Has anyone used a private gp service, how does it work?

[Thewholeshackshimmy]

I have several, ongoing health issues which have been troubling me over the last few years.
I have seen several GPs and have changed surgeries twice.
In 2019, after changing surgeries, I settled with a great GP, she was new and really took her time going through my issues and trying to tackle them.
Then Covid hit and I appreciate it’s messed up so many health services and I totally appreciate that many GPs are under tremendous pressure but my health issues are causing me daily problems and taking over my life right now, life is miserable because of them and I feel that I am going round in circles with my GP surgery.
I found out last year that my fantastic GP had left. Since then I have not had any consistency and have all of my telephone consultations (still no closer to any face to face at my surgery) are with a different GP each time.
I am no closer to tackling my health issues because by the time I have my 10 min consultation, a prescription or suggestion is made and then I have to wait 4-6 weeks for the next available appointment and often by then the prescription etc hasn’t helped so we’re back to square one and my list of issues never gets properly dealt with.
So I am wondering if a private GP service would be of help to me? I see online that you can have a 30 min appointment which would allow me to discuss my issues in more detail without the complete rush that I encounter with my current surgery (during my last consultation my gp actually called me by the name of the item she was prescribing, she called Mrs Gluconate! she was obviously so stressed and under pressure poor woman).
But I don’t know anyone who has used private GP services, how does it work? Will I have to be with a private GP permanently? Will it end up costing a small fortune? Would it mean de registering with the NHS GP services or can you use a private GP as a supplementary service at times like these when the NHS is under so much pressure?
Does anyone have any experience with this?

You can use them as a one off and don't have to deregister from the NHS. Any prescription they give you will be private. If you pay for your NHS prescriptions, it can sometimes be cheaper but equally can be more expensive depending on the cost of the drug/s. You'll also have to pay for any blood tests, scans etc.

It might be better to see a private consultant, if you have some idea what your medical issue is? They can diagnose you and then refer you back in to the NHS if you can't afford ongoing private.

If you're less sure what's wrong, a one off GP might be helpful. Like you say, you need the time that a rushed 10 minutes with a very stressed NHS GP can't give you.

Posted too soon.

If you see a private GP, I'd suggest a face to face. The virtual ones can be better for one off issues or more minor short-term problems.

Can you ask to see the same GP at your NHS surgery? Also ask for a double appointment. It might also help if you put it in writing, explaining the issue/s, with bullet points of the key symptoms.

I hope you can access the help you need.

It's a growing problem in the UK. Patients left struggling for too long. A proactive preventative healthcare system would cost a lot upfront but long term would be worth it. And of course, good health and quality of life are priceless.

Good luck OP.

I've used both Babylon which is £150 a year for unlimited video/phone appointments or £50 for a one off. And a private face-to-face GP which was £150 for a single 20 minute appointment.

You don't have to deregister with your GP to use either.

Babylon I used in more of an 'emergency' situation when I needed a doctor on a weekend. In that scenarios I wasn't hugely impressed with it, the doctor asked all the right questions and gave advice but then went 'I can't be sure because I can't examine you, so to be on the safe sign you need to go to A&E to get it checked'. They wrote a letter for A&E to tell them what they thought they should check. Maybe it would be better in a less 'emergency' situation.

The face to face GP was a lot more useful. I looked up one locally that had an interest in the area of the issue. They examined me, and wrote their findings up for my GP. There was definitely a bit of a push to undergo extra tests privately, which in the end I took up as my NHS GP wasn't keen on doing what the private GP as recommended. So the £150 would have been a waste if I couldn't have afforded to continue doesn't the private route.

As someone else mentioned you may end up paying for prescriptions. The private consultant wrote to my GP asking for them to prescribe something, the GP told me they weren't able to prescribe me that drug (trust policy) so I ended up having to pay for it privately, plus the cost of prescription check ups and the prescription being written.

You can see a private GP as a one off, however it sounds like you have complex needs and therefore a one off appointment may not be suitable.

Private GPs and consultants (specialists) cannot refer you back into the NHS. So if you need scans, histologies, other tests and diagnostics, physio, surgery etc, you will have to get an NHS referral if you do not want to pay for those things privately.

Good luck, I hope it all goes well. ♥️

Thank you everyone. I will look into it a bit more deeply.
I have paid to see a few private consultants but my issues are still ongoing. I think the symptoms I suffer may all be connected in some way but when you consult with an NHS GP for less than 10 mins they just don’t have enough time to go into the symptoms deep enough to make any connections, it’s so frustrating and has been going on for quite some time. I can’t see that I am ever going to get to the bottom of it unless I see someone privately and ideally face to face as I don’t see face to face consultations with NHS GPs happening any time soon.