Clinic Policies
Cancellation Policy:
Please note that The Women’s Hormone Clinic has a two-working-days cancellation policy. If any cancellations are made with less than two working days’ notice, the full consultation fee may be charged. Cancellations made prior to this will not be charged. Working days are Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm.
Payment Policy:
New patient consultation fees must be paid at least 7 days prior to the appointment date or your appointment may be cancelled. Appointments that are cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice are non-refundable. Invoices for blood tests and follow-up appointments must be paid within 7days of issue. Payments can be made via BACS transfer or by credit/debit card using the automatic payment link on the invoice
Patients under the age of 18 years:
The Women’s Hormone Clinic dose not treat patients who are under 18 years of age.
Ongoing Review Policy:
Existing patients are required to have a review with your doctor every 12 months as a minimum. It is necessary to have a monitoring blood test and for some patients an ultrasound scan. Failure to attend a review will result in your doctor being unable to continue prescribing you medication.
Tests and Investigation Policy:
It may be necessary for patients to undergo additional tests such as ultrasound on bone density scans which are not provided by The Women’s Hormone Clinic. In this situation we will recommend a provider that we are confident delivers high quality care at a reasonable cost. However, there is no obligation for patients to use this provider.
A blood test will be requested every year to ensure that your bespoke package of treatment is still meeting your needs. It can be harmful to receive doses of hormone that are above what is physiologically normal and we carefully monitor our patients to ensure this is not the case.
For patients who are receiving compounded Bioidentical HRT it is necessary to undergo a yearly Pelvic Ultrasound Scan to monitor the lining of the womb (endometrial thickness). An increase in the thickness can be linked to endometrial cancer and so it is vital this is monitored. For women on regulated Bioidentical HRT, we may still suggest a scan if there has been unscheduled bleeding or if the patient would like one for reassurance purposes.
*Please note that The Women’s Hormone Clinic is regulated by the CQC and therefor strictly adheres to the protocols for repeat prescribing which involved thorough monitoring of the patient’s health. We will be unable to issue further prescriptions to patients who do not comply with the ongoing monitoring outlined above as it would be deemed unsafe to do so.
Communication:
We may need to share your personal data with health authorities, NHS Trusts, special health authorities, legal authorities and ambulance services. With your consent and, subject to strict sharing protocols about how it will be used, we may also share your information with social services, education services, local authorities, voluntary sector providers as well as the private sector.
It is mandatory that we notify your GP of your treatment with us. This is a compliance requirement of the General Medical Council.
We will always offer to notify your GP of any medicines that we have prescribed, but if you decline to take up our offer, it is your responsibility to notify your GP. You must be aware that any Hormone replacement medication prescribed by us may have a bearing on the healthcare that you receive from you GP and other NHS medical service and so it is essential that your GP record is up to date. If you do not give consent then there may be certain forms of drug therapy that your practitioner is not prepared to prescribe you. With your consent we will write to your GP with a summary of our treatment plan and a copy will be sent to you for your records.
Tolerance Policy:
We believe that a healthy doctor-patient relationship is based on trust and mutual respect and is the cornerstone of excellent patient care. On the rare occasion that this relationship may break down, our clinic may decide that it is in the best interests of the patient that she finds a new practice. Equally, if a patient refuses to comply with our clinic policies, we may have no option other than to refuse any further treatment, in the interests of patient safety and clinical standards.
The Patient Care Team play an integral role in your overall treatment at the clinic and take great pride in delivering the best possible service. We kindly remind patients to please treat them with the mutual respect they deserve.
No form of abuse, be it physical, sexual or verbal, towards any of our staff will be tolerated and will result in immediate removal from our patient base
Feedback Policy:
The Women’s Hormone Clinic strives to provide patients with a professional service of the highest standard and we welcome all feedback so that we can continually improve. At the end of your video consultation you will be offered the opportunity to provide feedback using our independent review service Doctify. You are also welcome to contact the clinic by email to ask for a link to this service at any time
Complaints Procedure:
The Women’s Hormone Clinic is committed to providing a high-quality online independent healthcare service. If you are not satisfied with any aspect of your treatment or the service you have received then we would kindly ask that you bring this to the attention of a member of staff as soon as possible. This complaints procedure ensures that your complaint will be dealt with as quickly as possible.
Verbal Complaints
If you wish to speak to someone about an aspect of the The Women’s Hormone Clinic service, please speak to a member of staff as soon as possible, preferably during, or after, your consultation. You will be invited to put your concerns in writing and every effort will be made to resolve your complaint as quickly as possible.
Written Complaints
All written complaints should be addressed to the Complaints Lead, and emailed to: [email protected] Please describe as fully as you can the nature of your complaint.
We aim to acknowledge all complaints within 3 working days and to provide a full written response within 28 days of receipt. If a full response cannot be given within 20 working days, we will write to you to explain the reason for the delay.
Escalating your complaint to the Independent Doctors Federation (IDF)
If you remain unhappy after we have responded to your complaint, you may escalate your complaint to the IDF to access an independent complaints resolution procedure. The address is:
Independent Doctors Federation (IDF) CEO
The Medical Society of London
Lettsom House
11 Chandos St
Marylebone
London W1G 9EB Tel: 020 3696 4080 Email: [email protected]
Please be assured that The Women’s Hormone Clinic takes all complaints very seriously and following investigation, will consider making changes to the patient service.
