Because China is not a country with a so-called "reciprocal health agreement" in Britain, it is subject to a restriction: for people from Britain who are not under a so-called "reciprocal health agreement", NHS medical service is only applicable to students and their families who have attended courses in Britain for more than six months; As for those who have lived for less than six months, they must seek medical treatment or purchase medical insurance at their own expense, but they are free in case of emergency. At present, the expenses borne by NHS include: family doctor's medical expenses, hospitalization expenses (but some hospitalization expenses and projects still need to be paid at their own expense), prenatal examination and production medical expenses. Because of the separation of medicine in Britain, you can go to the pharmacy to buy medicine after seeing a doctor. Except for children under 65,438+06, full-time students under 65,438+09, the elderly, the disabled or pregnant women who have obtained the drug free certificate, the drug price shall be borne by themselves.
As for private medical services, because the way to see a doctor in Britain is usually by appointment (if there is no urgent need to see a doctor), it may be placed on the long waiting list of NHS hospitals. Therefore, in order to get faster and better medical services, some people will consider accepting private medical services at their own expense, and some people will pay for this part by purchasing private medical insurance. As for which medical insurance to buy, it may take some time to collect.
How to choose a family doctor, registration procedures, ways of seeing a doctor, emergency treatment and referral, and dental services are described below for your reference:
First, the choice of family doctors, registration procedures, treatment methods, emergency and referral:
1. How to get the list of family doctors: If the school has a health care center, you can register directly at the school, but if you live far away or the school does not have a health care center, you can register at a clinic near your home. Where can I get the list and address of the clinic? You can try the following places: dormitory administrator, local family doctor committee, local community health council, citizen consultation bureau, pharmacy (such as Boots), post office, public library, etc. And the telephone numbers of these units can be found in the telephone directory or in the city Council where you live. As for how to choose a registered clinic? You can ask your neighbors and friends. If not, you can register with a nearby clinic first, because there is no special reason to ask for a doctor change.
If you choose a suitable clinic, you should register as soon as possible. The documents you should bring include your passport and admission ticket to prove your identity. The receptionist at the clinic will ask you to fill out the relevant forms. Then, a nurse will be arranged to do a health check-up for you. Based on the concept of prevention and control, sometimes nurses will suggest injecting relevant vaccines. If you agree, I'll fill out another form for you, and then you can take this form to the scheduled hospital for injection. After completing these procedures, you will receive an NHS medical card within two weeks. Your medical number and the name and address of the local family health service agency (FHSA) will appear on the card. There are some important information on the back of the card for reference. For example, if you can't find a doctor to register, your FHSA will be obliged to help.
3. See a doctor or ask for a home visit: you can make an appointment by phone before seeing GP, but in case of emergency, you can also call the outpatient counter to ask for a doctor on the same day for special reasons. Some clinics have policies to leave a period for people who can't make an appointment but need to see a doctor urgently; GP usually asks questions, when did the symptoms start, what changes have taken place, and whether there were similar situations in the past. So when you go to GP, you should sort out the information that may be related to the illness for GP's reference, and GP will make prescriptions or suggestions according to the situation. If the symptoms do not improve, it will remind you how many days to return to the clinic. Once you can't go to the clinic due to illness, you can ask your general practitioner to go out for a visit, but it is best to inform the doctor before 10 am (except in an emergency) and tell the symptoms details; However, if it is not the time for diagnosis and treatment, some clinics will have staff on duty and GP, which may make appropriate suggestions for your condition; Once it is very urgent and needs immediate treatment, you can go to the hospital for emergency treatment.
4. It should be noted that with the decrease of income caused by post-war colonial independence, coupled with the decline of Britain's own national strength, the medical standard provided by the free public medical system is also greatly inferior, and big-name doctors have left their jobs to concentrate on receiving private patients, which makes the British public medical system, especially the primary medical system, face a serious shortage of medical staff, mainly because the NHS pays doctors and nurses lower salaries. In order to make up for the shortage of medical staff, Britain introduced a large number of doctors who graduated from medical schools founded by the British from former colonies such as India and Pakistan and African countries such as Nigeria and Zimbabwe to practice medicine in Britain. Generally speaking, the quality of these doctors is much worse than that of real British doctors, and even far worse than that of domestic doctors. Therefore, students who come to study in the UK, although enjoying free medical services, need to be psychologically prepared. Nothing for nothing. Your family doctor may not be as good as a domestic specialist. Coupled with the language barrier, it is not impossible for an acute illness to be delayed by GP. Therefore, the author suggests that if necessary, you might as well listen to a second opinion, ask friends who are studying in China, and even call back to China to ask a doctor.
5. Emergency: In case of serious injury or immediate life-threatening situation, please call 999 for an ambulance and give your name, phone number and address; If the parties can still go to the emergency department of the hospital (or accident and emergency department, referred to as A & amp； E), you can register at the emergency reception desk, and the emergency order is classified according to the severity of the illness. However, due to the large demand for services, many people have the experience of waiting for several hours. According to the regulations of NHS, the emergency department of British hospitals is not allowed to refuse patients, and it is completely free, even without paying the medicine fee. Actually, we can make good use of it. Students are advised to know at least one hospital with an emergency department near their residence and its transportation route once their residence is determined. If there is more than one hospital to choose from in a big city, such as London or Edinburgh, it is better to go to the emergency department of a university-affiliated hospital instead of a regional general hospital (DGH). Generally speaking, university hospitals are better equipped and doctors are better.
6. Referral to a specialist: Since the general practitioner is a front-line doctor, any referral must start from the general practitioner. If the general practitioner thinks that the patient's condition is beyond the scope of his diagnosis and treatment, he will refer the patient to the relevant hospital and the department that should be referred. After all the formalities are arranged, the hospital will send you a notice, relevant details and appointment time; On the other hand, when you think it is necessary for further examination, but GP doesn't think so, and you still think it is necessary to refer to a specialist, you can try to convince GP. However, to be psychologically prepared, the waiting list for referral from family doctors to specialists may be as long as 12 to 18 months.
7. Interpreter demand: If you encounter difficulties in language communication, you really need someone to help you translate. You can ask GP or a specialist for this demand, and all the expenses of the interpreter will be paid by NHS. As Britain is a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural country, some NHS medical and health institutions also recruit and train these translators, and they are obliged to keep any patients confidential.
Second, the dentist:
Because the NHS provides lower dental treatment and material costs than the department, British dentistry has tended to private clinics. The items paid by NHS are free within a certain amount, which is below 19. Once the doctor thinks it is necessary to do orthodontics, this medical treatment is also free. However, not everyone with NHS medical card can enjoy NHS free (or partially paid) dental service. You still need to apply for another certificate from NHS. The application form (HC 1) can be obtained from post offices, clinics or some optical companies. As the content of the application form is quite complicated, please consult an experienced person. This certificate provides some medical benefits. Try it. However, when you go to the NHS dentist's office, you may have to be prepared for a long queue. After graduating from the Department of Dentistry, British dentists do not need residency training, but only need two years of work experience to start their own businesses. So some dentists are not very skilled. Therefore, the author suggests that students "tidy up" their teeth before leaving, and that they should do well in filling, tooth extraction and denture in China.
Although British medical care can be guaranteed by NHS, it is inevitably different from China's medical habits and methods. Therefore, if you encounter difficulties, you may wish to consult more friends, classmates or teachers. However, "prevention is more important than cure". Don't neglect physical and mental health care. A balanced diet, moderate exercise, and appropriate ways to relieve emotions and stress are all conducive to physical and mental health.