Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Independent Sector Treatment Centre shopping experience:
1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Independent Sector Treatment Centre offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Independent Sector Treatment Centre at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.
2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about
3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Independent Sector Treatment Centre? Wrong! If the Independent Sector Treatment Centre is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.
4. Questions - Got a question about Independent Sector Treatment Centre then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Independent Sector Treatment Centre? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Independent Sector Treatment Centre and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.
6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Independent Sector Treatment Centre wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your Independent Sector Treatment Centre then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Independent Sector Treatment Centre site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about Independent Sector Treatment Centre, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your Independent Sector Treatment Centre, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
Independent sector treatment centres (ISTCs) are private-sector owned treatment centres contracted within the English National Health Service. They are sometimes referred to as 'surgicentres'.
ISTCs are normally co-located with NHS hospitals. They perform common elective (i.e. non-emergency)
surgery and diagnosis procedures and tests in the same way as NHS hospitals. Typically they undertake 'bulk' surgery such as hip replacements,
cataract operations or MRI scans rather than more complex operations such as
neurosurgery.
ISTCs work on pre-arranged central government bulk contracts nominally at or below the national tariff on which NHS hospitals can charge commissioning NHS NHS Primary Care Trusts. These contracts include a profit margin and the treatments are paid for in advance by central government whether or not the numbers paid for are taken up and regardless of success rates. The rationale is that the waiting times for patients are cut by separating routine elective surgery and tests from emergency work.
A critique of this development is that difficult and expensive work is left for the NHS hospitals to do, increasing their marginal costs and making them appear less 'efficient'. Recent opinion printed in the
British Medical Journal (BMJ vol 332 11 March 2006) has also suggested that treatments may be proportionally less successful in ISTCs due to the employment of inexperienced or less fully trained staff with less backup than the NHS facilities. This could result in the NHS having to fund difficult revision operations (insofar as they can be so revised) and would defeat the object of the exercise. Evidence for this is however debatable at present.
The NHS Plan originally conceived of opening eight treatment centres by 2005, but by August 2005 at least 25 had been opened, with more being planned
External links
- Comment on ISTCs by the Royal College of Physicians
- ISTC marketing sustainability analysis prepared in 2004 by Department of Health (United Kingdom)
- Report on ISTCs by UNISON, (August 2005).
- Report on ISTCs in Medical News Today, (17th February 2006)
Independent sector treatment centres (ISTCs) are private-sector owned
treatment centres contracted within the English
National Health Service. They are sometimes referred to as 'surgicentres'.
ISTCs are normally co-located with NHS hospitals. They perform common elective (i.e. non-emergency) surgery and
diagnosis procedures and tests in the same way as NHS hospitals. Typically they undertake 'bulk' surgery such as hip replacements,
cataract operations or MRI scans rather than more complex operations such as neurosurgery.
ISTCs work on pre-arranged central government bulk contracts nominally at or below the national tariff on which NHS hospitals can charge commissioning NHS NHS Primary Care Trusts. These contracts include a profit margin and the treatments are paid for in advance by central government whether or not the numbers paid for are taken up and regardless of success rates. The rationale is that the waiting times for patients are cut by separating routine elective surgery and tests from emergency work.
A critique of this development is that difficult and expensive work is left for the NHS hospitals to do, increasing their marginal costs and making them appear less 'efficient'. Recent opinion printed in the British Medical Journal (BMJ vol 332 11 March 2006) has also suggested that treatments may be proportionally less successful in ISTCs due to the employment of inexperienced or less fully trained staff with less backup than the NHS facilities. This could result in the NHS having to fund difficult revision operations (insofar as they can be so revised) and would defeat the object of the exercise. Evidence for this is however debatable at present.
The NHS Plan originally conceived of opening eight treatment centres by 2005, but by August 2005 at least 25 had been opened, with more being planned
External links
- Comment on ISTCs by the Royal College of Physicians
- ISTC marketing sustainability analysis prepared in 2004 by Department of Health (United Kingdom)
- Report on ISTCs by UNISON, (August 2005).
- Report on ISTCs in Medical News Today, (17th February 2006)
