Open petition: Mandate the NHS to transfer patients if no cause of symptoms found

Created by Irina-Maria Loghin
Closes on 9 October 2026

Mandate the NHS to adopt a national policy to reassign and transfer patients to another speciality for diagnosis when the admitting team cannot identify a cause for admission. Patients should not be discharged if symptoms persist and the admitting specialty identifies no cause for admission.

Patients admitted to hospital from A&E are often reviewed by the initial specialty and may be told no relevant problem has been found. Despite ongoing symptoms, they may remain under the wrong department or be discharged without review by an appropriate specialty.

This can cause delayed diagnosis, unsafe discharges, patient distress, and inefficient bed use. There is no national requirement for hospitals to reassign or escalate care when an admitting team cannot identify a cause for admission.

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