Why should I have to pay to have private medical care I used to wonder?? Then one day a few years ago I decided maybe I should take out the Insurance, especialy as I am getting no younger, and yes the premiums did seem rather a lot.

Recently I have been quite poorly, and apart from a hopeless GP:rolleyes: and a farcical visit (sp) to A&E, where the amazing staff were just so overstretched,  I had my GP refer me to a private specialist............voila.......after months of nothing, within 6 weeks I have been scanned, tested, biopsies taken and they now know what is wrong. The payments I have made already far outweigh the £***'s of pounds the treatment has cost to date, and there is more to follow :rolleyes:

What does everyone else think of private health care/and or the fact you should need to pay, when we already do through National Insurance?

Libs sorry to hear you haven't been feeling too well :(

I am sorry but I know how hard people work in the NHS but I swear by Private Health Insurance and luckily I have been able to afford it :)

I have had it for most of my life and feel it has been worth every penny

You know that you will be seen straight away and you will get the best possible treatment (subject to your policy ;)

You also get treated with such respect rather than another statistic :rolleyes:

I haven't been excatly the most luckiest person when it comes to health so it has really been invaluable for me :)

Lucy
xx

I had a bit of a scare a while ago. I was seen by a private consultant and test done and my results received in the time it took to get an appt with an NHS consultant. I wasn't insured then so paid out myself - but I am now!

The payments I have made already far outweigh the £***'s of pounds the treatment has cost to date, and there is more to follow

Whoops, its the other way round........the cost of treatment has far exceeded my premiums to date.......need to engage brain before typing:rolleyes:

My late partner and my father both swore by private healthcare.  Quick, professional, and caring treatment.
I've never had to think about it, thankfully never having had any health worries, but as I'm getting older, it is something I will consider.

I never really envisioned myself having to use it really:rolleyes: well, I'd always been so healthy..... but as the other posters confirm, I'd hate to be without it now.

Had private health insurance for the family for 25 years and fortunately none of us have ever used it - so I suppose it was worth it just for that :D :D Now we haven't got it, we will just decide on whether or not to pay for private treatment as the need arises :) Certainly wouldn't hesitate to pay if necessary :)

Daisy

I miss the private health care I had when I lived in the US but our only private hospital up here isn't in a very nice place. :-( If only they moved it I'd sign up tomorrow.

I understood you could choose where you wished to be treated Lori Am sure will be corrected if am wrong, but don't let that be the only reason that stops you.

It is normally the Consultant and the Hospital that you can choose. They do however have to be registered with the Private Health Company although if they are not then they can apply :)

Private Health Care is worth every penny if you can afford the premiums.  In my opinion, nothing is more important than health so I would prefer to spend my money on that than on anything else!  Having said that, I think that we all ought to have the equivalent treatment to the Private treatment on the NHS because we all pay National Insurance anyway, if we work that is.   

> I think that we all ought to have the equivalent treatment to the Private treatment on the NHS because we all pay National Insurance anyway

In Belgium they have excellent health care - equivalent to our private nearly. BUT the cost of their National Insurance - the total of employers and employees - is approximately 50% of salaries :( :( You can have what you want if you are prepared to pay for it :)

Daisy

The NHS in this country is known for wasting public money!  If there was a closer eye kept on the finances, the system may operate better!  :)

I only know of 1 private hospital in my area liberty so I didn't even get around to checking out the specifics. Admittedly I'm not a local and my husband, who is, wouldn't even know where the NHS hospitals were. ;-) I think Newcastle doesn't provide a lot of choice. I'll keep checking from time to time though.

The one in our area is very nice and efficient too - probably the same people as yours Lori - but it's not very big, plus other reasons I'm not so keen on it. There's a lovely large new one in the centre of Leeds though.
With some levels of PHI you can choose the hospital/consultant you prefer, so if you don't mind travelling, it could be far better. I had a problem a few years ago that thankfully responded to GP treatment, but I did some research and found that a very good specialist for the problem was at a London hospital - I would have had no hesitation in going there had I needed to.

I suppose in an emergency, choice becomes difficult, but there's one NHS hospital here that I'd hate to find myself in purely due to past expereiences - and poor cleanliness!

Private can have advantages of speed although with the new cancer 2 week mandatory consultations this is not the issue it was, in that respect at least, but private care in not necessarily better and could be worse.  Our local private hospital is small and consequently the staff are not specialist in anything.  They have no onsite doctor overnight either.   I would always opt to wait a little longer and be treated at our NHS hospital on an appropriately specialist ward.

