FAQs

Breakspear Medical Group runs a private clinic and that means we are open to everyone. Simply call and make an appointment directly.

Please note: Patients attending Breakspear Medical are responsible for the settlement of their own accounts. Our contract is with you, the patient, and we expect you to settle our accounts on receipt of invoice.

Each patient has different needs and requires case-specific examinations, tests, treatments and follow-up programmes. (For our latest general price list, see Appointment Fee Structure) After your initial consultation, a treatment programme will be drawn up on the patient management sheet and Patient Liaison will then explain the costs involved and your course of action, which will be agreed prior to treatment commencing.

Insurance company funding must be claimed by the patient individually and Breakspear Medical Group will expect payment on receipt of invoice by the patient, regardless of agreement to pay by insurers. For more information, see Patient Information.

Breakspear Medical’s day patient clinic is open 9:00am – 5:00pm Monday to Friday (excluding public bank holidays). Consultations with physicians and service for allergy treatments and immunisations are conducted every day throughout the business week.

We only employ fully qualified doctors, who are all registered with the General Medical Council (GMC).  (See Clinical Team for a biography on each doctor.) All our nurses are registered and have been specially trained in low-dose immunotherapy allergy testing.

The clinic is registered with the Care Quality Commission (registration number: C010000662) which is the health and social care regulator for England. You can visit their website: www.cqc.org.uk to view the latest inspection report.

You need to speak to a doctor to determine whether the item is appropriate for you.

Please telephone Reception +44 (0) 1422 261 333 to make or change an in-person or by telephone appointment.

You will need to book an appointment to discuss your results with your doctor either in person or by telephone appointment.

Please telephone Reception +44(0)1442 261 333 to make or change an appointment.

You will need to book an appointment to discuss your results with your doctor. Please telephone Reception +44(0)1442 261 333 to make or change an appointment.

Our Reception staff are always happy to advise the patients or contact another member of staff to assist as required.

If you are receiving treatment on the Testing Ward, the nursing staff will be able to answer your questions or advise who you need to speak to, depending on the nature of the question.

To book an appointment, please telephone Reception +44 (0)1442 261 333.

No referral is needed.

Testing nurses stay with their patients all day for safety reasons and to maximise the testing time and may not have more than 3 patients at a time.  The nurses on the infusion team and our phlebotomist also give injections, take blood, and perform ECGs.  Nurses are also involved in a range of other treatments that require supervision including Iratherm^® far infra red sauna, magnoter therapy and clinical taping.  There is also a nurse-led immunisation clinic 1-2 days per week for children and travel immunisations.

We use a multi-factorial approach, which for ME/CFS patients involves trying to identify causes and then offering treatment.  Each patient is recommended a customised testing and treatment programme, which has taken into account their medical history, work and home environment and many other factors.  As each patient is different, we are not able to give an estimated time for treatment without an initial consultation with a member of our Clinical Team.

After the initial consultation, all recommendations for investigations and treatment will be provided to you on an estimate with the costs and you will choose with which (if any) you want to proceed. Your Patient Liaison Officer will help you to prioritise your investigations/treatment to suit your budget and timescale.

For more information on the methods we use to treat ME/CFS, ask Reception for a copy of our ME/CFS information booklet.

At your initial consultation, if your medical professional feels that you may have Lyme disease, you will be presented with the various options available to test for this condition, together with the costs.

Please visit our Lyme disease webpage for more information about the symptoms and how it can be tested and treated.

Breakspear Medical treats each patient individually, which means that there is no standard treatment programme for ME/CFS at a set price.  After your first appointment, you will be given a detailed estimate, with your personal recommended treatment programme in detail with all the costs, which will be explained to you by your Patient Liaison Officer.

On the day of your appointment or anytime afterward, if you have any specific questions regarding prices, estimates and treatment programmes, you may contact a Patient Liaison Officer, by phone 01442 261 333 ext 604, or email: liaison@breakspearmedical.com

We run a childhood vaccine clinic in our downstairs Immunisation Department.  At this time, we are not treating new patients under the age of 18 in our main clinic.

Yes, of course.  If you cannot care for yourself, please make arrangements for someone to accompany you and ensure that they adhere to our strict scent-free policy, too.

