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Spotty showersPay your way to good health
Pay your way to good health
28/ 7/2006
GOING private used to be the preserve of the rich. People who
had enough money to pay the chunky monthly premiums and were happy
to leave the NHS to its fate - like those first class passengers
who floated away from the Titanic in half-full lifeboats.
But times have changed and nowadays private health care is
accessible to all and is helping to share the NHS's burden rather
than damaging its future .
More and more employers are offering private medical insurance as a
perk of the job. But those who work for Ebenezer Scrooge still have
the option of paying the premiums out of their own pocket, or
simply paying for care with hard cash.
And Manchester has more private hospitals and clinics than at any
time since the creation of the NHS in 1948, so avoiding the waiting
lists and scattergun approach of the NHS is easier than ever.
The £13m Bridgewater Hospital, which opened recently in Hulme, has
been set up by a team of doctors. Dubbed a "healthcare boutique",
it's a one-stop shop for diagnosis and treatment with affordable
rates. Dr Ilan Lieberman, consultant in pain medicine and
anaesthesia and clinical director of the Bridgewater, explains the
hospital's approach: "We're a diagnostic and treatment centre, a
private and independent health care facility with an MRI scanner,
three digital theatres and a beautiful 14-room outpatient
suite.
"We have adopted the American model of office-based day care. Most
hospitals are two businesses really - a hospital and a hotel - but
this office-based system allows us to keep costs down.
"We have the best staff and 60 consultants registered with the NHS
but we're not just for the rich. Our goal is to be affordable and
accessible.
"Patients can choose the type of care, whether they want to see a
doctor or nurse, the times they want to be seen and how to pay.
They can be seen for upwards of £120. It's not free but you won't
have to wait 12 weeks either.
"A lady came in with a painful shoulder. A surgeon saw her, she had
an MRI scan and then surgery in the afternoon. She was home by the
evening and back at work in a very short time.
"People need to understand that if they use our MRI scanner they
are actually helping the NHS, allowing someone else to take their
slot on the NHS machine and they can then return to the NHS for the
treatment. We work in partnership with the NHS and the Primary
Trusts."
Other private hospitals in Greater Manchester, such as the BUPA
Hospital in Whalley Range, also offer the chance to self-pay for
treatment.
BUPA even has a price guide on its webpage. Circumcision, for
example, will cost between £950 and £1,500 while its between
£12,500 and £15,500 for a coronary artery by-pass graft.
If you don't get cover at work, paying the premiums could be the
most reassuring option. But recent research by private medical
insurance provider PatientChoice, suggests only 16 per cent of
Mancunians have private medical insurance and 80 per cent of people
in the UK reject it because it's too expensive.
Cover can be bought for as little as £30 per month, if you're a
fit, healthy, non-smoking, teetotal 25-year-old with no kids and a
unblemished medical record.
However, if you're an average couple in their 60s wanting full
cover, you'll struggle to find it for under £2,500 a year and could
pay more than £5,000.
The small print needs to be rigorously checked, but generally it
covers the cost of consultations, tests and any operations, as well
as a private room and a greatly reduced waiting list.
Dr Lieberman said: "Lots of people are in effect underwriting
themselves these days. So rather than pay the premiums, they put
the money in an account each month and then pay by cash for some
procedures."
NEW private health facilities in Manchester include a pioneering
clinic opened by the Deansgate Health Group.
The clinic, on Deansgate as its name suggests, brings together
chiropractors, physiotherapists, nutritionists and GPs to provide a
more holistic approach to recovering from injuries.
The combination of these fields ensures faster rehabilitation and
long-term results, and the team is so confident about its approach
that it guarantees a patient will feel less pain and improved
mobility within three weeks.
Dr Iain Lea, chiropractor to the British lacrosse team and one of
the founding members of the clinic, said: "I was practising as a
chiropractor in South Manchester and looking for a way to improve
the speed with which my patients were recovering.
"I found that by combining different disciplines my patients were
getting better far more quickly and not coming back time after time
with the same problems.
"As a result, I went looking for partners who were leaders in their
fields to join me in opening the new clinic.
"Graham Webb and Steve Butters, who are both rehabilitation and
health specialists and owners of Eastfit Personal Training, fitted
the bill perfectly, as they bring expertise in personal training,
nutrition and lifestyle management."
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