Havant, England – January 23, 2026 – PRESSADVANTAGE –
Doctors Visit, a platform connecting patients with medical specialists across the UK, reports unprecedented demand for private healthcare consultations as NHS waiting lists remain at historically high levels with 7.31 million patient pathways recorded in November 2025.
The surge in patients seeking Private medical appointment options comes as data from the Private Healthcare Information Network confirms that private hospital admissions reached a record 939,000 in 2024, marking the third consecutive year of growth in the independent healthcare sector. The constitutional standard requiring 92 percent of patients to begin treatment within 18 weeks of referral has not been met since September 2015, with current performance showing approximately 62 percent of patients meeting this target.
“The healthcare landscape has fundamentally shifted as patients increasingly explore alternatives to lengthy NHS waiting times,” said Nalin Wickramasuriya, Chief Executive of Doctors Visit. “Our platform has expanded to include specialists across multiple disciplines, from cardiology and dermatology to nephrology and thoracic surgery, ensuring patients can access the care they need when they need it.”
Polling conducted by Ipsos found that among patients using or considering private healthcare, 44 percent cited NHS waiting times as their primary reason, while 34 percent reported difficulty obtaining appointments at their NHS surgery as a motivating factor. The shift toward self-funded treatment has been most pronounced in the devolved nations where NHS waiting times are often longest, with self-pay admissions tripling in Northern Ireland and more than doubling in Wales between 2019 and 2023.
Doctors Visit has recently welcomed several new specialists to its network, including consultant cardiologists, dermatology clinics, nephrologists, and obstetricians across locations from Colchester and Plymouth to London and Cheadle. The platform enables patients to search for specialists by medical discipline and preferred location, streamlining the process of arranging consultations.
Research published in the Future Healthcare Journal indicates the NHS waiting list would need to reduce to 3.4 million to achieve the constitutional standard, requiring a reduction of more than half from current levels. The median waiting time has increased from 7.7 weeks before the pandemic to 12.9 weeks in late 2025.
The private healthcare market in the United Kingdom reached an estimated value of 13.75 billion US dollars in 2024, with projections indicating growth to 18.56 billion US dollars by 2033. Industry analysis identifies NHS capacity constraints, workforce pressures, and patient preferences for faster access as primary growth factors.
Doctors Visit provides a comprehensive directory of medical specialists throughout the UK, allowing patients to arrange private consultations directly through its platform. The service includes detailed profiles of healthcare providers, enabling patients to make informed decisions about their medical care based on specialization, location, and availability.
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For more information about Doctors Visit, contact the company here:
Doctors Visit
Nalin Wickramasuriya
02393162345
nalin@healthfacility.co.uk
