Appointment Bookings & Cancellations
Bookings
To book an appointment, you can reach out to us via phone, email or over WhatsApp.
Our friendly team will be able to provide you with the right information and make the process of booking a consultation or assessment as easy and straightforward as possible. Before your first appointment, you will need to provide some basic information about yourself, such as your contact information, medical history, and insurance information.
Cancellations
We require at least 24 hours notice from the time of the notification if you wish to reschedule or cancel your appointment (for example - if your appointment is on Wednesday at 11am, you would need to cancel no later than Tuesday at 11am).
If you cancel or reschedule your appointment within less than 24 hours from the time of your booked appointment or if you do not attend, a cancellation fee of 100% of the appointment fee will be charged. For appointments on a Monday, we require notice of cancellation on the previous Friday before 4 pm.
Paying for Appointments
How can I pay for my appointments?
By card: using the payment link which will be sent to you via email from the patient portal
Over the telephone: by calling your clinician’s secretary
Can you keep my card details for future payments?
Once you have paid for an appointment, if you wish us to process future payments with your card details, you can let us know over the phone or by email stating “I authorise you to make future payments by processing my card on file.” You will be able to access all your invoices via the patient portal. Your card details will be stored securely in our system.
Health Insurance
If you are funded by medical insurance, we require a pre-authorisation number in order to secure your appointment. Please contact your insurer before your consultation to check the terms of your policy, particularly the level and type of outpatient cover you have, including any reimbursement limits on individual consultation fees.
We require a pre-authorisation number or code in advance in order to secure your appointment. Please note you are responsible for any fees not covered by your insurer.
We accept most major insurance companies but do not accept BUPA UK, Vitality Health and AXA.
Travel Fees
Travel fees for home or hospital visits are charged pro rata at the clinician’s hourly rate based on the time taken to travel from their usual place of work to the address. Please note that if a home visit is arranged on a day the clinician would usually work remotely, travel time may be calculated based on the distance from the clinician’s home rather than the office address.
Prescriptions
If clinically appropriate, your clinician will provide you with a prescription during your consultation.
If your consultation is remote, your clinician can also provide an electronic prescription that you can collect from most pharmacies within the UK (please note this is not possible for Controlled Drug prescriptions) or arrange for a courier pharmacy to deliver your medication to you.
Repeat Prescription Fees
If you require a prescription outside of an appointment, there is an admin fee. This fees varies depending on the type of prescription:
- Standard prescriptions: £25
- Controlled Drug (CD) : £60
Please note that the cost of repeat prescriptions may not be covered by some insurers.
Requesting a Repeat Prescription
If you need a repeat prescription (outside of an appointment), we require that you let us know at least 7 working days before you run out of your medication to ensure we have time to review and process your request.
To request a repeat prescription, we will need you to provide the following information, ideally by email:
- Name and dose of every medication (for example, Sertraline 50 mg tablets)
- How many tablets/capsules you take daily (e.g. 2 tablets daily)
- How many days you require (e.g. 30 days x 2 tablets daily = 60 tablets)
- How you would like to receive your medication (e.g. via one of the Pharmacies LPC routinely uses or your preferred named pharmacy).
Receiving a Repeat Prescription
Your prescription can be sent to your chosen pharmacy for you to collect. Standard prescriptions can be sent electronically and are usually dispensed by the pharmacy quite quickly but CD (Controlled Drug) medication will not be dispensed by any pharmacy until they receive the original copy either in person or via post to your pharmacy. Please note we will not generally send CD prescriptions to your home address. The CD prescription will be sent to a pharmacy who will be given your contact details so that you can either choose to collect or have your medication delivered to your chosen address. Please allow at least 2-3 working days for your prescription to arrive.
For standard prescriptions, this can also be issued electronically via a Clynxx token which you can take to most pharmacies in the UK. (Please note this is not an option for Controlled Drug prescriptions.)
You can also receive the medication via courier or post directly from a courier pharmacy. We work with several courier pharmacies that can post or deliver within the UK. Please be aware there may be an associated cost in some cases and you would need to discuss this with the pharmacy.
Please note that controlled medication prescriptions are valid for 28 days from the date on the prescription, so please ensure that these are presented at your chosen pharmacy for dispensing within this period otherwise a re-prescription fee of £60 will apply.
Arranging Prescriptions Through Your GP
At times your clinician may discuss with you for your GP to take over the prescribing of your medications. Please note some GPs may not agree to take over the repeat prescribing of certain medications. Some GPs may request a ‘Shared Care Agreement’ to be signed for specific medications (i.e. ADHD medications). Some GPs may refuse to take over the prescription entirely (see below).
Shared Care Agreement
For some medication, particularly controlled drug medications, your GP may want your clinician to sign a Shared Care Agreement or may refuse to take over the prescribing entirely.
Where a Shared Care Agreement (SCA) is being sought via your GP, please note that an SCA is at the discretion of your GP practice and may be declined. Where this is the case LPC will be happy to continue your care at our usual rates (this will exclude the cost of your medication) or should you wish to be transferred to an alternative provider we will be happy to facilitate this at your request.
