Q&A 148: The NHS will see you now

Question

Prof. G, will it be possible to arrange an appointment to see you on the NHS? If not, can I see you privately? Thanks

Not the NHS; picture created by Gemini Pro 3.0

NOTE: General Substack newsletters and the microsite are free; only Q&A sessions are restricted to paying subscribers. I can’t run and maintain the MS-Selfie microsite, so I must pay people to assist me. If people want to ask medical questions unrelated to the Newsletters or Podcasts, they either need to become paying subscribers or email (ms-selfie@giovannoni.net) to request a complimentary subscription.

Prof G’s response

I must receive two or three emails a week from people with MS (pwMS) requesting to see me in person. These people are probably unaware that I do not see private patients and that about 18 months ago, I stopped seeing patients with MS on the NHS. Please read the following newsletters that explain my decision.

• Prof G is retiring (Jun 21, 2024)

• Farewell - no fanfare (Aug 29, 2024)

I did this to take time out to focus on research, primarily about MS prevention; there are essentially two strands to this research. Firstly, to help initiate EBV vaccine trials, and secondly, to develop treatments for infectious mononucleosis (IM). We have hypothesised that both these strategies will reduce the incidence of MS and other EBV-related autoimmune diseases and potentially some EBV-related cancers.

I still see pwMS participating in clinical trials, and I continue to interact with pwMS via email, colleagues and on MS Selfie. I have not stopped seeing patients with neurological problems. I still see patients for colleagues; these are mainly patients with diagnostic or management problems, and the occasional VIP. In other words, I have finally learnt to become a Professor of Neurology ;-)

The rest of this newsletter explains how the NHS currently works, which is not too dissimilar to other socialist healthcare systems.