Private doctors fees - Confused..

[Yayoikinoko]

I have recently undergone some lung function tests and a CT scan as I have been breathless and wheezing for a long time without any improvement. I decided to pay privately to skip wait times on the NHS.
Anyway, the doctor I used when I had long covid was fully booked for months so I used a different doctor at Springfield Medical Centre in Chelmsford.
I have been sent the bill but I'm a little confused as I have been asked to pay 4 separate bills.
Bill 1, is initial consultation(£250) - very basic, just checked weight, height and asked some questions. No basic lung tests.
Bill 2, The CT scan to be paid directly to the Springfield hospital (£750)
Bill 3, £220 to be paid to Broomfield hospital for lung function tests performed not by the doctor who did the consultation but someone else from Broomfield hospital
Bill 4, £250 Full lung function tests with Dr x and follow up consultation (however he didn't perform any tests - I had one set of tests at Broomfield hospital ). I did receive a phone call from the initial doctor x who gave my results over the phone.

The first 2 bills, I understand - The second two have confused me.

Can anyone help explain if this is normal. It was very different from the service I had at the Oaks Hospital in Colchester.

I wasn't very happy with the service I received for them either, I found them to be unprofessional and very slow comms.

I have queried bill 4 and his secretary said oh sorry I meant to say £250 - Initially it was £200.

So, just so I'm clear, you had:

1. An initial consultation
2. A CT scan
3. Some lung function tests in a different hospital but a different doctor
4. A follow up consultation with the original doctor

It sounds like there were 4 events = 4 bills. Those figures seem quite normal. When I saw my rheumatologist privately, even a 5 min phone call often was considered an appointment and therefore charge as such. It should all be laid out in your T&Cs though. You do normally have to pay doctor(s) and tests separately as most doctors (in this context) are consultants rather than staff

The only one I would question is the lung function test in bill 4, if the doctor who is charging you didn’t actually do a test.

That said, £250 for the consultation sounds right so I wonder if it was discussing the lung function test rather than performing it.

All the other bills seem fine.

I think it was a charge for a follow up consultation to discuss the other test results rather than actual tests.

So 4 items and 4 bills so all fairly usual.

Medical secretary in private practice here. The CT and the lung function test fees are payable to the venues that do them. I can only think that the doctor is
charging you a fee on top of his follow up consultation fee for interpretation of the lung function results. A bit cheeky in my book. I think I would query (via his secretary)why you have had to pay twice in relation to lung function tests. It may be an error but if not, at least you may make him/her squirm a bit.

Also, initial consultation fee is always more than follow up consultation fee. So, seems he has charged you extra for something second time.

absolutely ask about the billing if unsure.

but as pp describe, private practice invoices each and every action they take. you would usually receive different invoices for different services.

did you have blood tests? could that be invoice number 4?

I assume that's why the secretary reduced it to £200 when questioned though.

Until now (for me) the consultation to discuss the results of a test has always been included in the price of the test itself.
So I’d have expected 3 and 4 to be together?

Oh ignore me, I read it wrong!

He’s expensive. My dh charges £200 for initial consultation and £100 for follow up.

@mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork Thank you. This is what I thought. He even wrote in my initial consultation letter that he would he would keep costs down as I had explained that I am a single parent. I feel that the last charge is excessive and wasn't made clear.

@mynameiscalypso yes, she actually increased it when questioned!

@MissyB1 Thanks for replying - this is what I thought.

It isn’t for you to try to work out what their invoices mean, it’s for them to explain very clearly what is going on. Keep asking questions. Until you are satisfied that the invoice is correct, don’t pay any of it.

I had to query invoices with a private doctor and he’d got them totally wrong (like £2000 too high) because he was slapdash with his admin.

@greenacrylicpaint no, no blood tests

@mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork

I have her reply here - would be keen to hear your thoughts:

Sorry for typing as £ 450. Its £ 500
your initial consultation (£ 250), Follow up consultation (£ 150) , Lung function test technician fees and reporting (£100). I have already emailed you the invoices.
The amount you have paid to Broomfield is only for use of the NHS premises and the equipment.
Before doing the Lung-function test i informed the cost to be around £ 450.00 ( £ 250 Dr Hattotuwa invoice and the NHS invoice) and that Broomfield will be invoicing directly. When a patient is happy only we arrange the test.

@FriendsReunited Sorry that you had that experience and well done for challenging it and getting it sorted.

Sorry, just saw your update. Most tests I organise are done at private clinics and hospitals, so the patient gets charged one fee for the test, use of equipment and technician's report. Like echocardiograms and eegs, etc, the technicians doing the tests are not actual doctors but are highly skilled in doing the tests and analysing the results. It seems that Broomfield allow their equipment to be used but do not pay the technician for doing it, so he/she bills you their fee via the consultant . It isn't a very satisfactory way of doing things from your point of view but NHS hospitals are not very logical organisations to deal with over privately funded tests. The consultant/sec really should have explained this properly and let you know the costs beforehand as you are self funded. If you are in a similar situation in future, get them to give you the costs in writing, so you can decide if you can go ahead or not.

@mrsjoyfulprizeforraffiawork Thanks for explaining - It makes sense to me now.