Complaints
We aim to provide a service that meets the needs of our patients and we strive for a high standard of care and welcome suggestions from patients and from our staff and Clinicians about the safety and quality of service, treatment and care we provide.
We are committed to an effective and fair complaints system and support a culture of openness and willingness to learn from incidents, including complaints.
Our Complaints Principles
- Patients are encouraged to provide suggestions, compliments, concerns and complaints and we offer a range of ways to do it.
- All complainants are treated with respect, sensitivity and confidentiality.
- All complaints are handled without prejudice or assumptions about how minor or serious they are. The emphasis is on resolving the problem.
- Patients, staff and clinicians can make complaints on a confidential basis or anonymously if they wish and be assured that their identity will be protected.
- Patients will not be discriminated against or suffer any unjust adverse consequences as a result of making a complaint about standards of care and service.
- Formal responses sent will include a right to appeal
Raising a complaint
If you have a concern or a complaint about any aspect of the service provided, please call your clinicians’ secretary or the London Psychiatry Clinic office line on 020 3488 8555.
You can also email your letter to our practice manager at practice.manager@londonpsychiatry.clinic.
If you would prefer to submit your complaint in writing, you can send a letter to:
Registered Practice Manager
London Psychiatry Clinic
55 Harley Street
London W1G 8QR
We will ensure that all complaints are addressed at the earliest possible opportunity and are resolved within 28 days.
If you remain unhappy after you have received a response to your complaint, you may escalate your complaint to:
ISCAS
You may wish to contact the Independent Healthcare Sector Complaints Adjudication Service
Location and Contact Details:
70 Fleet Street, London EC4Y 1EU.
info@iscas.org.uk
020 7536 6091
Care Quality Commission (CQC)
You may also wish to contact the Care Quality Commission (CQC) concerning your complaint. However please note that the CQC does not investigate complaints but is the organisation that regulates the services The London Psychiatry Clinic provides.
The address is:
Care Quality Commission, Citygate, Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4PA (Tel: 03000616161) Internet: http://www.cqc.org.uk
Courtesy
All of our staff aim to be polite, helpful, and sensitive to all patients’ individual needs and circumstances. We ask our patients to treat our staff courteously at all times and we will not tolerate abuse towards our team under any circumstance.
Should you feel that a member of our team is unable to help you or provide the information that you need, you can ask to be put in touch with one of our Senior Management Team or contact practice.manager@londonpsychiatry.clinic to discuss your concerns.
Privacy and Personal Information
Will my medical records be confidential?
Yes. Your medical records will be kept confidential in our secure system.
Doctors have a duty of confidentiality towards their patients. This means that your clinician will only be able to discuss your case with a third party such as a family member or friend if you consent to this. Your clinician will document your consent on the clinical notes, and sometimes they may ask you to sign a Consent to Share information form to formally document your consent.
You can withdraw your consent at any time, either by letting your clinician know during a session or via email to your clinician’s secretary.
We operate a paperless service. Clinical information about you will be held in a secure electronic medical records system, which you have access to via the ‘patient portal’.
Any personal data collected from you will be used strictly in relation to your appointment and will not be shared other than as set out in our Privacy Policy. For information on how we use your personal data:
- Please click here to view our Privacy Policy.
- Please click here to view our Cookies Policy.
- Please click here to view our Website Terms & Conditions.
Will the clinic write to my GP?
Following good medical practice standards, your clinician will write to your GP after your first appointment and regularly thereafter.
Will I be able to review the GP letter before it is sent?
If you wish, you will have the opportunity to review the letter before it is sent to your GP.
If there is any inaccurate information, you can let us know so we can edit it as appropriate.
If there is any information that you consider private, you can let your psychiatrist know at the time of the appointment so it is not included in the letter to the GP. Please note that certain information such as the kind and dose of medication, or certain aspects of your medical history, cannot be omitted from the letter.
After 3 days of sharing the draft GP letter with you, if we have not received any response, we will assume that you are satisfied with the letter and proceed to send it to your GP.
What if I am not registered with a GP?
You can see a clinician at the London Psychiatry Clinic even if you are not registered with a GP. However, we encourage all our patients to be registered with a GP and we can provide details of NHS or private GPs working locally if required.
Can clinicians share information without my consent?
In certain emergency or extreme circumstances, your clinician may contact a third party such as your GP or your next of kin. This can happen:
- If there is a safeguarding concern
- If there is a significant risk to your health or safety or that of others.
- If there is an urgent need for a Mental Health Act Assessment (as per the Mental Health Act) or a strong concern about your mental capacity (as per the Mental Capacity Act).
This is in accordance with the standards of practice for all mental health professionals licensed to practise in the UK. Should contacting a third party be necessary, your clinician will endeavour to discuss the situation with you in order to discuss the most appropriate course of action prior to contacting a third party.
