getting the nhs to provide blood tests for private hrt

[Emerald24]

hi i am looking into getting my MTF partner into private care with GenderGP. i would like to eventually just pay for the prescriptions and the £30 a month charge but get our NHS doctor to do all of the blood tests. i have heard of others achieving this so i would like to ask how easy or hard it was to persuade your GP to provide you with blood tests. i think GenderGP was asking for around 5 tests at £50 a test to be done every 3 months, if it might be different to that please let me know. we cant afford £250 every 3 months on top of the £30 monthly charge and prescriptions so it would be great if we could persuade out GP to just do the blood tests. how likely are we to be able to achieve this? i also heard once someone is diagnosed as being transgender and having gender dysphoria that the nhs kind of have to help so is it possible that once GenderGP diagnose my partner that the NHS cant say no to doing the blood tests? I'm quite confused as i have heard many different stories so any help from someone who has actually done this would be great

[Alice (nym)]

I asked my doctor to do my bloods and he refused flatly to do it. So I contacted the gender clinic and told them that I was self medicating (not recommended by Susans or my trans group). They wrote back to me and told me off for doing so... a slap on the wrist and wrote to my GP and informed him what I was doing and recommended that he begin monitoring my blood... but deathly silence from him.

I was chatting at my trans group about this tonight and it seems like there is (a) a luck of the draw with regards to GPs and (b) you sometimes have to be a bit forceful in demanding it but they can still say, 'no'  or (c) find a new GP who is onboard.

[Charlotte F]

I am with Gender GP and for about a year used Medichecks (online) for blood tests - they do a finger-prick T and E2 test for £49, I used to wait for their special offers (which come round quite regularly once you're on their waiting list) then buy several kits at once.  I did find this type of testing can be problematic though so ended up paying for the private veinous sample collection which I think adds about £20 on.  Still, £70 is a lot less than the £250 you mention.

Last year I got fed up paying for tests privately and approached my GP and simply asked them for a blood test and they agreed.  They weren't anywhere near as receptive initially when it came to the shared care agreement but for blood tests, sometimes you just need to ask and have a bit of luck on your side

[Megan.]

My GP was happy to do this. I was open with them from the start, and that my levels needed monitoring for my own health and safety.
The DID charge me £10 each time to get my own copy of the results as these were for the use of a private service.

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[Gertrude]

I asked my doctor to do my bloods and he refused flatly to do it. So I contacted the gender clinic and told them that I was self medicating (not recommended by Susans or my trans group). They wrote back to me and told me off for doing so... a slap on the wrist and wrote to my GP and informed him what I was doing and recommended that he begin monitoring my blood... but deathly silence from him.

I was chatting at my trans group about this tonight and it seems like there is (a) a luck of the draw with regards to GPs and (b) you sometimes have to be a bit forceful in demanding it but they can still say, 'no'  or (c) find a new GP who is onboard.

Isn't them contacting your GP a violation of confidentiality?


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[emma-f]

My GP agreed to do my blood tests, although they are rather lax at then sending them on. I think its very much pot luck on the GP. Mine is now looking at taking over from Gender GP for actually prescribing the hormones, which will save me the £30 per month

[AnneK]

My GP was happy to do this. I was open with them from the start, and that my levels needed monitoring for my own health and safety.
The DID charge me £10 each time to get my own copy of the results as these were for the use of a private service.

When I go for blood tests, the results are available online within a few hours.  There's even a button to save to PDF.  Also, in Ontario where I live, there's a system where doctors can share medical tests etc.  I know when I went to one specialist, a few months ago, another specialist had no problem accessing the results.

[pamelatransuk]

Hello Emerald24

I have been with GenderGP since 2017 and am very happy with their all round service.

My understanding is that they charge £100 in total for the Blood Tests every 3 months which are customarily for E&T but other tests may be subsequently necessary adding to the £100 charge.

However I arranged a SCA with my NHSGP with no problem at all. Hence I receive my Prescriptions and have my BTs under NHS (and I can view the results online 24 hours afterwards).

So Yes I have to agree with the others that it is simply a question of the attitude of your NHSGP. I am one of the lucky ones here but I have known him for 17 years!

I hope you and your partner have similar good luck.

Hugs

Pamela

[davina61]

With Gender GP and share care with my GP .Have my bloods done and prescription taken care by my GP no problem as well as my anti T jab

[F_P_M]

I suppose i'm fortunate to be afab in that respect, I go in and say "i want a full hormone profile" and they just do it, no questions asked. The NURSE did my last one, I just told her when I went in for something else "while we're here, can you take bloods for a hormone profile?" and she just did it then and there.

