Update 1 - Consultation (30th November 2018)Today I went to the Karidis clinic for the consultation. For those travelling to the clinic via the Undergound, it's a short 200m walk down a straight road to get there from St. John's Wood - easy
The consultation was composed of two parts: the first with Alex Karidis, the second with their patient co-ordinator.
The consultation with Alex lasted 20 minutes. It began with me briefly going over my history with gynecomastia, when I first noticed it etc. followed by a physical examination. He asked me to tense the chest which makes the excess fat and gland very noticeable and gave things a squeeze. He then explained the procedure, expectations for recovery, possible complications etc. The whole thing felt quite scripted in a way, but I see that as a good thing - Alex has done so many of these consultations and surgeries (averaging around 120 per year) that they're second nature to him. I asked him a few questions and then we finished. Here are main points of interest:
- If revision surgery is required (unlikely), Alex does not charge any fees. Only hospital fees need to be paid.
- His new stitching method has reduced risk of haematoma from 7% to below 1%. This method has recently received an award and is expected to become the gold standard adopted by other surgeons soon
- Unfortunately no pre-surgery anxiety medication can be given as it may interfere with anaesthetic
I then had the consultation with Stephen, the patient co-ordinator. Stephen is a lovely guy and made me feel at ease, great customer service
He ran me through all the other logistics such as pricing, timeframes etc. and this also lasted about 20 minutes. Here are the main points of interest:
- Karidis fee is £4,461, hospital fee £1,483 bringing the total to £5,944. Note: The fee they provide for Karidis already has the £200 consultation fee redeemed against it.
- A deposit of £1,500 is required to secure dates for surgery
- The full balance for Karidis must be paid at least 15 days prior to surgery and the hospital fee paid at least 7 days before surgery
- A blood test is required before surgery and is valid for 1 year. This will test clotting screen, full blood count, urea and electrolytes. This can be done at the same clinic for £169
- An MRSA test is also required before surgery with swabs from the nose, groin and armpit. This can also be done at the same clinic for £97 and is valid for 6 months
- Karidis will have a second consultation free of charge if required before surgery
- Wait time before surgery is typically around 6 weeks
I was then given a print out of all the necessary info, Stephen's business card with contact information, a small card with a photo of the compression vest worn post surgery, and another card explaining the Karidis app (photo attached). I downloaded the app earlier and it's fantastic - it walks you through exactly what needs to be done pre and post surgery, i.e. it sends you a reminder not to eat 8 hours before surgery so I'd highly recommend downloading it after the consultation.
On the back of all this, I've decided to go for the surgery and I believe Alex will do a great job. I'm going to be booking in for April due to work constraints. Unfortunately April is too far ahead to book in yet so I'll be proceeding things further around January / February time. Once booked in, I'll look to get the blood and MRSA tests done so I'll provide an update when that happens. In the meantime, if anyone has any questions or comments then shoot away, otherwise - see you in 2019!
Topic: Surgery with Karidis: Completed (Updated 4th August 2019) (Read 16586 times)
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