The NHS e-Referral Service Open Data set is anonymous summary data of the numbers of referrals, bookings and appointment slot issues (ASIs) per week at Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) level by speciality and clinic type using the NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS)
The NHS e-Referral Service provides an easy way for patients to choose their first hospital or clinic appointment with a specialist. Bookings can be made by the patient online, using the telephone, or directly in the GP surgery at the time of referral. Under the NHS Standard Contract, all GPs in England use e-RS to make referrals to consultant-led outpatient services.
The data do not include those patients that have had a referral, booking or attempted booking outside of e-RS. The percentage of GPs referring patients to first outpatient services using e-RS, in England is high, typically 95% or more.