Health care in the UK is available through the National Health Service (NHS). You can also get help with health insurance. In this case, your treatment costs will be lower because the insurance company will reimburse you for some of the money you spend on treatment. How can I get health care without insurance?
Free medicine in the UK: how does it work?
In general, the NHS national health care system provides free care to all UK residents. However, there are many reservations and exceptions, so let’s look into it. When you go to the NHS, you’ll get free treatment for almost any illness, from a runny nose or cold to major surgery. The exceptions are the dentist and the ophthalmologist, besides, you will have to pay for the medicines from your own pocket. Speaking of drugs: there are very few pharmacies in London, and certainly to find a 24-hour pharmacy in the capital of England is almost unreal. Even more confusing is their opening hours.
To find the nearest specialist in your area, it is best to use the NHS search engine, which not only helps you navigate quickly, but also supports many languages. The NHS working system looks something like this.
- You go to the nearest department, where the General Practitioner – a general practitioner for all patients (children, adults, colds, more serious diseases) sees you. Naturally, to get an appointment, you have to stand in line, sometimes several hours. By the way, recently in London a big scandal broke out when a tabloid published data on the provision of VIP services in NHS departments to members of Parliament.
- The doctor writes you a prescription or refers you to a specialist, but to get such a referral, you have to convince the GP that you really need it.
- If necessary, the patient is referred to a hospital for inpatient treatment. This service is also paid for by the British taxpayer.
For medical advice, call the NHS line at 111. In an emergency, call 999 for an ambulance in London. Calls to these numbers are free from any phone.
Private Medicine
It is impossible not to mention such branches of the British health care system as private doctors. London residents often prefer to go to a private specialist who has been their family doctor for years. Sometimes the services of such a doctor are covered by health insurance. If there is no insurance, the prices can bite: an appointment with a good private doctor will cost at least 100 pounds.