Patients are entitled to choose private healthcare while remaining registered with and continuing to receive normal NHS general practice services from this practice.
However, where a patient chooses to obtain private treatment or medication, the private provider is responsible for carrying out its own appropriate clinical assessment and for deciding whether the proposed treatment is suitable and safe.
This includes responsibility for:
- confirming the diagnosis and indication for treatment;
- assessing relevant medical conditions, contraindications and risk factors;
- determining whether existing conditions are sufficiently stable;
- reviewing current and previous medication;
- considering interactions, cautions and allergies;
- arranging any examinations, investigations or blood tests required before treatment;
- prescribing and supplying the medication;
- providing appropriate monitoring, follow-up and dose adjustment; and
- managing side effects, complications and treatment-related concerns.
The practice will not complete private provider questionnaires or provide clinical assurances confirming that a patient is “suitable”, “stable”, “safe to treat” or that we “agree” with a proposed private prescription. Providing such an opinion would require the GP to undertake a separate clinical assessment and could inappropriately transfer part of the private provider’s prescribing responsibility to the NHS practice.
This applies to all privately arranged treatment, including privately prescribed weight-management medication such as tirzepatide (Mounjaro).
Access to factual medical information
Patients can usually provide private providers with relevant factual information themselves through their NHS App online medical record or copies of hospital or clinic correspondence already held by them.
The private provider should review this information alongside its own consultation and assessment. The absence of a condition, contraindication or concern from a GP record must not be treated as confirmation that it does not exist.
The practice will consider appropriate information-sharing requests where there is valid patient consent and a clear clinical or patient-safety reason. However, we will not undertake additional clinical assessments, tests, monitoring or administrative work solely to enable or support private treatment unless the practice has expressly agreed to do so.
Continuing NHS care
This policy does not affect the patient’s entitlement to normal NHS general practice care.
Patients should continue to contact the practice about new symptoms, deterioration in an existing condition or concerns requiring NHS primary care assessment. Where a patient experiences side effects or complications from private treatment, they should ordinarily contact the private prescriber in the first instance, although urgent or emergency symptoms should be managed through the appropriate NHS urgent or emergency service.
Any decision by the practice to prescribe, investigate, monitor or refer a patient will be based on the GP’s own clinical assessment, professional responsibility, NHS guidance and locally agreed prescribing arrangements. It will not be based solely on a request or recommendation from a private provider.