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What can e-med offer?

 

We are a doctors surgery that you can contact by e-mail, phone or webcam. If we cannot sort out your problems in that manner, then we can refer you to a specialist in the field you need for further investigations or examination.

All the services that you would normally find in your GP and more such as health check referrals are available through e-med.

Our service is quick, friendly and efficient and gives you the peace of mind of knowing that you can contact your doctor TODAY.
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Why is e-med still the only service like this in the world?

 

Since we started, many have tried to copy what we do, BUT e-med remains unique. We offer far more than a single email back.

We will arrange any referral/investigation or even a prescription for you. That is how we can offer online diagnosis and treatment. And now we offer Skype Video Consultations - the first medical practice in the world to do so.Top of Page

 


Can I obtain a prescription for Insomnia, Anxiety/Mental Health Issues or Pain like symptoms?

 

It is e-med Policy that medication of this sort is potentially abusable, and as such can only be prescribed by the patient's normal NHS GP or family doctor.


 
Can you diagnose by e-mail?

 

Yes, in certain circumstances as many medical diagnoses are made from the history of the problem alone, and in many problems the course of action is not dependent on the results of a physical examination.

E-mail is like a slow conversation - it is dependent on typing speed and server speed. When you first start consulting with e-med you may feel more at ease by just phoning, but as you get to know us, or if requests are simple then in time you will be happier with e-consulting.

If you have a webcam we can consult using that as well.

We can give medical advice, organise referrals and prescriptions for people in the UK or abroad.

We are here to help you. So if you want to consult by phone or webcam, that's fine, and if you're happier e-mailing we can do that too.

We integrate all current communication means to help you access your e-med doctor.
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Is it secure to e-mail my symptoms or details to e-med?

 

We use an SSL encrypted server for your e-mails, but if you are concerned about any details or results being passed to you on the Net then we can call you or fax with them just as easily.

In some cases your doctor may even ask to see you if there is anything that needs handling more personally.
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What if you can't make a diagnosis by e-mail?

 


When we receive your e-mail and the doctor feels that he needs to speak to you to discuss your symptoms, he will call you immediately and we can help you that way.

But if we feel it is necessary, we may ask you to video consult to effect a diagnosis or to treat you, or even refer you to a consultant specialist.
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What about medical investigations?

 

If you need further medical investigations to work towards a diagnosis, such as blood tests or scans, then your e-med doctor can refer you appropriately, usually to a hospital in London. If you are unable to come to London then we will arrange for them to be performed at a site convenient to your location.

Other investigations can also be arranged remotely such as X-rays, Ultrasounds, CT or MRI scans.

The results will be sent to your e-med doctor who can then advise you on what to do next.
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How quickly will you respond and what hours are you available?

 

This will depend upon the problem. The e-mails are an 'open' round the clock service and are monitored throughout the day with the urgent queries taking priority. On average, you will receive a response within one working hour (GMT time) and we strive to answer all emails within 4 working hours
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Can you refer me on my insurance?

 

Yes. If you are privately insured, as your private GP, we can refer you to whoever your policy allows.
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Can you prescribe without seeing me?

 

Yes, if the condition is straightforward to diagnose or it is a repeat prescription. However there may be occasions when you will need to be seen before prescribing certain medication, either by Skype or by referral.

If you are outside the UK then advice can be given on how to obtain your medication.

We can contact a pharmacist near where you are for the medication to be picked up by you.
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How much does it cost?

 

Membership costs £20.00 (around €24) for each member per annum.

Each time you use the service, for example for prescription requests, referrals, diagnosis, etc., an additional charge of £15.00 (around €18) is made. No matter how many emails it takes on one particular medical concern, the charge remains £15. If you need to be referred to a consultant or specialist, then the charge depends on his / her fees plus any investigations.
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Is there a fee for all consultations?

 

No. If you have a simple medical query, then you can use our FREE Nurse Consultation service.
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Why do I have to become a member?

 

At e-med, your health and safety are our priorities.

We do appreciate that there are difficulties with e-consulting and so we require you to become a member of our practice. When you join e-med, you fill in a detailed Confidential Health Questionnaire which we can refer to on our database for any current or future medical concerns.

As a member, you will receive a unique PIN and Password. This is required for any future emails or consultations and for the Doctor to access your previous medical history and treat you confidentially.

Being a member means that consultation is quicker, and that we can charge you AFTER a consultation, rather than by the minute in a chatroom like other sites. The price is fixed no matter how many e-mails or phone calls it takes .
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How do I pay?

 

E-Med is primarily an online company and in order for you to utilise our service safely and efficiently, you will be prompted to enter your card details via our Secure Trading page online. You will be able to view the SSL certificate online and all major cards are accepted including Visa, Mastercard, Maestro, Visa Debit and American Express. We do not hold any of your card details on our records.
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What happens to my medical notes?

 

These are kept offline on our private database and hence secure from any hackers. If requested, we can send you or your GP details of your consultations or investigation results for your own files, either by e-mail, post or fax.
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Do I have to leave my NHS GP to become an e-med member?

 

No you don't and we don't advocate it either.

Unless you have Private Medical Insurance (PMI), it can be very expensive to pay for ongoing medical investigations or hospital referrals. If you don't have PMI you can use us to access quicker consultations and receive advice, diagnoses and even prescriptions without the usual wait for an NHS GP appointment. However, if there is anything that may be a financial burden to you if it is obtained privately, then we can advise you on how to access it through the NHS so you don't have to pay.
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Does e-med inform my family doctor about consultations?

