Endoscopy

Our endoscopy department offers a complete range of diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopic services and care for approximately 12,000 patients per year.

We are a day unit treating both outpatients and inpatients for planned gastrointestinal procedures, and also more urgent and emergency endoscopy procedures.

You can be referred to us for a number of conditions such as anaemia, ulcers, oesophagitis, colitis, Crohn's disease, cancer of the digestive tract, liver disease and gallstones.

We also work collaboratively with the bowel cancer screening service and specialist screening practitioners to provide dedicated bowel cancer screening lists several times per week.

How this services works

Endoscopy is a procedure that uses a long, flexible lighted tube with a camera on the end. This is inserted through natural openings such as your mouth or rectum depending on which part of your body is being examined. The camera sends images to a screen so the doctor or clinical endoscopist can get a closer look at the inside of your body.

What is endoscopy used for?

Endoscopy is used to look closely at the lining of your gastrointestinal tract to assess for changes such as inflammation, ulceration, bleeding, polyps and cancer. Samples called biopsies can be taken during endoscopy which will be looked at in a laboratory.

Endoscopy can also be used therapeutically. For instance, to remove polyps, control gastrointestinal bleeding and remove gall stones.

Referrals to the endoscopy service

Patients can be referred by their GP for a direct access oesophago-gastro-duodenoscopy (gastroscope) or straight to test colonoscopy. Other referrals come from doctors, surgeons and specialist nurses in clinics and other hospitals.

I've been told I need an endoscopy procedure. How do I get it booked?

Once our booking team receive your referral and have an appointment for you they will try to contact you by telephone so please make sure the team and your GP have the correct telephone numbers for you.

What if the endoscopy booking team can't contact me?

You will be sent a letter stating that we have tried to contact you and asking you to contact us within a certain timeframe.

If you do not contact us, you will be removed from our waiting list and discharged back to the care of your GP or referring clinician.

You can be referred to us to investigate or monitor a number of conditions such as anaemia, ulcers, oesophagitis, colitis, Crohn's disease, cancer of the digestive tract, liver disease and gallstones.