We will try our best to make partners and carers feel welcome and involve them in your care as much as you wish.

We have nurses on site but they are employed to perform other duties and may not be available when you need assistance and we would like you to be as comfortable as possible.

All staff at Breakspear Medical speak English fluently.   We may be able to help arrange an interpreter, upon request and for an additional charge, with advance notice.  (Note: it is inappropriate for an underage child to translate on behalf of a parent or for fellow, unrelated patients to translate.)

Due to many patients coming from other European countries, we have translated some of our forms into German, Italian, French and Spanish to make it easier. Translations of any documents into languages other than English are intended solely as a convenience to the non-English-readers.  If there is any inconsistency or ambiguity between the English version of any documents and any translated version, the English version shall prevail.

Yes, however, any child attending the clinic must be accompanied by a responsible adult at all times.

If you are attending the clinic for a consultation, while you are being physically examined, your child must be supervised by a responsible adult.

If you need to bring your child to the ward, please speak to Reception to arrange a private room in order to keep disruption to other patients to a minimum.

Our nursing staff are busy working with patients therefore you must be able to look after your child and you may not leave your child with a nurse.

Located in the office next to Reception, a member of the Accounts team will take payment for your appointment on the day of your visit.

You may pay by cash, Visa, MasterCard or debit card. (Note: we do not accept cheques or American Express.)

If you have any specific questions regarding prices, estimates and treatment programmes, please speak to one of our Patient Liaison Officers in-person or by phone 01442 261 333 Ext 604.

The “Load Phenomenon” is a key concept in understanding allergy and sensitivity.  Please visit our webpage dedicated to explaining it.

Patients and carers are welcome to relax in the Patient Dining Room at our clinic. Enjoy complimentary hot beverages such as tea, coffee or herbal teas plus filtered water for refreshments.  We provide a fridge to store any food items you bring with you and there’s a microwave available if reheating is required.  All necessary cutlery, plates and mugs have been provided.

Our Pathology Department staff will be able to tell you if the sample for the test you have been recommended can be completed off site and sent to us for processing.

Some tests can be sent out to you off site and the samples can then be taken while you are not at the clinic.  Many tests require that the patient must have the samples taken at the clinic because they have time restricted sample processing requirements and/or are samples that need a medical staff member to collect and process.

If you have any questions, please call the Pathology Department: +44 (0)1442 261 333 Ext 296 during business hours, which are 9:00am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday (excluding Bank holidays).

When you have your sample taken, our Pathology Department staff will be able to tell you approximately how long you can expect to wait for results for each test. Processing times vary between a few days and several weeks.

As soon as you can, please book an appointment by contacting Reception +44 (0)1442 261 333 to speak with your doctor for a date shortly after the date when the last of your test results are expected.  This will enable your doctor have all your test results at your follow up appointment.

If you can’t make your appointment for whatever reason, please telephone Reception +44 (0)1442 261 333 to change it as soon as possible.

(We can then make the appointment time available to a patient on the waiting list.)

We reserve the right to charge for missed and cancelled appointments with less than 24 hours’ notice.

If you have any questions about the items on your estimate before or after you leave the clinic, please contact a member of the Patient Liaison team +44(0)1442 261 333 ext 604.

Every patient has their own individual plan, recommended to them by their doctor.  In the majority of patients with allergies/sensitivities, it is important to start with histamine and common foods,  which are foods you eat more than three times per week.

A list of over 500 items which we have readily available for testing will be provided for you to choose from.  Your doctor may recommend specific items and our testing nurses are all very familiar with common allergens.  We are also able to offer custom made items for an additional charge.

There are also seasonal programmes, with specific recommendations.

It is also strongly advised that you have a consultation with a nutritional therapist or environmental naturopath to guide your testing.  They will take into account your pathology results and recommendations made by your doctor and can help you make a plan for their recommended supplement regime.

We work towards providing the best service we can and appreciate hearing from our satisfied patients. However, we understand that there may be occasions when the service does not reach the desired standard. In such a situation, we have a complaints procedure.  Please visit our Patient information page for a full explanation of our Quality of Care.