:. Current Provision of Specialist Services in the United Kingdom

The vast majority of healthcare in the United Kingdom is provided on two levels, Primary Care and Secondary Care. Patients requiring specialist services in the NHS need to be referred to Specialists who almost exclusively work in Secondary Care Centres such as District General Hospitals and Teaching Hospitals. There is often a considerable delay between referral and treatment though it is clear that the large investment in the NHS by the present government has reduced waiting times and there are targets in place to continue this process.

At the same time General Practitioners are under considerable pressure to make savings by avoiding referral to Specialists. There are some Independent Specialist Treatment Centres (ISTCs) that have been set up to try to improve the waiting times for specialist care. These have been criticized in some quarters for employing doctors from outside the NHS and as a result many patients distrust such ventures. Furthermore, given that some patients will have serious conditions the communication structures with the NHS may not be secure enough to ensure safe onward care of the patient.

The only widespread alternative to NHS treatment is Private Health Care. This is currently very expensive, especially compared to other European countries. As a consequence insurance premiums have risen and the cost of self-pay treatment is often regarded as prohibitive.

:. GastroCareUK

GastroCareUK has been set up to provide a rational alternative to the present difficult situation. By developing efficient models of care and working on a philosophy that the care is managed wholly by NHS Consultants, we believe that we can offer improved services to both patients and general practitioners. Naturally, these models of care could also be used in NHS Secondary Care Centres thus improving efficiency throughout the UK Health Economy

:. Registering for Primary Care

Primary Care practitioners registering with this site will be able to post questions to our Consultant staff on issues relating to Gastroenterology free of charge for a three-month period and then for £10 per month thereafter if they wish to continue this service. [Please click here to register.]

Introductory stuff and then requirement to enter details so that we can then email them back and offer specific services and updates.