RMS website.

• Formal referrals for investigations or outpatient appointments (use normal RMS referral system)

• Emergency queries (use telephone contact for emergencies only)

• Check query is not answered by advice already available on the RMS website.

• Check patients are not already under a named consultant or have been seen by a consultant in the last 6 months (if so contact named consultant rather than using the email service)

• Complete e-mail ensuring it includes key information and is in the correct format, as described below, and send to:  rch-tr.CardioAdvice@nhs.net

• Cardiologist on duty will respond within 2 working days (Mon – Fri).

• If the response is a recommendation to refer to cardiology this will be the responsibility of the GP submitting a referral through RMS as normal.

• In future correspondence, when referring to the advice given, it must be made clear that the advice quoted was from the e-mail advice service.

• Correspondence for advice received by Consultants through other routes will be returned to the GP with the request to use the e-mail service.  (NB fax machines are being withdrawn from RCHT)