Initial assessments, usually ninety minutes (plus another half hour for compiling an initial letter of 600 to 800 words): £400.
Follow-up consultations, usually half an hour: £100.
The above consultation fees apply to my regular clinics which are currently Tuesday afternoons and Thursday mornings. I am sometimes able to arrange other times for consultations at 17 Wimpole Street, at an additional fee of £80. For consultations elsewhere see the paragraph on travel, below.
Payment by cheque on the day of consultations is preferred, otherwise by bank transfer (details on printed invoices, or I can email). Letters are sent out after payment is received. Letters are addressed to the patient’s general practitioner, and copied to the patient, unless agreed otherwise. Briefer letters of up to 200 words, following most consultations: no additional charge. Letters to employers or others: depending on time taken. Draft letter sent by email or post: £20. Changes to draft letter: £20 (or more, depending on time taken).
Issues arising from consultations and letters are best discussed in follow-up consultations. Brief enquiries, especially in relation to issues around new treatment, are often not charged for. More substantial issues, dealt with by email, or discussed over the telephone (usually at an agreed time): £50 per quarter-hour or part quarter-hour.
Prescriptions: Private prescription: £15
ADD / ADHD medications: For patients starting these for the first time, I now recommend that I prescribe and monitor for the initial ten weeks (see bottom of ADD / ADHD page). This is in line with the NICE guidelines which recommend intensive specialist input during this period. The minimum cost of this is £200 for the first two weeks (two emails and then a face-to-face consultation at two weeks), with £300 for the next two months (four further emails and a face-to-face consultation at ten weeks).
Therefore the basic cost of initiation of ADD / ADHD medication is £500 (in addition to the usual initial assessment fee of £400): this could increase if there are substantial problems which result in additional emails, telephone calls, letters, and face-to-face consultations (as yet this has only happened once). After medication is established, the patient’s GP might agree to take over the prescription of long-acting medications: I would then recommend continued specialist review every three months for at least a year.
Travel: I do not usually charge for the cost of travel itself (by public transport or car), for home visits within two hours of London (approximately 100 miles). I charge for traveling time at £100 per hour. An estimate of travel time will be given in advance, and usually this will be rounded down: for example, two hours for return travel to locations within the M25 or West Kent. Some visits less than two hours from London, for example where it is necessary to arrive early in the day, and most visits more than two hours from London, involve higher travel costs and may be charged for accordingly, in addition to the travel time charge.
