Some time ago I was advised to have an MRI scan by a cardiologist whom I went to see privately. The clinic charged £850 for the test and the consultant who interpreted the findings charged £150. (Not that the cost matters in this case).
Subsequently I was hospitalised after presenting to A&E with sepsis which then manifested itself as endocarditis, resulting in a nine week hospital stay.
During this time my original NHS consultant who had been looking after my AF and HF decided to have a look at my scan, firstly to do her own interpretation, and secondly as a means to comparison with a previous one which she had organised some time before.
Apparently the scan itself is the property of the clinic who carried out the procedure, and my payment was for the use of their equipment, so neither I nor my consultant may have access to it. This necessitates another one being carried out in a couple of weeks with the cost being borne by the NHS. What a waste! I thought I was saving government money, but not so apparently!
Discuss 😀
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P0rtnahapp1e
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Hidden , I'm not going to persue it, as with passing time the findings become irrelevant, but my consultant, quite rightly, says the scan isn't as important as the interpretation and the findings, therefore the scan should be made available to anyone authorised by myself.
That seems to be the norm - even my chiropractor has a large notice displayed that X- rays are the property of the clinic.
I cannot see what benefit there is to the clinic to have such strict policy with something which may have serious health information. Legal issues perhaps?
Did you not get copy letters of your private consult and tests? Usually it's the specific NHS hospital that insists on repeating scans so they can compare like with like. As you say waste of scarce resources
I had a four part (spine and pelvic area) MRI scan privately at the Royal Sussex last year. They also had to reset my MRI compatible pacemaker for the procedure. It cost just over £1000. They sent the DVD and the radiologists report to me by express post and I got it the next day. I made copies of it for my GP, the neuro surgeon and my local hospital records. The same applied when I had a spine CT scan at a Spire hospital in 2015.
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