Useful Links
This page gathers together the links found on other pages of the CareHealth website, and also gives references to other sites which may be of interest.
Private Medical Insurers
Several companies have set up links to their own sites from CareHealth. These are shown below.
AXA PPP healthcare |
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| click here |
Standard Life Healthcare |
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| click here |
WPA |
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| click here |
Health Information Sites
The Health Centre provides a guide to the huge amount of medical and health information from the UK that is available on the internet. The links are mainly to UK sites, but where no UK alternative exists, some international sites are included. There are over 6,000 links to look at and more are added every week.
Patient UK is a directory of health, disease, and related websites from the UK, which is edited by two Newcastle GPs. It aims to direct non-medical people in the UK to good quality information about health and disease. It does this by reviewing health and illness related websites and provides links to many of these on its web directory.
PodiatryPages is a site for finding local UK State Registered chiropodists/podiatrists (SRCh). Here you can find maps, driving directions and all other information needed for getting chiropody/podiatry foot care in your area.
Independent Organisations
The King's Fund is a highly respected independent healthcare charity, which carries out research and development work aimed at bringing about better health policies and services.
The Health Quality Service is a charity closely associated with the King's Fund, which promotes quality improvements in healthcare services.
National Health Service
The following website gives a guide to new NHS service allowing patients by December 2005 to make a choice of which hospital will treat them, including private hospitals, and to fix the time for treatment themselves.
The National Health Service has a helpful website. In particular, the NHS National Plan Summary explains how the NHS intends to use private hospitals to reduce hospital waiting lists.
Government Bodies
The NCSC is the body responsible for regulating private hospitals in the UK. See the following press release.
The Commission for Health Improvement (CHI) has been established by the Department of Health to ensure that NHS health care organisations are following the principles which have been laid down for clinical governance. In 2004, a new body, the Commission for Health Audit and Inspection will take over and unify the inspection of both NHS and private sector healthcare providers.
The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) was established in April 1999 to develop national service frameworks which specify how particular treatments should be delivered.
Insurance Organisations
The Association of British Insurers has published a guide (in PDF format) which you can view or download from the following link: ABI Guide to Private Medical Insurance. This document is approximately half a megabyte in size, so be prepared for a significant wait unless you have a fast internet connection.
Other Useful Links
The BBC produces a very informative health website.
The Patients' Association, advises patients on rights, complaints procedures and access to health services.
If you are looking for a private GP, it is worth contacting the Independent Doctors Forum , telephone 020 8505 6995. Although there is no comprehensive list of private GPs, theirs is the fullest available. It is advisable to telephone because this gives access to a more detailed list than is shown on their website. The majority of private GPs listed are based in London and the South East.
Cox Consulting is the market research business of one of CareHealth's founders, Dermot Cox. He specialises in research into high level services markets, such as law, investment banking and healthcare.