Is it Worth Paying for Private Healthcare?

One in eight people in the UK has paid for private care, and who can blame them? Pressure on the NHS is literally forcing people to pay for their care so they can actually receive it. 7.5 million people are currently waiting to receive the care they desperately need, and most of them will wait a lot longer than the 14.4-week average waiting time.

For example, if you were to wait for a surgical wisdom tooth extraction because your dentist can’t do it, the waiting time is 68 weeks.

And that’s not even the worst of it. A&E departments have faced emergency admission stay waiting times exceeding 12 hours, which is well above pre-pandemic times. Given such pressure, might some be considering whether private health care is an option?

Read on to find out.

Shorter Waiting Times

What sells private healthcare is its ease.

The NHS waiting lists have increased such that the median wait for treatment now stands at 14.4 weeks, almost doubling the 2019 average of 8.0 weeks. Private care facilities can offer appointments and treatment within days or weeks to people in pain or with worsening diseases.

For example, patients requiring elective procedures like hip replacements and cataract removal can wait for months in the NHS. Private facilities can do it in weeks.

As for the disadvantages, this one is quite capital-oriented. Depending on the procedures involved, the cost for out-of-pocket treatments may be between hundreds and tens of thousands of pounds. Though insurance can help reduce the amounts, it is not available for everyone, and not everyone has insurance.

The Quality of Care

Private healthcare is known to be better than the other options available in the country, and it sells itself that way.

They have advanced medical devices and the expert’s ability to create individualised therapeutic strategies whenever patients need them. They use better equipment like a high-quality self retaining retractor, readily available MRI scanning machines, working pressure mattresses, etc. There is always an excess of staff in private hospitals, and staff can give more attention to their patients.

Private rooms also have en-suite facilities and tastier food menus, which NHS wards that are underfunded and oversubscribed have difficulty providing.

So can we say that this leads to better outcomes? It is true that in most cases the private providers do most but not all minor procedures and almost all non-emergency measures. However, they may not always be available and prepared for complicated and dangerous situations.

Other critics argue that not all private hospitals are equipped with all the services that NHS hospitals offer, including access to multidisciplinary teams or specialist units.

The Financial Dilemma

If you’re considering financing health care from private providers, it is obvious that not everyone can afford this option and the high price it comes with.

Private plans tend to be very costly, and their prices increase with age and pre-existing conditions. Major treatments can be costly, like a hip replacement, which costs £12,000 on average in the UK. Or complex oncology treatments reach figures above £50,000.

If the person can afford it, then going for private care is amazing.

Have you been waiting too long for NHS services and are considering the move? We wouldn’t blame you. If you have the money, it’s absolutely worth it!