Patients are giving up on seeking NHS care because of lost test results, late appointment letters and the struggle to contact the health service.

A 'dysfunctional' NHS admin system threatens patient safety, healthcare experts and patient groups have warned.

Almost two-thirds of patients and carers who have used the NHS in the past year have experienced at least one admin problem.

Nearly a third of patients had to chase results following test, scans or X-rays, while one in five received an appointment invitation after the date of the appointment, based on a survey of almost 1,900 respondents, reported by The King's Fund, National Voices and Healthwatch England.

Among those experiencing administrative issues in the past year, 45 per cent had given up seeking care or treatment as a result.

Meanwhile, 42 per cent said their bad experience had made them less likely to seek care in the future.

It comes as patients told to book, cancel and change their own appointments online, or using the NHS app, are taking on more of their own admin, the three organisations say – which makes things harder for many people if the technology is not designed for their needs.

Jacob Lant, chief executive of National Voices, which includes more than 200 health and social care charities in England, said: 'Admin plays a crucial role in how patients experience healthcare, yet our research shows many people find themselves in an admin doom loop, trapped by no-reply emails and unable to access the person or answers they need.

'This goes beyond inconvenience, often risking people's quality of care.'

A report from the three health organisations, called Lost in the System: the need for better admin in the NHS, found that admin is particularly tricky for people with multiple health conditions, warning: 'Managing the admin associated with arranging appointments and tests and moving between hospital and the community, or between different clinical teams, can feel like a full-time job to manage.'

While half of those surveyed felt the NHS is good at communicating with patients about things like appointments and test results, a quarter said it was poor.

Almost a third of patients using the NHS in the past year said they had not been kept updated on how long they would have to wait for treatment or care, and 23 per cent had not been told who to contact while waiting.

The report says NHS communication is too often 'one-way', with people sent texts they can't respond to, given a telephone number that remains unanswered, or only able to send a message to a service within office hours.

The survey of 1,888 people, aged 18 to 75, carried out by polling company Ipsos, found 17 per cent of people using the health service in the past year had tried to contact the NHS to change or cancel an existing appointment but not been able to.

One patient told The King's Fund: 'I attempted four times to cancel an auto-generated outpatient appointment at a specialist trust because I was going to be on holiday.

'I wasn't able to cancel it, got marked as a 'did not attend' (DNA), which triggered me being discharged from the service, and I was told the only way to get back in was to see the GP for a new referral or to turn up at the trust's A&E.'

Julia Cream, a co-author of the report from The King's Fund charity, said: 'The Government is trying to bring down waiting lists and improve access but these efforts will fail if the NHS cannot communicate effectively with people about when their appointment is or who they need to contact.'

Louise Ansari, chief executive of patients' group Healthwatch England, said: 'Administrative errors are frustrating and can have serious implications for patient safety.

'If people miss their tests or scans, they will face a longer wait for their care, putting their health at risk.'

The three organisations want the NHS to regularly report on patient experiences of admin, which is currently 'overlooked' and seen as an area for savings.

Dr Victoria Tzortziou Brown, vice-chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: 'GPs and our team members are often involved in chasing up test results, missing letters, and appointments with our patients, adding to our bureaucratic workload.'

The NHS said it had started to address outdated tech and data systems affecting patient admin through investment in front-line digitisation and the NHS App.

A spokesman said: 'We have set out some of our plans to make further improvements in the NHS Elective Reform Plan and will work with the Government to build an NHS fit for the future through the 10 Year Health Plan.'

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: 'We are upgrading the NHS app, so patients can book and rearrange appointments, choose which hospital to be treated at, receive test results, and choose if they want to be seen in person or remotely.'