For all patients under 18, we will discuss with you what information will be shared with your parent/s/legal guardian during your first consultation.
Our senior management team may need to access your notes in line with our regulatory and risk standards. We value your privacy and will take all necessary steps to protect it. Rest assured that access will only be granted on an as-needed basis, in accordance with GDPR standards. Should you have concerns about your clinician sharing your information with any other member of the team, please do not hesitate to let your clinician or the Practice Manager (practice.manager@londonpsychiatry.clinic) know.
Safeguarding
There are statutory obligations that all professionals must by law fulfil with regards to reporting safeguarding concerns about children or vulnerable adults to external agencies including social care and police. Wherever possible any such reporting will be discussed with you (and in relation to child safeguarding, with parents) first but there may be occasions where this is deemed either not practicable or safe. Please note that the obligation to share information of any reports meeting thresholds for concern does not necessarily reflect or signify LPC clinician's own judgement or opinion regarding the safety or otherwise of any party involved.
Will the psychiatrist assume ongoing responsibility for my psychiatric care?
In normal circumstances, our clinicians will assume responsibility for your mental health care following your initial consultation with them.
However, there are certain circumstances where the clinician you see may not be able to take over the responsibility for your psychiatric care following your initial consultation. This can happen:
- If you are feeling acutely unwell and the clinician does not have availability to safely take responsibility for your care on an outpatient basis. In this case, the clinician may suggest that you see another psychiatrist with the right availability or that you are admitted to a clinic.
- If, following your initial consultation, the clinician finds that they do not have the appropriate clinical expertise to treat you based on your diagnosis or clinical needs. In this situation, the clinician will suggest that you see another psychiatrist with the right expertise.
If your appointment is for second opinion consultation, the clinician will not automatically take over the medical responsibility for your psychiatric care or prescribe any medications.
What should I do if I have an emergency?
Please note that the London Psychiatry Clinic is not an emergency service and your clinician may be unable to provide support or treatment in the event of certain mental health emergencies or outside of normal working hours.
Depending on the urgency of the situation, we suggest you consider one of the following options:
- Attend the nearest A&E department or call NHS 111.
- Contact your local urgent mental health helpline in England.
- In some cases, your GP may be able to assist.
- Samaritans offer a 24-hour telephone helpline calling 116 123.
- Call 999 if you need an ambulance or a welfare check for a relative.
How can I get admitted to a mental health hospital?
The London Psychiatry Clinic is an outpatient service and we do not have residential facilities.
If you believe you require an urgent admission to a mental health hospital, you can self-refer to one of the private mental health clinics near London such as the Nightingale Hospital, the Cardinal Clinic or one of the Priory hospitals.
If you wish or need to be admitted to a hospital or clinic, your clinician can refer you to a number of clinics in the UK or abroad depending on your needs and personal preferences, but they will not be able to organise or oversee the admission process.
Provision of care to patients located outside of the UK
Your clinician holds medical indemnity insurance that allows them to provide psychiatric assessments and advice remotely to patients based overseas in certain cases. Unless advised otherwise, your clinician does not hold a licence to practise medicine outside of the UK. Your clinician’s indemnity cover, and that of LPC, stipulates that all and any claims or medico-legal concerns are addressed in the UK courts. By booking an appointment you are in agreement that any claim or legal action would only be taken in a UK court.
UK based patients travelling outside of the UK:
If you travel outside of the UK for an extended period of time, we would advise that you let your clinician know so you can discuss your treatment plan and the level of support you will require.
Prescriptions provided by LPC can only be dispensed from a UK pharmacy. If your situation is stable your clinician may, at their clinical discretion, be able to provide a prescription for 3-6 months of medication during your face to face consultation when you are in London.
Patients resident outside of the UK
If your place of residence is outside of the UK, please let us know so we can discuss your situation prior to booking an appointment. We recommend that you engage with a local psychiatrist and general practitioner whenever possible. However, we understand that many patients wish to access advice from our clinicians and we are happy to facilitate this where appropriate. This will be for support and/or second-opinion only and we are not able to take sole clinical responsibility for patients outside of the UK nor can we issue medications abroad.
If there are any risk or safeguarding issues, these will need to be addressed by local clinicians or local services and it may not be possible for LPC to provide appointments without appropriate local input. The appropriateness of consulting to patients overseas will be discussed and decided on a case-by-case basis with your clinician.
Closing episodes of care
If you have not had an appointment with your clinician for 6 months, we will automatically close the current episode of care and you will not be part of your clinician's active caseload unless any different circumstances have been discussed between you and the clinician.
You will still be able to book an appointment (subject to the clinician’s availability) but you may not be able to request a repeat prescription or other requests.
When an episode of care is closed, we will generally write to you in order to let you know. Where appropriate, we will also notify other professionals involved in your care such as your GP. However, if you do not wish to receive this correspondence then you have the option to opt-out by informing your clinician at any point during your care.
If you have any questions about the above information, please contact us here.
