You can see a private GP in London today. A telephone consultation is £59 for 15 minutes, a same day 30 minute appointment in person is £220, and a home or hotel visit is from £400. Prescriptions, fit notes and referrals are issued at the appointment where they are right.
Message the clinic and a doctor replies within 24 hours.
Any of these needs to be seen the same day. If you are severely unwell, go to your nearest emergency department or call 999.
A same day appointment is an ordinary GP consultation with the wait taken out. Most of what people bring on the day is a short illness such as a sore throat, a cough, a urinary infection or a sinus that has not cleared, and most of those settle without antibiotics.NICE NG84, 2018
Some of it is not short or simple, and the job on the day is to tell the two apart. A doctor who takes a proper history and examines you can say whether you need treatment, reassurance, a test, or a hospital today.NICE NG253, 2025
A sore throat lasts about a week and a cough about three weeks, whatever is done. Those timeframes are the reason a doctor may advise waiting, and knowing them is what makes waiting reasonable rather than a brush off.NICE NG120, 2019
Acute sinusitis usually clears within two to three weeks and antibiotics make little difference to most people. Symptoms lasting longer than ten days, or getting worse after improving, change that advice.NICE NG79, 2017
Burning and frequency in a woman who is otherwise well is usually a lower urinary tract infection. A short course of treatment is right for most, and a urine test matters in pregnancy, in men, and where it keeps coming back.NICE NG109, 2018
Send us what you are seeing and we will tell you what it is likely to be.
A telephone appointment suits a problem that can be judged from what you say. Where the doctor needs to look, listen or feel, they say so on the call and move you to an in person appointment the same day rather than guessing.General Medical Council GMC guidance, 2021
For a sore throat, a scoring system of fever, pus on the tonsils, fast onset, inflamed tonsils and no cough tells the doctor how likely a bacterial cause is. It is used because it cuts antibiotic prescribing without leaving people worse off.The BMJ Little, 2013
Where someone is very unwell, pulse, breathing rate, temperature, blood pressure and alertness are measured and put together. That score, and not a single reading, decides whether they need a hospital within the hour.NICE NG253, 2025
Waiting it out with a plan
For most short infections, the right advice is rest, fluids and pain relief, with clear signs to come back and a timeframe. It is a treatment, and it is written down so you know when to call.NICE NG84, 2018
A delayed prescription
A prescription to use only if things are not better by a set day. It gives the same outcome for most people with fewer courses taken, because many never need it.NICE NG79, 2017
A pharmacy
For a simple cold, hay fever or a minor cut, a pharmacist can advise and sell treatment without an appointment. We say so when that is all you need.
A same day GP appointment
By telephone in 15 minutes, or 30 minutes in person when an examination is needed. A prescription, a fit note or a referral is issued at the end where it is right.General Medical Council GMC guidance, 2021
A home or hotel visit
The doctor comes to you, which suits someone too unwell to travel or a visitor to London. It is not a substitute for an ambulance when the warnings at the top of this page apply.
Most short infections are better within a week or two without antibiotics. Taking them for a viral illness does not shorten it and brings side effects, so a doctor who does not prescribe is often doing the right thing.NICE NG120, 2019
A single appointment does not always settle it. Symptoms that are worse at 48 hours, or not better by the day the doctor gave you, are a reason to be seen again rather than to wait longer.NICE NG109, 2018
Write down when it started to the day, your temperature if you have a thermometer, and every medicine you take including the pill and anything bought over the counter. These three things save about 5 minutes of a 15 minute call.
Know the warning numbers. A temperature of 38 degrees or more with shivering and confusion, a breathing rate over 20 a minute at rest, or no urine for 18 hours means calling 999 or going to an emergency department rather than booking an appointment.NICE NG253, 2025
Do not pay for an appointment to get antibiotics for a cold or a cough of a few days. It does not shorten a viral illness, and we would rather tell you that on the phone than charge £220 to say it in person.NICE NG120, 2019
Do not book a home visit when the warnings at the top of this page apply. A doctor at the door cannot do what an emergency department does, and the time it takes to arrive matters more than the convenience.
Step 1
Book online or message us. Say what the problem is, when it started and whether you would rather speak by telephone or come in.
Step 2
A GP calls or sees you the same day, takes the history, and examines you in person where that is needed to be sure.
Step 3
A prescription sent to the pharmacy you choose, a fit note, a referral, or clear advice with a day to call back if it is not better.
Ask before you book if you are not sure this is the right appointment.
Yes. A telephone consultation can usually be arranged within hours, and a same day 30 minute appointment in person is £220. If the doctor on the phone needs to examine you, they move you to an in person appointment rather than guessing at a diagnosis they cannot see.
A 15 minute telephone consultation is £59. A 30 minute appointment in person is £150 the next day or £220 the same day, and a home or hotel visit is from £400. Medicines are priced by the pharmacy that dispenses them, separately from the appointment.
Yes, where they are right. Most sore throats, coughs and sinus infections are viral and clear on their own, so antibiotics are prescribed where the history and examination point to a bacterial cause, or as a delayed prescription with a day to start it.
Yes. A GP can issue a fit note at the appointment when they have assessed you and you are unfit for work. It is written for your employer and it says what you can and cannot do, which is often more useful than a simple note.
For many short illnesses it is, because the diagnosis comes from what you describe. Where an ear, a chest or an abdomen needs examining, the doctor says so and books you in the same day. A call does not replace an examination when one is needed.
Usually, yes. Bring the packaging, a prescription or a letter from your own doctor showing the medicine and dose. The GP confirms it is safe to continue and issues a prescription for a UK pharmacy. Controlled drugs have stricter rules and may not be possible.
With chest pain, signs of a stroke, severe breathlessness, heavy bleeding, a serious injury, or feeling very unwell with a fever and confusion. Call 999 or go straight there. An appointment with any GP, private or not, is the wrong place for those.
This page is general information about a condition and it is not a diagnosis. Treatment depends on what a doctor finds when they examine you, and no outcome is guaranteed. If you are severely unwell, or if any of the warnings at the top of this page apply to you, go to your nearest emergency department or call 999.
General Medical Council
Good practice in prescribing and managing medicines and devicesGMC guidance, 2021
NICE
NICE
NICE
Urinary tract infection (lower), antimicrobial prescribingNG109, 2018
NICE
Cough (acute), antimicrobial prescribingNG120, 2019
NICE
Suspected sepsis in people aged 16 or over, recognition, assessment and early managementNG253, 2025
The BMJ
Clinical score and rapid antigen detection test to guide antibiotic use for sore throats, the PRISM studyLittle, 2013
Written and reviewed by the clinical team at The Wellness. Last reviewed 23 September 2026.
Tell us what is going on and a doctor will say what to book, or whether you need to be seen today.