A review by bsky on BUPA
February 28th, 2001

Author's product rating:

Pros: peace of mind. treatment when you need it.
Cons: none

Recommend to potential buyers: yes

Full review
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I joined a Bupa scheme several months ago with a special package that was attatched to my salary.

As with all insurance I did not expect to have to use it. However my husband became ill and had to visit our GP. The GP advised he would have to go back to hospital as he had a re-occurrance of an old illness. He was advised that the necessary forms would be sent to our local NHS hospital and he would hear in due course.

Not happy at having to wait I contacted my insurance who advised me that my husband was covered by my insurance and that he should telephone the consultant at our local BUPA hospital in Edinburgh to arrange an appointment.

He telephoned the hospital at 2.30pm on the Friday and was given an apointment for the following Monday at 3.00pm. As you can imagine we were very impressed at not having to wait any length of time.

My husband went for his initial appointment where he was greeted directly by the consultant and ushered into a private room. No cubicles with curtains pulled round you here!!

It was agreed by the consultant that an operation was the only way to treat my husband. He then produced his diary and asked which dates were convenient. We settled on a date 2 weeks later and headed home.

A couple of days later we received a letter advising my husband that he would need some pre-op test done. Again an appointment had been arranged very quickly and he went along to have these tests done.

At the hospital the Sister in charge greeted my husband and lead him to an en-suite room where blood samples and urine samples were taken. My husband was then free to go. All this had been done within 10 minutes. No waiting around in corridors in this hospital.

Finally the day of the operation arrived and we set off for Edinburgh despite the treacherous road conditions due to snow.

Once at the hospital the whole family were taken to room 304 and the children were advised that this was Daddy's room for the day. They were then shown to a large playroom and told that they could play in there if they wanted to.

Shortly after checking in the consultant arrived to speak to us about the operation. By this time the children had come back to the room so the consultant spent some time talking to them and explaining that he was going to make Daddy better. He then went through everything with my husband and I and told us the operation would take place in about 10 minutes.

My husband was taken to theatre so I left the hospital to take the children for lunch.

On my return to the day care unit I was given an explanation of what had been done and what else would be required in the future and then taken along to my husband's room.

Although tired and sore he was pleased to see me. He didn't get a chance to see the kids. They had already disappeared into the playroom!

Sister popped her head round the door a few minutes later and offered my husband some food which he was more than willing to accept.

A couple of minutes later a nurse appeared with a tray of salad and BLT sandwiches and a pot of coffee.( I was also offered refreshments as were the children.)

Once my husband had eaten the nurse returned and asked if he had had enough to eat. Once she was happy that he had indeed eaten enough she asked if he was comfortable enough to go home or would he like to stay the night.

My husband felt ready to return home but had a few questions. Sister came back and advised my husband that she was going to telephone the consultant and have him discuss any concerns my husband may have.

Sure enough 5 minutes later the consultant was on the phone to aleviate any fears my husband may have had.

Once dressed and ready to go we were given a variety of painkillers and the necessary paperwork and allowed to go on the understanding that if there were ANY problems we were to contact the hospital immediately.

My husband is now recovering. But he would probably still have been waiting for his initial consultation with the NHS if we hadn't used BUPA.

The hospital facilities are amazing. The staff are so polite and will do absolutely anything for you. The rooms are a decent size. They all have colour tv sets and telephones as well as en-suite bathrooms. (with bath and shower.) The food is excellent quality with a very wide variety of choice and generous portions.

If only the NHS could be like this, especially as the consultant that treated my husaband is the one he would have been referred to anyway if he had waited on the NHS waiting list!!

I feel if you have a few extra pounds spare each month they are well invested if you pay into BUPA. You get excellent care when you want it and by staff that have the time to treat you as a person and not another bed that needs to be emptied as soon as possible.

All the fees etc for the consultation and operation have been met by my insurance and everything was done simply with phone calls to update them each step of the way and then the consultant signing the claim form.

Peace of mind may cost you a little bit of money but it is worth every penny.

More details
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Competitiveness of APR Average
Comprehensiveness of range of products Excellent
Product package Excellent
Efficiency of service Excellent
Value for money Excellent
Online - Content/organization of site Good
Online - Reliability/speed of site Not Applicable
Online - Ease of applying for products Not Applicable
Online - Pre-purchase information Not Applicable