Private Healthcare


Most people in the UK are treated by professionals in the National Health Service when they are ill because it is free at the point of delivery. In spite of the fact that most of us still use the NHS there has been an increase in the number of individuals who have private healthcare as part of their employment package. One of the primary reasons some individuals prefer to be treated privately rather than by the NHS, is that there is a much shorter waiting time for treatment.

Private Healthcare

NHS and Private Treatment

A lot of us in the UK now have to use some aspect of private healthcare in the form of eye care and dentistry. Nowadays most working people pay for a good deal of their dental treatment, and if you are working, eye tests are no longer provided by the NHS, you have to pay for them. Until the late nineteen seventies, the UK health service was the envy of the rest of the world, but since that time there have been so many changes in both administration and the kind of care that is available, that this is no longer the case. The majority of working people do not have sufficient funds to pay for private treatment up front, which is why most private healthcare operates on an insurance basis. If you want the benefits that private treatment provides then you need to take out a healthcare insurance policy.

Beating the Queues

Private healthcare offers patients a number of benefits that are no longer available on the NHS. When you have health insurance and you develop a health problem, you are guaranteed access to a top consultant quite quickly, rather than having to wait months as is often the case with the NHS. Routine operations are dealt with very quickly because there is not the same pressure on staff, not the waiting lists that are now so common in the health service. When you have a policy that covers private healthcare you won't have to share a ward with a lot of other patients, most private healthcare packages will provide you with a private room with ensuite facilities during your stay in hospital.

Less Pressure

There is a lot of pressure on NHS resources and only a limited budget available. In the private healthcare arena there is much less pressure on resources and there are more consultants available. Some local health trusts will not pay for expensive medication, medication that often means the difference between life and death to a patient. Depending on where you live, you could be refused certain medications because of the cost and may be asked to fund that aspect of the treatment yourself.

Avoid the Postcode Lottery

When you have private healthcare you are no longer subject to what has been referred to as the postcode lottery when it comes to getting the medication that you need. The National Health Service still does a lot for people in the UK and saves many lives each year, private healthcare on the other hand provides you with a greater sense of security as to what might happen if you became ill.


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