 

The doctors at e-med are happy to inform any other doctor you feel necessary about e-med consultations. We will need their full address if you wish us to do this.

However if you do not want us to inform any other doctor about your e-med consultation then we will not do so. We will then take full responsibility for your care as pertains to the nature of the consultation.

Please note, even if you prefer us not to, there may be medical situations where we will still insist on contacting your other healthcare provider. This is extremely rare but will only occur if our doctors feel that it is in your best interest for your GP to be informed. If this does occur, you will be informed accordingly.

Likewise you can simply print off your e-mail consultation and show this to your family doctor as you wish.
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How do you ensure that no one else can contact you and access my medical notes?

 

We need your PIN and Password on top of every e-mail you send us, these are kept at the e-med surgery to verify you are who you say you are.

Similarly if you phone us we will ask for these details too.

If you lose your membership details or forget your password, you can call or e-mail us and we will ask for certain personal details to verify your identity. Alternatively, you can fill in the Pin and Password request form.
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Are you registered with the Care Quality Commission?

 

Yes we are registered for "Treatment for disease, disorder and injury" and "Transport services, triage and medical advice provided remotely".

Our registration number is: CRT1-179645951.
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Are the prescriptions private or NHS?

 

All our prescriptions are issued privately. Therefore they do not incur the £7.40 NHS Prescription Charge. The charge for the prescription - that is paid to your pharmacist - reflects the actual cost of the medication, which in many cases is less than the NHS Prescription Charge.

If the medication is going to cost a lot more than this, then we or the pharmacist will inform you and you should be able to get your NHS GP to issue it, although this will not be as quick as getting it though e-med.

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May I claim on my travel insurance?

 

If you become unwell when you are abroad and need to access our services, some insurance policies will cover the resulting e-med charges.

Please check with your insurance company before you go.
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Who can join e-med?

 

e-med provides services for all UK and EU citizens as well as in any country where it is lawful to do so. In the event that you seek to join e-med from a country that does not permit online consultation (e.g. the USA), we will inform you prior to processing your application and return any joining fee.

A full list of countries whose residents are eligible for e-med's services is available here.
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Does online prescribing of antibiotics cause increased resistance?

 

The current trend of increasing antibiotic resistance across the world has focused attention on the ability to get an antibiotic prescription from online pharmacies and other websites.

We estimate that within the EU as a whole, there might be as much as one thousand online prescriptions a week for antibiotics to cover urinary infections, STIs, respiratory and skin infections. Of course, any increase in prescribing in theory can increase the chance of resistance - but online prescribing should be seen alongside current face to face prescribing volumes to get a clearer picture.

UK GPs have been commended for reducing antibiotic prescriptions by 2.5 million courses in 2015. However this takes the overall level down from 36.5 to 34 million courses in the same year. A 7% decrease only.

Across the EU, there is a wide variance in prescribing antibiotics - with Holland and Estonia as the "best" or lowest volume prescribers, and Greece, France and Italy as the "worst" or highest volume. The UK is below the EU average. The overall volume in prescriptions in the EU yearly stands at about 700 million courses per year as a conservative estimate.

The Center for disease Control (CDC) keeps a close eye on US prescribing- and the most recent annual figure shows 262 million courses. So, the EU and USA gives a figure of just under 1 billion courses annually. Therefore online prescribing accounts for 0.0005% of this global figure. That is one in every two thousand prescriptions. But the US and EU are low volume prescribers compared to the rest of the world.

According to the latest World Health Organisation (WHO) figures, the largest volumes are prescribed in India and China. And there has been a 50% increase in global prescribing from year 2000 to 2010. The majority (67%) of this increased prescribing comes from the BRICS countries - i.e. Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. In most of these countries - a paper prescription after seeing a doctor is not needed as antibiotics are bought over the counter. This also makes it difficult to get exact prescribing data - so figures are estimated on the low side.

The WHO figure for antibiotic prescriptions across the world annually stands at 7.5 billion. Therefore online prescribing accounts for 0.0000067% of this figure. Roughly one in every two hundred thousand prescriptions. The WHO also goes on to say that "more antibiotics are used in the food production from chickens, pigs and cows each year THAN IN THE ENTIRE HUMAN POPULATION". Of the antibiotics used in these 3 animals - only 9 are exclusive to them, 18 are shared with humans as well. This figure does not include sheep and the rapidly increasing aquaculture of farmed fish.

We would therefore suggest that online prescribing of antibiotics to the user base of busy professionals and people without registered doctors near them accounts for under one course per million prescribed each year in all forms. We agree that everyone should make efforts to decrease prescribing - however there are some houses that should be put in order before others.

References:
UK: https://content.digital.nhs.uk/gpprescribingdata
EU: https://ecdc.europa.eu/en/eaad/antibiotics-news/Documents/antimicrobial-consumption-ESAC-Net-summary-2015.pdf
CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/pdf/ar-threats-2013-508.pdf
WHO: https://www.who.int/antimicrobial-resistance/publications/surveillancereport/en/
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We hope that these questions fully answer any queries you may have but if there are any other specific questions you have for e-med call us on +44 (0) 20 3286 2033 or complete our Information request form.


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