Information Needed on Irish Ablationist

[samjam1]

I've been trying to find out if Dr Gabor Szeplaki in the Mater Private Hospital in Dublin uses imaging equipment to map all the chambers of the heart and then ablates all involved nerves rather than, as most Surgeons do, just ablates around the Pulmonary Vein.

I have contacted his office but been told that I would need to get a referral for a consultation (involving considerable time, travel and expense) to find out.

Any help much appreciated.

[Finvola]

I notice from Dr Szeplaki’s profile on the Mater site that he specialises in complex ablations for AF. This would indicate perhaps that there is also complex mapping involved. My own EP was based in the Mater before he moved to Belfast and he brought with him skills in complex mapping for ablation.

I’m surprised that his office were not more helpful but it is a private hospital. If you are within travelling distance of Belfast, the Royal Victoria has a team of EP specialists and if you live in the Republic of Ireland, it might be possible to get treatment in Belfast under an EU scheme - forgotten the name of the scheme but will look it up for you.

[Finvola in reply to Finvola]

Apparently, it is an EU directive for cross-border treatment in either private or state healthcare and applies within all EU countries and Switzerland. Someone I know from Republic of Ireland was treated in our local private hospital because of long waiting lists and was reimbursed in full under the scheme.

[seasider18 in reply to Finvola]

I'm sure it is difficult to get a cross border referral. When I lived in Scotland it took me about six months to get a referral to Newcastle for a procedure that was not done in Edinburgh.

On the other hand many continental hospitals are seeking UK patients to fill their empty beds. Kent is at the moment sending patients to a hospital in Calais.

[Finvola in reply to seasider18]

From talking to the guy from the Republic of Ireland, I believe his GP had to sign the EU form to say that his pain was such that the 2 year waiting list for surgery in his local hospital was unacceptable and that referral was needed urgently to the closest facility in the UK.

I’m not sure how referral from N Ireland to the rest of the UK works - but I suspect it is extremely limited to severe, highly specialised cases.

[seasider18]

In theory it is all one country but there and Wales have longer waiting times than the rest of the country for most things.

The NHS can send patients to Private hospitals to get waiting times down With back door privatisation as in Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Chronic Pain where the services were put out to tender between NHS areas and private companies now called MSK Partnerships paid to run the service for five years have control of whole areas.

A determined Welsh lady on the cardiac and eye forums has been getting her treatments in London for some time.