Medical Reports, Letters & Examinations
We ask all patients who make a request with us to complete and return the below document. This can be done electronically and attached to an email addressed to enquiries.w97034@wales.nhs.uk , or a physical copy can be dropped into the surgery. The form allows the admin team and doctors to gain a better understanding of what is required.
We cannot process your request until this form, and a payment if required, has been received by the surgery.
Please be aware that private letters or medical reports are non-NHS services, and therefore may incur a fee. We will inform you of the fee amount once the attached form has been returned.
To help with the process of your request, please could you attach any documents that you think may be useful to the GP when they are completing your request (e.g. forms for completion by the GP, letters of correspondence requesting a private GP letter).
We ask for patients to allow for at least 3 weeks for your request to be completed. The Data Protection Office (DPO) advise that all requests should be completed and returned within 1 month from the date that the request was made.
If you require work to be completed in a shorter time frame there will be a fee to expedite the completion, this will be subject to GP capacity and you will be informed of any fee before work is completed.
Please complete the below form and send this to Enquiries.W97034@wales.nhs.uk and we will respond as soon as possible.
Private Fees (Non NHS work) – Information for patients and third parties
The Government’s contract with GPs covers medical services to NHS patients, including the provision of ongoing medical treatment. In recent years, however, more and more organisations have been involving doctors in a whole range of non-medical work. Sometimes the only reason that GPs are asked is because they are in a position of trust in the community, or because an insurance company or employer wants to ensure that information provided to them is true and accurate.
The BMA (British Medical Association) suggest fees for non-NHS work which is not covered under GP’s NHS contract, to help GPs set their own professional fees. However, the fees are guidelines only, not recommendations, and a doctor is not obliged to charge the rates suggested. The BMA recommends that GPs tell patients and third parties in advance if they will be charged, and how much. It is up the individual doctor to decide how much to charge.
Do GPs have to do non-NHS work for their patients?
With certain limited exceptions, GPs do not have to carry out non-NHS work on behalf of their patients.
Whilst GPs will always attempt to assist their patients with the completion of forms for example for insurance purposes, they are not required to do such non-NHS work.
Why does it sometimes take my GP a long time to complete my form?
Time spent completing forms and preparing reports takes the GP away from the medical care of his or her patients.
Most GPs have a very heavy workload and paperwork takes up an increasing amount of their time, so many GPs find they have to complete this work outside of and in addition to their normal hours.
I only need the doctor’s signature – what is the problem?
When a doctor signs a certificate or completes a report it is a condition of remaining on the Medical Register that they only sign what they know to be true.
In order to complete even the simplest of forms therefore, the doctor might have to check the patient’s entire medical record. Carelessness or an inaccurate report can have serious consequences for the doctor with the General Medical Council (the doctors’ regulatory body) or even the police.
I haven’t got the report/letter I want, why should I pay?
The fee is to pay for the doctors time, and the time of the administrative staff. Even a seemingly simple report may sometimes involve checking the the complete medical record which can take a considerable amount of time.
Fitness to……
I have been asked to provide a fitness to … certificate, why can’t the GP just sign this?
The problem with these certificates is that many things can change between the time the GP provides this certificate and the event taking place e.g. going on holiday/flying whilst pregnant/taking part in certain activities.
A patient may also have a previously undiagnosed condition which would make the activity harmful for them -sadly we are all aware of deaths which occur every year in supposedly fit marathon competitors, and even premier league footballers.
We may not have seen the patient recently for this condition and may not therefore be in a position to make any comments on their state of health. An appointment booked for this reason would therefore be a private appointment and the request will either be refused or the patient may be charged. Please check before doing this.
All fees must be paid in advance of work being completed and supplied.
We hope this information is helpful and clarifies some of the queries we have had recently from patients.
Please email us on Enquiries.w97034@wales.nhs.uk for a list of our current fees. Please note all fees are subject to change and fees are changed at the GP's discretion.