Info For Patients Attending First Outpatient Appointment

New Outpatient Appointment Notice

Thank you for choosing to see me at Alexandra Hospital for your outpatient consultation. This letter sets out some important information that I am required by law to provide to you. This is for your information only and is not a bill. As this includes information about my charges, if you do not have private medical insurance but someone else will be paying your bill, you may wish to pass a copy of this letter to them. Please note that even if someone else is paying your bill or you have private medical insurance, you are responsible for paying any charges which they do not pay.

Private Medical Insurance

If you have private medical insurance, please contact your insurer before your consultation, to check the terms of your policy, particularly the level and type of outpatient cover you have, including any reimbursement limits on individual consultation fees.

I am a recognised by a number of private medical insurers including AXA, Allianz, April, Aviva, Benenden, BUPA, CS Healthcare, CSHC Engage Mutual, Exeter, Grl & Medical, HSF, Health Online, Heatshield Insurety, Medicash, National Friendly, Pruhealth, Saga, Secure Health, Simply Health, Sovereign Health, Vitality, WHA, WH

If your policy is with another insurer, you can contact 0161 246 3795/0161 495 7757 to confirm whether I am recognised by them.

Please note you are responsible for any fees or shortfall, not covered by your insurer.

Self pay Fees:

Consultation Fee:

My fee for an initial consultation is £ 285 and my fee for any follow-up consultation is £180. These estimates are correct at the date of this letter.

During or following the consultation you may need certain tests (such as blood tests or imaging, for example an X-ray, MRI or CT scan) to help me diagnose your condition. If the test is undertaken by hospital, it would be charged to you or your private medical insurer, separately.

If there are any fees which I will charge in relation to any of the tests I advise that you have, I will let you know what those will be.

Important notice:

I want to outline the costs associated with the treatments you may be considering, as they can vary depending on the specifics of your case.

1. Imaging Hospital Charges:
   - X-ray: The hospital will charge for the X-ray, with costs ranging between £150 and £230, depending on the type of X-ray required. - MRI Scan: MRI scans are also billed separately by the hospital, and costs can range from £410, depending on the area being scanned.
2. Injection Fees: My fee for administering an injection is £375 per injection. Please note this is in addition to any consultation fees.
3. In addition, the hospital will also charge you for the drug and the fees for this depend on what type of injection is being administered.
4. If you decide to have the above test or treatment on the same day as your consultation, you must either confirm your insurers are paying for the same, or else you would personally be responsible for the above costs.
5. Other Costs: Please be aware that additional fees may apply for any further tests or procedures.
6. Surgical costs: these will be confirmed with you by writing if or when surgery is required. Estimate of costs are provided to you if requested, and a formal quote is provided if you decide to proceed with surgery.

Before proceeding with any tests or treatments, I recommend confirming all costs directly with either my office or the hospital or both to ensure absolute clarity.

Please do not go ahead with tests or treatment if you are not sure of the costs, do not wish to pay further costs, or if you are uncertain about who is responsible for the costs involved. This is because if you go ahead with tests or treatment before confirming the same, you will ultimately be responsible for costs incurred. The issue of costs will also be discussed with you, but recollections may differ after the event, and it is important you understand all of the above.

Specifically. it is important to note that if you choose to go ahead with tests e.g. (x-rays or injections) on the same day, you will be responsible for covering all associated fees, if you are self-pay or if you have not obtained authorisation from your insurers.

Please let me know if you have any further questions or require assistance in confirming these costs.

Quality Information

You can compare independent information above the quality of private treatment offered at the hospital and other private healthcare providers from the Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN) website: ww.phin.org.uk.

I look forward to welcoming you to at The Alexandra Hospital

Yours sincerely
Mr Winston Kim
Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon