Private referral

[1880emma]

Has anyone gone private to get their endo seen to . I’m waiting a referral to a gynaecologist , I know 100 percent in my head I have endo but obviously it had it confirmed yet. I’ve been waiting for a year so far and just wondered do I go private for a referral and gynae app in the hope that it might spend things up a bit with the NHS. If I could afford to I’d pay for my operation but sadly that’s not an option at the moment .

[EndoSuckss]

Hi! I had my second lap and, subsequently, my hysterectomy done privately. I'd recommend it to anyone in a position to take that route, but appreciate not everyone is in a position to do so or has medical insurance.

My understanding is, if you have a private consultation then that person can put you on their NHS list - however, once on the NHS list you won't be seen any quicker than you would for your op. You'd get the intial consultation quicker, but that would be the only time you'd save. So could still be worth it if you're still waiting for an initial consultation and there's still a long while until you get an appt.

[1880emma in reply to EndoSuckss]

Yeah that’s what I was thinking , that it may be worth getting the consultation private to speed it up

[Moon_maiden]

Getting a private consultation can help just from a perspective of answers, you see the consultant not a registrar and you can choose who you see, so you Endo up seeing a gynaecologist with Endo training. First Gynae I saw was mainly for fibroids on a US scan, he then diagnosed Endo. I had the option of private or NHS for lap. Since then I’ve flicked back and forth if needing answers sooner than waiting for NHS. It’s down to the consultant to add to NHS list or not, not been refused yet.

At the moment private ops aren’t really happening either. I had my NHS one booked for the 4th at a private hospital and that was cancelled.

Has good and bad points, but overall good.

Not sure if this helps 🙂

[1880emma in reply to Moon_maiden]

It does help thank you

[Petitechili]

Hello,For my first surgery I had seen my gynaecologist privately and then he put me onto the NHS list for surgery because he suspected correctly that it was endo. I only waited 6months but that was 5yeara ago. For my 2nd surgery I ended up having to pay because the waiting was 2 years, 110weeks to be exact, and I was in severe pain. I'm in N. Ireland so things are maybe different here. I was able to ring my hospital booking centre to get an approximate wait time. Maybe you could try that. X

[1880emma in reply to Petitechili]

Thank you

[M1673402 in reply to Petitechili]

Hi, sorry to jump on this post, can I ask how long the wait was going privately in NI? I’m in the same boat waiting on next surgery and wondering about all the practicalities of going private

[Petitechili in reply to M1673402]

Hey, I waited maybe 3months for private surgery in N. I. Then I found out after the surgery, that they couldn't operate on my bowel and didn't realise the extent of the endo. So it wasn't very successful. When I went to an endo specialist in England, they recommended a very specific mri to be done first. They were able to see the endo problems and the need for a colorectal surgeon. I ended up having yet another private surgery last march in Birmingham with 2 surgeons. They successfully detached my bowel and all the endo from it and around it. The saved my bowel and I don't think that would have been the case if I hadn't sought then out. It was more expensive in England but I highly recommend seeing a proper endo specialist and not just someone who "has an interest in endo". Just to save you the further surgeries and money! I will be paying mine off for a very long time. If there's anything else you want to ask, please don't be afraid to. X

[M1673402 in reply to Petitechili]

Thanks so much for this! I’m in a similar boat, I had laparoscopic surgery just before Christmas and they couldn’t do very much as there were a lot of adhesions to my bowel…they removed some adhesions but recommended I go privately for ivf as they reckon the bowel surgery would be too complicated and that there are very few surgeons in NI who would even attempt to do what I need. I’m quite disappointed as I think I’d rather have the surgery I need to help prevent my pain (and perhaps also improve fertility) rather than putting it on the back burner as it’s too complicated to try and detach the bowel. It’s not really solving any problems and I fear things might get worse in the future. Can I ask was it very expensive for the bowel surgery you needed? Feel free not to share if you are not comfortable doing so. It’s just so crap that we have to consider putting ourselves in serious debt just to preserve our health! Also did you just research endometriosis specialists in England or was there anything in particular guided you to a particular person? Thanks again xx

[BryonyB]

Hello. I’ve gone privately for both of my laps and only had to wait three months for each from initial consultation which has been really great. If you have the option, I would definitely consider it ☺️

[1880emma in reply to BryonyB]

Thank you

[Escapologygirl]

In Ireland if you want to be seen by a gynaecologist you have to go private and sadly both times for me were a waste of time and money as neither are endometriosis experts and fobbed me off with decapeptyl injections and the mini pill. Apparently there's only 4 private gynaecologist in the country who specialises in endometriosis and you can imagine how long their waiting lists are. I wish you luck and hope you find a good one.

[1880emma in reply to Escapologygirl]

Thanks for your reply . Doesn’t soon good does it 🙄

[Escapologygirl in reply to 1880emma]

Sadly no, but if this was a male problem it'd be well documented and sorted by now ! Good luck

[Petitechili in reply to Escapologygirl]

This is so sad and really unfair.

[SaraDell]

Hi, I’m a little late to respond but maybe I might be useful. I was actually referred by my doctor to a private clinic who in turn booked me on for a laprocapy. I was diagnosed with stage 2 endo, which like yourself I knew I had, and had been battling with for 11 years.This was back in March and from the time I was told I was going to have the op and from the time I was booked in, was roughly a month. I had so many NHS appointments cancelled and was extremely lucky to be referred private as I would likely be struggling still. Definitely push with your doctor

[Lasagne2]

Yes i ended up going private I told the doctor to refer me to a gyno as the NHS were practically not doing anything and the pain was only worsening. It can be expensive (going through Bupa) but without it I would still be in the same position as before. Privately I have had an MRI off the bat and now scheduled an op!