HOW TO SEE A DOCTOR WHEN IT IS CONVENIENT FOR YOU…

With many GP surgeries in the UK still under a massive amount of pressure and staff shortages due to Covid-19 it can still be hard to see your Doctor when it suits you.

Unfortunately, with any type of illness or health-related problem, we do not know when we are going to be ill especially over a weekend when appointments are not even available.

But, there are other ways you can see a doctor when you feel you need one. Here is a list of places you can head to and get an appointment straight away. You do not even need to leave your home.

Pharmacy 2U – A well-known site that I am sure many of us use for our repeat prescriptions. Pharmacy 2U offer a convenient and confidential private GP UK based consultation service. You will need to provide the Doctors with relevant information about yourself & your health regarding your medical condition for their consideration along with preferred treatments. You can also ask the Doctor to choose appropriate treatment(s) for you. In certain cases, the Doctors will specify a preferred treatment.

Pharmacy 2U will email or text you to advise you to log in to view your Pharmacy2U Doctor’s response on our website. This will usually happen within 1 working day and often much quicker than that. Once approved by our Online Doctor(s), treatments will be sent to you by post. If you have requested the Doctor to recommend treatments, then you will be able to order the treatments or tests authorised for you. A prescription for the medication will be written by our GMC-registered GP & Pharmacy2U will dispense to a chosen address. After they supply you with any treatment, you then contact them as soon as possible if you are experiencing side effects. They will contact you 2 weeks later by email to check on progress. It is important that if you are having any side effects from the treatment, or if the treatment is not effective, that they are aware so that they can make any changes needed.

They will email or text you to advise you to log in to view your Pharmacy2U Doctor’s response on their website. This will usually happen within 1 working day and often much quicker than that. Pharmacy2U will take card payments on dispatch, however, for PayPal, payment is taken upfront. They deliver medicines in discreet parcels and offer a range of delivery services to suit your needs. Pharmacy2U dispatch most weekday orders, that are approved by the Doctor before 4pm, on the same day.

If you wish to order further supplies, you can do so by logging in, reviewing your consultation and confirming it is still accurate. You will then be able to order more medication subject to Doctor’s approval. They also offer lots of help and advice.

Another company called Med Express starts with a free 2 minutes online consultation with simple questions about your health. Their UK medical team will then recommend treatment and issue a free prescription. Your treatment will be sent directly from their London pharmacy in discreet packaging.

You do not need an existing prescription to use their service as the free online consultation process which is reviewed by one of their prescribers will issue a private prescription (for all eligible patients).

Med Express point out that when placing an order you will be given the option to enter your GP details. Although it is recommended to keep your doctor informed of the medication you are taking, this is completely optional and they will never inform your GP without your consent.

Med Express have 27,540 reviews on Trust Pilot with 87% giving them an excellent review. Of course, this does not come for free but the reviews point out that the prices are very good.

Boots the chemist also offer an online doctor service. Simply go online at a time that suits you and order prescription treatments and home test kits. With pick up in-store or free home delivery for most medicines, it’s a healthcare without the hassle.

Lemonaid Health Limited runs the Boots Online Doctor Service. They are an online healthcare provider. In that sense, they don’t meet their patients in person. They are a private service and not part of the NHS. You can also order repeat prescriptions via their app.

Of course, there are other ways you could get to see a GP when you want to and that is to take out health insurance. One such insurance is Vitality Health which has plans starting from as little as £1.15 a day. Once you take out the insurance you have access to a Vitality GP a certain amount of times in a year depending on your plan.

Private medical insurance is designed to cover the cost of private medical treatment for acute conditions. An acute condition is a disease, illness or injury that is likely to respond quickly to treatment and return someone to the state of health they were in before, or lead to a full recovery.

It doesn’t usually cover treatment of long-term (chronic) conditions, where the main aim is to keep the symptoms under control. Private medical insurance also won’t cover any pre-existing conditions that you may have when taking out a plan.

For the majority of claims, medical treatment begins with a GP referral for specialist treatment. This can either be your NHS GP or a private GP. Any onward treatment is managed by working closely with your private medical insurer, to ensure that you have quick and easy access to the right medical treatment.

They also give rewards for basically being fit.

When you link a device to Vitality, you can track your physical activity or driving behaviour to earn Vitality points.

When you earn Vitality points you build a Vitality status. The more points you earn, the higher your status, and the bigger the rewards. Start on the Bronze status and work your way up to Platinum status for the best rewards on offer.