for having to pay the doctor?

[LouIsOnAHighwayToHell]

I had to have a medical done for a job application. All that was required from the Doctor was to do my BP, test my refelxes, listen to my lungs and heart, push and prod here for a bit and take some blood. Oh and stamp her name on a form. It took her all of 15 minutes to do this.
This cost me the grand sum of £120!!
Now I pay tax, rarly go to the doctor and am fit and healthy so I fail to see why I should have to pay so much for such a basic service?

Standard practice I'm afraid. I think that the charges for these kinds of things are standard NHS charges.

If you get the job will the employer reimburse you?

If the medical is for work, charge your employer back for it/ claim it on expenses. Why should the NHS cough up for it, if it's something which is required by your employer?

our pre-employment medicals are £141, but on the website it says as of Sept 2007 so maybe is even more now?

Next time find a private gp. I pay £30 a time to see mine (if not a follow up or something that is covered by my medical insurance) and she has done a test/paper work like that in the past for me for no extra charge.

Yes it is for work and no I cannot claim it back. I fail to see why it is so expensive though. If I can get a boob job (cosmetic not reconstructive as they should be free) onthe NHS then why not a medical? If I had to see a specialist doctor then fine but this was just a normal appointment with my normal GP. If I want a blodd test it is free. If I want my reflexes checked it is free so why when there is a form involved it costs a fortune??

You get charged because it's not a NHS service, why on earth should it be, its for your and your employers benefit, no medical need for it whatsoever!
Why on earth should good NHS time be spent for your personal benefit

Oh and certainly round here, you cannot get any kind of cosmetic surgery on the NHS, and I pretty sure not in most places!

you should be cross with your employers who have asked oyu to pay for this and are not going to reimburse you

I don't think it should have been free. It's not something that was medically necessary, so why should the NHS foot the bill? You required a service in addition to what is provided by the NHS and the GP provided that service - why would you expect not to pay for that?

The charge does sound a bit excessive for what was done, but then having paid for health care abroad it isn't cheap, I think we get a bit blinkered to the cost over here as we're so used to not paying directly.

I think it was a bit UR of your employer to expect you to pay personally though, if it is a requirement of your job then they should fund it.

"If I had to see a specialist doctor then fine but this was just a normal appointment with my normal GP"

ROFL, yes because GPs aren't specialists they are just plain doctors. Why oh why don't we have a roll eye smiley....

I could handle paying a fee but I think £120 is a bit steep. £30 yes but to process the form is surely not costing the NHS £120.
You can get cosmetic surgery on tghe NHS if you state that the problem is causing you depression etc (says someone who has been depressed and knows it is a real issue). Small boobs are not life threatning.

Yes I agree that it is not medically necessary but my concern is mainly with how much the charge is.

Yes, Yabu. Take it out on your employers.

YABU. The BMA has guidance for standard charges for these sort of forms which your GP is following. They are not a charity FFS.

yabu. But so are your employers.

I agree. It shouldn't be £120.00. Part of the problem is that NHS GPs don't know how much to charge. My mom was visiting last year from the US, and she got a prescription and they had absolutely no idea what to charge. Ended up being £55.00 for anti biotics

There's probably a notice in your sugery's reception and waiting room about the charges they impose for non-NHS services. At our GP's. there's a list detailling what they charge for things like that so people know in advance.

The doctors only get reimbursed for NHS work, otherwise he's giving you his time as a charity case - GP sugeries are 'private' businesses paid for by the NHS as far as I know. It's unreasonable to expect the GP to give up an NHS appointment which he/the surgery will be paid for and do a private one which they will recieve nothing for, without passing on the cost of their time to you.

I'll agree that £120 seems a bit steep for a few standard tests in an appointment, but to expect it gratis is a little naive. Perhaps you should be asking for a breakdown of the cost, or working out why it was so much instead of protesting the charge altogether. As I say though, the surgery should display a charge list somewhere which you can check.

I never said free. I did not expect it free and did not say that all. I did not expect it to be so much. I was not aware that it was not on the NHS service. Thank you for pointing that out. I am questioning the amount. If it had been an hour long appointment I would pay that.

but why shouldn't it be so much? Do you know how to listen to the heart and lungs to see if there is anything out of the ordinary?

Oh I wish I could get a boob job for free on the NHS...

I have huge breasts - sadly. They cause me pain, discomfort, embarassment and yes, depression. The kind I was medicated for.
But no breast reduction. It is not funded where I live. No matter how bad I get with regards to them.

The NHS is not a bottomless pit and forms for employers are not a NHS priority. You are after all not actually currently ill - it is a form filling exercise and time spent away from treating ill people.

That said, £120 does seem a bit steep - £50 would be plenty.

BMA guidance here:

1. Work in surgery

a) Extract from records - £58.50 b) Report on a pro forma, no examination (eg 20 minutes) - £78.25 c) Written report without examination, providing a detailed opinion and statement on the condition of the patient (eg 30 minutes) - £117.00 d) Comprehensive clinical examination including report, certificate, or completion of necessary forms (eg 45 minutes) - £175.50

Looks like you got a bargain to me, considering you were examined.

Liath - really that much for those services!!!
Libra - No I do not and do not claim to know how to do that.

I can understand everyones points of view and I agree that there should be a fee but £50 would cover a minor examination.

I have never had this done before so it was new to me.

THank you for your opinions.

Gps are self-employed, contracted to the Health Board or PCT to provide the services.

And they are specialists. They are (I know it sounds stupid, but 'tis true) Specialist Generalists. There's no other branch of medicine where you literally do not know what is walking through the door next - depression, cancer, sore throat, heart disease, etc etc etc ....

I'm glad my dh didn't see you type "If I had to see a specialist doctor then fine but this was just a normal appointment with my normal GP".

£120 sounds reaonable to me.
The £55 pounds for antibiotics sounds fair too, as that will have included the initial asessment and diagnosis before the prescription was given.

I think that we are all just so accustomed to having the NHS to that it does come as a bit of a shock when you need to pay privately for something.

Weegiemum - Oh I know they are specialists. Not one I would want to choose to do so I would never look down on a GP although I know many do for some strange reason. It's a hard and frustrating job. I meant specialist like cardiologist, orthopod etc. Specialists that I need a referral from. Also I did not know that they are self employed.

Oh and the medical is for a job within the health industry too.

If you had blood tests done dont forget they have to be paid for too. They will need to be sent to a lab which the GP surgery will pay to process them. Your GP will also spend time checking them when the results come back too.

I think YABU.But your employer should pay for it.