There is plenty of information online regarding the differences between the NHS and private medicine and let’s face it, the advantages are pretty clear for patients. If you are lucky enough to be able to pay for private treatment (or have decent medical insurance) then you are likely to receive a much higher quality of care…
Not to mention shorter waiting times, a generally nicer experience and probably a lower chance of suffering other complications (since amongst other things you will almost certainly get your own room and private attention).
But what is it like from the other side of the table?
If you work as a nurse, a doctor or other medical practitioner, what are the real differences between working for the NHS vs Privately?
Differences in Pay
One of the biggest factors is that the NHS, as most areas of the Public sector use set pay scales, meaning that what you are paid depends on things like what pay level you have reached and how long you have worked for the NHS.
In private medicine there are no set pay scales and you are free to negotiate your own salary. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you will be paid well, but private doctors and medical staff do have the opportunity to earn what they are worth, which also increases the incentive to be better and to pursue professional development.
You Don’t Have To Choose
The majority of doctors who work privately do also work as consultants for the NHS. This is obviously a nice way to supplement your income, but you do still need to ensure that you can fulfil your NHS commitments, so doing so requires hard work.
One to One Care
One really nice thing about working privately is that doctors will generally have more opportunities to actually spend time with their patients on a one to one basis, and you can spend more attention on individual patients, since you will have fewer of them.
In private care, generally about 80% of patients will be funded by private health insurance (which is becoming increasingly popular) vs about 20% who self-fund.
This is of course good for the patient too, and the added morale can have a positive impact on recovery and prognosis.
Entering Private Practice
Perhaps one of the biggest differences between working for the NHS vs privately is that medical insurance companies must rely on specific benchmarks to assess the abilities of a doctor or other medical practitioner.
Therefore you will probably need to be on the GMC’s specialist register and you will also have to go through an AAC (advisory appointments committee).
Private hospitals have various legal obligations which mean that it can be difficult to prove yourself. But the upside is that you can be sure that any private medical practitioner is very experienced, fully qualified and very good at his/her job. And ultimately that’s very good for the patient…
Summary
Ultimately of course, both options have their advantages and disadvantages. Many doctors enjoy working for both the NHS and privately as it gives them a nice balance between the one to one care afforded by private work between the clear career progression and other opportunities offered by the NHS.
But if you do wish to work privately, perhaps for a medical insurer there are a few professionals in the UK who work solely as private practitioners, and many more who work predominantly that way.
