Private hospital not so great

[Taviterry]

Three weeks ago I contacted a private hospital about an appointment with any of the three haematologists on its website. One was allocated to me, I went to a little trouble to email through a summary of my medical history and my own spreadsheet of blood-test results, and my GP went to more trouble to send a referral and her own very comprehensive summary. The doctor was then on holiday and on his return offered me a face-to-face appointment on December 3 - forty minutes after I was due to start a telephone one with a NHS counterpart. I said I would be happy with a telephone appointment but, no, it had to be face-to-face and the slot I'd been offered was the last available one this year, but I could be placed on the waiting list for one in January! Luckily it's not a consultation I urgently need, I just want a fuller discussion about a few of the blood results.

Last year, on December 19, I saw a gastroenterologist at the same private hospital, who arranged some blood tests that same day. I got the invoice for these before I saw the results (that were poorly presented), and eventually had a telephone follow-up on January 30.

[Stentsandrun]

Could you just clarify what the point in all this is?

[Taviterry in reply to Stentsandrun]

Recurring themes on this Forum include concern about long delays for NHS appointments and for feedback on tests, and about feedback being limited - sometimes with irritation being expressed by the posters. Occasionally they are considering "going private" or it's suggested that they do so (with my then pointing out that a £200 appointment can include scans, tests and feedback that can increase the costs , in the case of my gastroenterologist consultation, quintupling them).

In starting this thread I sought to provide my own experience of seeking private treatment after a rushed NHS telephone appointment informed me that I had cardiac haemolytic anaemia linked to my new heart valve, with little opportunity for me to ask questions, followed by a two-line message saying that the reason for my being so fatigued was not haemolytic.

Previously I've posted about my heart surgeon's private hospital charging £550 for an ECG, which appears to be double the average.

With more and more people are turning to the private sector, I sought to caution that it does not always operate as satisfactorily as some might hope. Indeed, my own rating of its performance is lower than those for my GP practice and the Cardiology and Same Day Emergency departments at my NHS hospital.

[Sanmo in reply to Taviterry]

I agree with you on this one. Although I've never gone private, I did enquire as to the cost of an echocardiograph, I was on an 8 months NHS waiting list for one. I was told by the private hospital that I would need a consultation first even though I had all my notes and a video of my procedure, what could I have told them that would change how they performed the echocardiograph! The consultation was a flat £250 before anything would be done, then the cost of the echocardiograph itself which would be discussed at the consultation. It made me realise that this was a money making consultation, at the end of the day they operate as any commercial business does, profit is the goal.

[Taviterry]

Many (most?) private hospitals and care homes are owned by private equity groups whose main aim is to provide a good return for their investors. I gather much the same has happened with veterinary practices.

[Taviterry]

This afternoon I had an NHS appointment with a genial cardiologist who also works at a local private hospital; I asked him much the latter would charge for an ECG. About £150, he said. (See above for my comment about being charged £550.)