Test Results

Download the NHS App, or open the NHS website to check your test results

Get test results

1. Log in to your NHS account on your computer or smartphone.

2. Click on Your health.

3. Click on GP health record.

To request online access to your test results (Monday to Friday)

• Use an online form Monday to Friday, 08:00 – 18:30 to request online access to your test results. We will respond within 2 working days when we are open. We are open Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 18:30.

• Phone us Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 18:30 only for inquiries. Our receptionists will not give you access over the phone as we have to see your photo ID first. They will be able to text you a link where you can upload a picture of your photo ID.

• Visit the surgery and speak with a receptionist. We are open Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 18:30.

• Use the NHS App to request access to your test results.

When you attend for a test of any kind you will be told how long you should expect to wait for the results. Please bear this in mind and only call the surgery after sufficient time has elapsed.

Our reception staff are not qualified to comment on results therefore it is your responsibility to check them and make any necessary follow-up appointment with the doctor.

Please note that we do have a strict policy regarding confidentiality and data protection. In this respect we will only give out results to the person they relate to unless that person has given prior permission for their release or if they are not capable of understanding them.

We will only call you should there be a need to do so. If your results are entirely normal, we will not call. If you do not hear from us, it means everything is ok. If we do call, we will do so as soon as we receive the results back.

When tests are requested by hospital, the results go back to them. Call the hospital for the results.

Our telephones are very busy in the early morning. Telephone for test results (e.g. blood, urine, x-ray) after 11.00.

Blood Tests

A blood test is when a sample of blood is taken for testing in a laboratory. Blood tests have a wide range of uses and are one of the most common types of medical test. For example, a blood test can be used to:

• assess your general state of health

• confirm the presence of a bacterial or viral infection

• see how well certain organs, such as the liver and kidneys, are functioning

A blood test usually involves the phlebotomist taking a blood sample from a blood vessel in your arm and the usual place for a sample is the inside of the elbow or wrist, where the veins are relatively close to the surface. Blood samples from children are most commonly taken from the back of the hand. The child’s hand will be anaesthetised (numbed) with a special cream before the sample is taken.

Royal Free London (RFL) has updated the times to receive test results from cardiology, pathology, and imaging within the following time frames.

These start when a sample is received in RFL laboratories, or the test has been completed and is subject to change.

Cardiology

Royal Free Hospital

• 24-hour blood pressure monitoring: one week

• 24-hour ECG: two weeks

• Echo: two weeks

• ECG: one week

Barnet Hospital / Chase Farm Hospital / Edgware Community Hospital

• 24-hour blood pressure monitoring: one day

• 24-hour ECG: three weeks

• Echo: two weeks

• ECG: one week

Pathology

All Royal Free London sites 

• Biochemistry tests: three days 

• Haematology tests: two days 

Imaging

All Royal Free London sites

• X-rays: four days 

• Ultrasounds: two days 

• Dexa scans: one to two weeks

If the doctor has asked you for a repeat test, please do not worry. If there is a serious problem the doctor will speak to you directly.