Private doctors have the same medical qualifications as doctors who work for the NHS, the only difference is that they work in independent hospitals and clinics that charge for their services.
There are a number of reasons why someone may want to choose private healthcare. Firstly, you will have access to faster appointments and treatment, as well as the luxury of being able to choose your consultant and where you receive your treatment. In addition to this, many private healthcare centres offer services and treatments that aren’t necessarily available on the NHS. Lastly, private treatments are carried out in private, comfortable rooms with the addition of services such as menu choices, a television and unlimited visiting hours.
Private medical care offers numerous benefits, including:
Your general practitioner (GP) can provide you with medical advice (via phone or face-to-face consultations), treatment and prescribe any necessary medication that you may need. In addition to this, they are able to refer you to other specialists who may be better suited to diagnosing and/or treating specific aspects of your condition.
Since you will be paying for their services, it’s important to find the right private clinic who can give you the highest standards of care. In order to do so, you’ll want to ensure you find a clinic that has a good reputation and whose staff have all the necessary qualifications (all doctors should be registered with the General Medical Council), as well as ample experience.
You can speak to your current GP about accessing private healthcare near you, and there are also tools online that may help you find a local private clinic.
You can schedule a private GP appointment with us by using our online booking system – choose between a 15, 30 and 45 minute appointment.
Like any other general practitioner (GP), the role of a private GP is to listen to your health concerns and offer you diagnostics, advice and treatment for any illnesses, conditions and states of health, whether acute or chronic. This is done in the form of appointments and check-ups, both in person and over the phone.
The great thing about private ultrasounds is that you can make the appointment to have one yourself, rather than needing a referral from your GP, which means that you will have flexibility around scheduling your ultrasound appointment. You will also receive your results a lot faster when you book a private ultrasound, with the option for a GP follow-up to discuss these.
Choosing to book a private scan, be it an echocardiogram, ultrasound or Fibroscan, offers you peace of mind regarding your health by having various areas of your body scanned via these methods without the need for a referral from your GP.
A Fibroscan is a non-invasive diagnostic advice that is used to measure liver scarring or fibrosis caused by a number of liver diseases. It scans your liver using ultrasound technology, which makes it a quick, painless and easy non-surgical alternative to a traditional liver biopsy.
A liver ultrasound is an effective non-intrusive way of diagnosing or monitoring the progression of diseases affecting the liver. It can also be used to monitor liver health for patients following a liver transplant. Not only can a liver ultrasound, such as Fibroscan, spot early signs of liver damage, but it gives a highly accurate diagnosis and reduces the need for a liver biopsy.
The contraceptive coil – also known as an intrauterine device (IUD) – is a form of non-hormonal contraception for people with a womb. It is a small, T-shaped device made from plastic and copper that is inserted into the uterus through the cervix. It works by releasing copper into the womb, which alters the cervical mucus so that it is more difficult for sperm to reach an egg and survive, and to stop a fertilised egg from being able to implant itself into the uterine lining.
Health screening involves testing apparently healthy individuals through pathological and physiological measurements in order to provide a detailed snapshot of their current health. This is done to identify whether they have any underlying conditions or an increased chance of developing any conditions or diseases, which may then be investigated further.
A steroid injection is an injection into the joints to help reduce inflammation, thus aiding the reduction of pain and swelling in the joints so that they can move more easily. It is used to help those suffering from arthritis or joint pain caused by injury. This is a pain relieving procedure rather than a curative one, and is often used in conjunction with other medicines and physiotherapy.