Nearly two-thirds of those who responded to our survey believe that those patients who don't come for their appointments should be charged

Dr Terry John, Doctor Patient Partnership

The claim of the latest "Keep it or Cancel it" campaign is that more than 2.5m hours are being lost by GPs every year as they sit waiting for non-attendees.

Most of those surveyed said that a reduction in missed appointments would mean that other patients would not have to wait as long to see their doctor.

Dr Terry John, a GP from east London, said: "Nearly two-thirds of those who responded to our survey believe that those patients who don't come for their appointments should be charged.

"Although this would be an administrative nightmare, and nearly impossible to police, it highlights the frustration among the profession to even contemplate it."

Busy phones

He said that some of the blame lay with the surgeries themselves.

"Many times patients try to call to cancel their appointments and are not able to get through on busy surgery lines.

"It is the duty of the surgery staff to ensure that patients can easily cancel their appointment and provide the means necessary to do this."

The problem does not simply affect GPs - in hospitals, thousands of outpatient appointments are missed every year.

The director of policy for the Patient's Association, Simon Williams, said that patients and doctors should work together to reduce the problem.

"Patients need to made aware of the impact of missed appointments, and their cost to the NHS."