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May 2021 Issue 132
INDEPENDENT PRACTITIONER TODAY
In this issue Back down to earth like meteorites Markets go down and up! Dr Benjamin Holdsworth looks at the lessons that investors can learn from the last year
The business journal for doctors in private practice
In this issue
The most important language to master Clinical codes are undergoing a revamp to make life easier for doctors. Healthcode’s Jess Donelan has the low-down P22
Rules for prescribing drugs remotely The MDU’s Dr Kathryn Leask discusses the impact of the GMC’s new guidelines P32
Self-pay set to flourish
By Robin Stride
A 10-15% rise in self-pay volumes is being predicted in a major study from market analysts. It says the pandemic has given the private healthcare sector a boost due to the suspension of all but very urgent NHS elective treatment coupled with higher wait times. This has led to ‘a surge in inquiries for self-pay treatment wit h private consultants, clinics and hospitals’, according to LaingBuisson. It reports rising interest particularly in orthopaedics, ophthalmology, gastroenterology, gynaecology, and urology – but adds that the challenge will be to convert interest to business. The third edition of Laing Buisson’s Private Healthcare Self-Pay UK Market Report notes that treatment remains affordable and accessible for many although continuing restrictions mean it is hard to satisfy demand. But it suggests that with the over55s being the main demographic for self-pay and limited opportunity to spend on leisure, holidays and eating out, they might spend more short-term on health and well-being. LaingBuisson says self-pay growth In association with
has been seen in specialty-specific services, including vein clinics, imaging clinics, ophthalmology providers and day surgery-only clinics – and some of these out-compete full-service hospitals on cost. At the same time, finance options are becoming more popular because patients can spread the cost of treatment. Covid-19 has also led to the rapid digitisation of services across all sectors of healthcare. The research finds no reason to believe the popularity of online consultations will decline and notes that private GPs’ online services were already growing in popularity before the pandemic. Report author Liz Heath said: ‘Self-pay continues to show real and evidenced growth. While there are indications of an increased interest in private medical insurance, both from companies and individuals, in the wake of the pandemic, growth from insured patients is expected to remain static or slow for the foreseeable future. ‘Conversely, confidence in selfpay is high, with 52% of those surveyed expecting that this market will grow by 10-15% over the next three years – up from 45% in 2019 – and no one thinking the market will decrease. ‘We will, of course, have to wait to
£12.50
n See page 36
When the boot is on the other foot
Why doctors with mental health problems are bad at being patients P52 A CAPITAL INVESTMENT: A world-leading cancer hospital has opened up a research-led diagnostic outpatient and treatment centre in central London. Read all about it on page 7
see how the market normalises after the pandemic and its related restrictions lift. While the NHS has faced challenges in restarting elective treatment, self-pay is looking attractive even if currently wait times are longer than usual and we may anticipate that even once the NHS fully resumes elective treatment,
the private healthcare wait times will also reduce. ‘The question is whether people, having discovered that paying directly for medical care is an option, continue to call on it, whether for a virtual private GP appointment or more complex surgery.’ ➱ continued on page 6
MAIN TRENDS HIGHLIGHTED IN REPORT
Self-pay market growth seen by all hospital groups Providers predict pent-up demand will increase self-pay demand in 2021 and beyond Bias towards growth among providers the South-east and London More transparent pricing across independent providers – but anomalies in published pricing Improved consumer-centric approach to self-payers Growth in interest in private healthcare, including private medical insurance NHS waiting times directly influencing self-pay demand Continued ‘mix and match’ approach to ‘paid’ healthcare, with Xxxxx patients choosing to suit their needs, such as accessing online private GP services of diagnostics Growth among well established NHS PPUs Source: LaingBuisson