I agree, but the cancer has to be diagnosed in the first place Isabel:rolleyes: and some forms are not easily diagnosed by your GP am sure you will agree. :D

No Liberty, the 2 week referral is for a consultant's appointment for anything the doctor considers is suspicious of cancer there is no diagnosis at that point.

yeah ok Isabel........whatever, I now trust my specialist over my GP :D

I don't think you understand what I am saying :), your GP does not make any diagnosis, if he thinks your symptoms are a possible sign of cancer he refers you for an appointment, within 2 weeks, with your specialist.  How did you get to your specialist?

I insisted on being referred to a specialist, after months of blood tests etc kept coming back clear, when it was obvious something was wrong. The first set of blood tests and MIR scan via the specialist confirmed there was indeed a problem, and the exploratory ops also took away those nasty cancerous polyps the GP did not know where there:rolleyes:

He can only use the fast referral system if your clinical symptoms indicate it as he has to make clear on the referral form exactly what justifies the referral.  Unfortunately medicine is not always clear cut and if blood tests etc are all clear I'm not sure he could have met the criteria for you.  It is good your referral led to your necessary treatment :)

Isabel.......it was not a fast referral system, I have Private Medical Insurance.

Yes, I know that Liberty, my last post was explaining why I thought your GP did not consider you for it.  In my trust at least, if you present with symptoms that might suggest cancer you are fast referred but clearly, if those signs are not apparent, you are not.

I was thought to have a tumour in my ear canal it took 8 months for the hospital to see me I was unaware at the time that this is what my gp suspected and the consultant told me when he saw me. I would imagine if I had this tumour in the 8 months it took for them to see me it would have been to late

I don't think the 2 week appointment is fully operational Isabel -  unless it's a VERY recent directive :(

Around a year ago I had a scare and was scheduled to wait three weeks - on checking with the MacMillan service (before going the private route) I was advised within 12 weeks was regarded sufficient .......    I've had a friend since then left waiting longer for an initial appointment too (although fortunately given the all clear on the all day exam that went with it).

My GP friend has been using it in our local trust for a good 18 months I would say.

I was treated in the private wing of our local hospital under the consultant who worked in the main hospital. The nursing care was superb, two staff nurses per patient and no unqualified nurses nursing. If you have private health insurance, you have the choice!

Our local hospital no longer offers a private wing since the town's private hospital was built.  The consultants are of course all the same.

Hi Libs,

sorry you've been unwell and I hope you're on the mend soon soon :)

I'm all for private health care - if those of us that can afford it make use of it we get treated more rapidly, in better facilities and with less harassed staff etc plus those who can't afford the luxury have less folks in the queue so IMO it's a win / win situation.

However it's by no means perfect - my mum had a lump in her breast and it took five weeks for the private hospital to confirm that she had cancer :(   Mum didn't have insurance but our family paid privately because she was in poor health already and we were worried about MRSA scares etc.  (Which my sister contracted at the local general hospital that also houses the main oncology unit up here).  The private consultant allowed things to drag on much too long IMO.

Here's hoping you're already back to normal and if not, soon will be!
best wishes, Teri :)  

Am so sorry to hear about your Mum Teri :( I agree that health care should be the same for everyone, regardless. I was just relating my experiences, am sure there is a few folk out there, with less than favourable experiences of the Private Meds :(

Sorry you've not been too well Liberty:(.

We have private health insurance that pays for thing like optical dental hospital in- patient etc.  It also pays out for critical illness cover, but only after 26 weeks qualifying period.  I have to say our insurance has been an absolute god send to us just lately as I only got ssp from my employer.

I wish we had a private health insurance where by I could have chosen my consultants etc, I have it from 3 consultants that had I been seen earlier and proper tests done I wouldnt be in the situation I am now.

I wish we had a private health insurance where by I could have chosen my consultants etc, I have it from 3 consultants that had I been seen earlier and proper tests done I wouldnt be in the situation I am now.


My offer of the holiday I am so hoping you will accept

We have private health insurance that pays for thing like optical dental hospital in- patient etc.  It also pays out for critical illness cover, but only after 26 weeks qualifying period.

I have this to, but even though I work for the NHS I wish I had full private health cover.

I am lucky in the sense that I have just been able to pick my consultant for surgery. I had been given a different one at a different hospital who wasn't brilliant with the initial surgery, but then because I knew my case was very complex I wanted the best surgeon possible. It helped with me working at the hospital where he is based and thankfully he agreed to take me on as his patient.

