A referral is classed as an urgent referral when a patient requires immediate attention for a medical condition.
A doctor or other medical professional may issue an urgent referral if they believe you need to see a specialist or have any tests done quickly to investigate and diagnose symptoms.
The goal of an urgent referral is to ensure that you get the care you need as soon as possible.
People that have an urgent referral will often be offered an appointment with a specialist within 2 weeks or sooner.
You may also need to be available for additional tests within 4 weeks to get a diagnoses.
Urgent referrals can be done for several conditions such as severe allergic reactions, suspected cancer, acute medical conditions, kidney disease and more.
A person that is suspected to have cancer may be referred to a hospital doctor for tests to investigate the symptoms.
A doctors referral is a written or electronic communication from a doctor to another health professional who specializes in certain conditions to help diagnose and treat health conditions.
A doctor referral allows a patient to see a specialist doctor or get other medical services which their primary care doctor cannot provide.