How long is the waitlist on the NHS now?

[chooko]

What does the wait time look going with the NHS now? I've heard mixed things some people say 6 months others say they are looking at 2 years especially if they are at the beginning stages (which we are). I'm now considering going private but just want to make sure I'm not doing it if the waitlist isn't long.

It depends on where you are; which clinic, which postcode. For us there was no waiting list at all.

However, we have spent around 6 months so far going for various appointments, so with the NHS you end up waiting in some way or another either way.

@AnonymousXXIX thank you. We are in Scotland. Did you have to do all those tests again? I've had many tests but that was when I was under my gynaecologist. It has now been confirmed and I'm now waiting to see the specialist at the clinic. I haven't heard when this will be at but for right now I'm at the 'bottom' of the list since I haven't seen the specialist now.

I heard it's at least 6 months wait in Scotland. But I could well be wrong; I will let someone else answer that!

We did a load of tests via GP, then were referred to fertility clinic, and then basically had to repeat all the tests again, before they submitted the funding forms. Waiting for that now. (And concerned they will then want to do more tests; who knows!) I have gathered from everyone else on this board though that every process is unique, e.g. for some funding forms were sent way sooner; others had to wait for fertility clinic referral way longer; and so forth.

In our case repetition tests was mostly because the clinic would not accept the ones from GP (which GP did not know), and also because a lot of things need to be checked every couple of months or else the info is outdated (ultrasound for me, SA for DH).

@AnonymousXXIX ah! I think it might be the same for us then since we haven't had our tests in 18+ months so they'll probably be wanting a more up to date test. I seen on another forum on here that a lot of people were paying to go private due to the waitlist on the NHS and thought that's something DH & myself should consider if the wait times were going to be 1+ year. Hopefully you will be seen soon though.

Depends where you are in Scotland. I've been on the waiting list for about a year and probably have another 6-7 months at least before reaching the "top of the list". But, other places have had much shorter lists.

That's counting from the appointment where they said they would add me to the IVF waiting list, not from initial referral.

@Scirocco if you don't mind me asking, what clinic are you going too? I knew due to covid that the wait time was longer I was just unsure what the length of time would be from initial consultation too the beginning of treatment.

I'm with Glasgow, NHS.

@Scirocco I'm with Edinburgh. I'm looking forward to my initial consultation but one of the questions will be how long is the waitlist. I'm hoping not too long but I've been seeing recently it's mixed reviews and noticed that some people are going to be waiting more than a year.

It's very variable- hopefully they'll be able to give you more information and I'll keep my fingers crossed that it's not too long!

@Scirocco Thank you. Hopefully it won't be too long until then. Do you know how long it takes from referral to initial consultation?

I think that's pretty variable too, sorry. Mine was about 3 months but that was pre-covid.

Thank you @Scirocco hopefully I'll hear from them soon and question how long the waitlist is before I commit to going private.

@chooko following with interest! I'll be at Edinburgh too. I haven't been referred there...yet but hoping by the beginning of next month I will be, I was interested about this as well! Wait times seem to be quite long and I'd love to be able to go private but I'm unable to afford that. Wish you luck in whatever way you choose but hopefully there'll be more people along to answer the question 🙂 good luck!

@chooko you should think about joining us on the IVF Scotland thread 😊

Hi @chooko, I'm with Edinburgh and have a friend who had their first consultation in January this year. They've been told they're looking at having their cycle in September this year. Hope this helps 🙂

Thanks @conall I'll have a look at the thread. Hopefully you don't have to wait too long.

Thanks @BambiOnIce80 that sounds positive. I seen online that it could be a year or more and felt like we should look into private. It's definitely worth the wait to see what the specialist says when I speak to them. I got referred 4 weeks ago so I'm hoping to hear from them soon.

No problem at all @chooko - wishing you the best of luck with your journey 🤞🍀🤞🍀