After 8 hours of surgery, I am now home and feeling better than I have for a while.
I did ask him, if he had done all the same surgery privately how much it would have cost.......He informed me it would have been in the region of £28,000 !!!!!!!!

The thing is now though if I applied for private health insurance, they wouldn't cover any pre existing conditions.... so do I, or don't I ??

Gabrielle x

Hi Gabrielle

Bupa do a policy called Bupa Heartbeat which covers pre existing conditions :)

Glad you are feeling better

Lucy
xx

Thanks Lucy,
                I will go and have a look now......... :)

As a nurse in the NHS, I know the stress people are under doing the job. I work on a neo-natal surgical ICU unit. one of only 4 such units in the UK. Ideally, we should be 1:1 with the babies, but due to staff shortages, we usually find ourselves at least 1:2 which is not ideal when you have two critically ill babies who both need round the clock monitoring.....

The care I recieved during my recent stay was mediocre to say the least considering how poorly I was..... although I know the staff were at full stretch.....

I am feeling a little better now thanks Lucy...... still having good days and bad, but that is only to be expected.....
Hoping to go back to work if only a couple of days a week, early next year......... I do miss my job and the babies..... although I have enough to think about at home !! :D

Gabrielle xx

Well, I have to say as a retired Nurse, I maintained my private health insurance that was taken out originally when I was 20, with hubbys job as a Policeman. I have continued it ever since and boy am I glad I did! Not that I would wish ill-health on anybody but I have had over 8 major Ops in the last 10 years and certainly see it as well worth the £100 odd it costs me now. I enjoy having my own room, NOT having to go to the loo in a mixed ward(especially when you have colitis ) and I have witnessed or gone through this in the NHS!(I had quite bad colitis for many years, now thankfully under control) I think if I ended by insurance with BUPA I would never ever get cover again!! As I have multiple problems ALL of them would be excluded and anything else I had I'm sure they would put down as a result of previous illness/injury LOL so I would never give it up now. I never felt I had to justify having it when I worked in the NHS either...let's face it who wouldn't prefer to have privacy and decency?? All the best, Dawn

Isn't just a bit sad that everybody can't avail themselves to prompt and dignified care when required.................:-(

I have private health insurance, but was not able to use it for a hospital stay.   I was taken to the hospital in critical condition and by the time the consultant felt I was well enough to be moved to a private hospital I could not be bothered.  The private hospital in this case is literally attached to the NHS hospital, even so they will not take seriously ill patients. 

Emergency room staff and consultant were brilliant and literally saved my life.  The NHS hospital itself was absolutely disgusting and filthy.   Filthy to the point where the patients common bathroom had excrement smeared over the sink for two days.   I am sure I was only one of several patients that pointed this out to the nursing staff - but they did no more than shrug their shoulders.   I was in a small ward for critical care and some patients were literally sat up in a chair and left to themselves for six hours or more.   There weren't enough nurses and support staff and what staff there were seemed powerless to take care of basic health and hygiene issues on the ward.  It was a disgrace.  Food was horrible.  Breakfast was cold cereal or slices of bread so dry on around the edge many days they were almost as crisp as toast.  Food was the least problem compared to basic cleanliness, however.

I'm glad I have private health care, I did use if for some follow-up medical tests and consultation.   However - as an American I can tell you that the private health care systems has many faults and there is no guarantee your doctor is going to be competent just because he charges a load of money.  Contrary to popular belief, there is free health care in the US for anyone over the age of 65.  Plus, if someone is on long-term public benefit they also get free health care.  The people that get left out are what are termed the "working poor" - people that don't make a lot of money, but are disqualified from free health care and cannot afford the high cost of private health insurance (much more expensive in the US because it covers all care, including chronic conditions).

Having lived in both systems my opinion is that private health care should not be allowed.  The only way this country - any country - will develop top notch public health care is if there is no other alternative - for everyone.

Love your comments............in an ideal world eh! ;-)

Just be careful if you ever have an op done.  I used to work in Medical Staffing in an NHS hospital and we would have doctors applying for jobs or locum work who were working in the private sector that would never in a million years get a job in an NHS hospital.  All NHS doctors have ongoing education and training and are aware of current reasearch - this is not the case in the private sector.  If I needed an op done privately, I'd make sure it was done by someone who also worked for the NHS.

I thought the majority of Consultants worked in both NHS and Private sectors. All of the ones I have seen do :)

Lucy
xx

Yes - that's probably right.  I think I was thinking of some Registrars, particularly in Obs and Gynae, who had very shoddy CVs.