The Physicians' Clinic

Our 365-day acute care service can provide urgent assessment, testing, and treatment for conditions including:

• Respiratory problems: Rapid testing for acute breathlessness.
• Kidney issues: Prompt treatment for acute kidney problems, including acute kidney injury or pyelonephritis, with access to dialysis or intensive care if needed.
• Diabetes emergencies: Management of ketoacidosis or hypoglycaemia.
• Heart concerns: Urgent cardiac assessment for severe breathlessness, angina, fainting, or decompensated heart failure.
• Blood clots: Emergency management of deep vein thrombosis or suspected pulmonary embolism.
• Infections: Investigation of high fever, severe gastroenteritis, suspected meningitis, pneumonia, or septicaemia.
• Digestive emergencies: Urgent endoscopy or colonoscopy for bleeding or severe abdominal pain.
• Liver problems: Care for decompensated liver disease or acute jaundice.
• Critical care: Rapid admission to intensive care or high dependency units for sudden health deterioration.
• Elderly care: Acute medical support for older patients.
• Neurology: Assessment for severe back pain, neck pain, or headache.
• Dermatology: Investigation of severe rashes, eruptions, or acute cellulitis.

While our service provides urgent access to hospital care, some situations require A&E or emergency services.

Call 999 for a paramedic ambulance and possibly the police if someone is:

• Seriously injured in a road traffic accident, fall, gunshot, or stabbing.
• Experiencing severe chest pain, possibly radiating down the left arm, or having great difficulty breathing.
• Seen to collapse suddenly and does not regain consciousness within a few minutes.
• Experiencing acute mental health symptoms. We are not able to offer psychiatric care.

You can access our acute medical admissions service:

• Through a GP referral
• Via any private urgent care facility or A&E department

We can arrange admission to The Princess Grace Hospital or The Harley Street Clinic, both located within 500 yards of our Devonshire Street clinic.

If you’re using private medical insurance for acute hospital admission:

Please check with your insurer for pre-authorisation before admission or treatment where possible. 

Emergency situations: Pre-authorisation may not be possible, especially out of hours or on weekends. In such cases:

• Patients will be treated as self-pay.
• A hospital deposit will be required at admission.

Retrospective authorisation may be sought from your insurer, for example, if you were referred by a GP, recognised specialist or recognised urgent care facility.

Please note: Your insurer's approval is subject to the terms of your policy.