The whole results available online in a few hours though? that's astounding! I have to wait like a week and then they'll only tell me my results if i go in IN person and chat to the damn doctor.
It's so dumb.
20 years + having blood tests, I think I know how to interpret the dang things better than my doctor does at this point.

but as others have said the NHS is very hit and miss. If a gp won't cooperate, ask for a different one.

[AnneK]

Yes, it generally takes a few hours.  I don't know if that applies for all the tests that lab does, but certainly for blood & urine tests.  A few years ago, I went to an X-ray clinic and they handed me a DVD with my X-rays on it, so there's no problem here with passing results on to other doctors that need it.  After reading so much here, I am surprised how much better Canada is in regard to health care in that we don't see the barriers that seem to occur in the UK and don't have that horrible system that passes for health care in the US, with insurance, "network" doctors and hospitals, deductibles, high bills and more.  All my health care visits have cost me nothing more than parking at some of the doctors I've gone to.  GRS surgery is covered 100% by our health care and lots more.  On top of that, since I'm 65, prescriptions only cost me the dispensing fee, after the $100/year deductible.  I have never, in my life, had to pay so much as a nickle to see a doctor, go into hospital or get lab tests done.  It's all covered.  I just have to show my health card.

[Emerald24]

thankyou for the replies it is very reassuring that there are positive stories out there. any tips on how best to approach this, should i go to gender GP first and then go to the nhs gp or should we go back to the nhs gp first? how should we go about explaining what we want to the GP?

[Megan.]

Personally I went to GenderGP first, they gave me a clear list of the levels that needed monitoring. I then saw my GP who was happy (and glad to have) that list.

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[pamelatransuk]

I registered with GenderGP and had the therapy and both GenderGP and I agreed HRT was the next step and I paid for my Prescription from GenderGP for HRT for 3 months.

After 3 months I knew that I would be remaining on HRT (I never really doubted it but technically I was "exploring" for 3 months) and hence then asked GenderGP to arrange SCA with my NHSGP and at the same time I asked my NHSGP to agree to the SCA. Never any problem for me.

Hoping you and your partner are treated equally well in due course.

Hugs

Pamela

[Kimberley Beauregard]

I'm with GenderGP who want my full bloods. I recently switched to a new medical practice after moving out so they don't have access to my records, which have the results from a full test I did last October as part of my re-referral to Sheffield GIC. Until then, it has to be something specifically requested by a doctor or hospital before they'll do it.

I'm bringing up the subject again the next time I have to see them for my other medical issues.

[Kalandrina]

Good information. I just registered with Gender GP, but need bloods doing, will be seeing GP in 3 weeks and have routine bloods done with them due to having High Blood pressure, tho working hard to loose enough weight to get off them. Hoping my nice female doctor will agree to do 3 monthly checks rather than 6 monthly and add in E and T checks. Will also broach subject of SCA with her.

[Emerald24]

thanks for everyone's replies. we need to work out how to pay for all the gender gp stuff first but as soon as we broach the subject with our gp i will let you know their response and how it went for us maybe this thread will be helpful to someone else in the future

[Carla68]

I'm with YourGP and have shared care with my GP. I have my bloods done in Holland as working away they seem to come out of the 385 Euro excess of medical insurance at 58 euros. I can also get bloods done in UK mainly because my cholesterol was very high on initial test with them. Prescription taken care of by my GP no problem as well as my anti T jab
Carla

[pamelatransuk]

Hello again Emerald

As you will have seen from several replies from those of us with GenderGP, there may be 2 separate hurdles to encounter.

The first is the potential SCA for the purposes of Prescription and BTs under NHS. Straightforward for me but sadly not so for some others.

The second is that after some time with GenderGP, you may be put on an anti T jab - Decapetyl/Triptorelin. I know that in some NHSGP offices, Practice Nurses administer the jab. However in mine, the Practice Nurses refuse but again my NHSGP is very happy to administer it every 12 weeks.

Yes indeed. This thread should help many British Susans' members in the future.

Hugs to all.

Pamela  xx

[Megan.]

Hello again Emerald

As you will have seen from several replies from those of us with GenderGP, there may be 2 separate hurdles to encounter.

The first is the potential SCA for the purposes of Prescription and BTs under NHS. Straightforward for me but sadly not so for some others.

The second is that after some time with GenderGP, you may be put on an anti T jab - Decapetyl/Triptorelin. I know that in some NHSGP offices, Practice Nurses administer the jab. However in mine, the Practice Nurses refuse but again my NHSGP is very happy to administer it every 12 weeks.

Yes indeed. This thread should help many British Susans' members in the future.

Hugs to all.

Pamela  xx

Service from GP clinics for our HRT does seem to vary wildly. I can only say that I've had no issues getting my Decapeptyl jabs at my local GP surgery, and at this stage I think every nurse there has sincew it at least once. [emoji846]

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