Client Welcome Brochure
Contents Introduction to Chestergates Preparing for your visit When you arrive for your appointment Facilities we offer Payments and Insurance claims Contact us Our terms and conditions 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Introduction to Chestergates: ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists is a leading specialist-led, multi-disciplinary veterinary referral hospital situated just north of Chester in the North West of England. The hospital is conveniently located close to the motorway network (M53/M56/A494) and therefore very accessible from Wales, Northern England and the Midlands. We have a team of RCVS and European Recognised Specialists in a range of disciplines providing an excellent service. The hospital is staffed 24-hours per day by a truly superb team of qualified veterinary surgeons, veterinary nurses, support staff, reception and admin team. We aim to provide the highest standards of medical and surgical care for pets, in a caring and compassionate environment. This booklet will explain what will happen on the day, our terms of business, payment options including insurance, plus directions on how to find us. Please take a few minutes to read through this information prior to your appointment. 3
Preparing for your visit Your referral before you arrive Your veterinary surgeon has referred you and your pet to ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists to gain guidance and medical expertise of treatment for your pet. Payment is due at the time of your visit and we are happy to process your pet health insurance claim forms. It is advisable to check the level of your insurance cover before your visit. Please feel free to ask for an estimate of any costs prior to your appointment. We work closely with your own veterinary practice to ensure the highest possible levels of care for your pet. Reports are sent to your referring vet to keep them informed and up-to-date on your pet’s treatment. Our team of referral clinicians are always ready to help. Preparing for your visit It is possible that your pet will be admitted to the hospital on the day of their appointment for diagnostic tests and/or procedures, for which sedation or general anaesthesia may be required. To prepare for this, please do not feed your pet after midnight the night before their appointment; fresh water should be available at all times. Different advice will apply if your pet is under 8 weeks old, weighs under 2 kilograms, is diabetic or has a history of regurgitation - please contact the hospital for specific advice if this is the case. Usually, your pet should continue to receive all prescribed medications prior to their appointment and these can be given with a tablespoon of wet food if necessary, but please contact the hospital for advice in this instance. Although we endeavor to complete all procedures on the same day, this is not always possible so please allow the majority of the day for your visit to Chestergates and possibly an overnight stay as your pet may be hospitalised for further treatment and tests. 4 If you are bringing your dog to see our orthopaedic team, in advance of the appointment we would like to ask you some questions your dog’s health, lameness and current condition. In the next few days you should receive an email from us with a link to an online questionnaire. Your answers will help us to determine the severity of your dog’s problem and the effect it is having on their quality of life. For some conditions, if your dog requires surgery we may ask you similar questions in the future to monitor their progress and record any complications that may occur. We will use these results to evaluate the care we give to help your dog and improve care for dogs who have the same problem in the future. The email you receive will provide more information about this project. By completing the questionnaire you are agreeing to participation and to future contact for the purposes of monitoring your dog’s progress over time. Participation is voluntary; this will not affect the care your dog receives. If you do not receive the email please let us know when you come for your appointment and you can still complete the questionnaire if required.
When you arrive for your appointment Arrival Please arrive at reception approximately 15 minutes before your appointment. Our receptionists will complete the registration documents and insurance claim forms with you. We will show you where the refreshments are so you and your pet can relax in the waiting room for your appointment time. Your consultation with the veterinary surgeon will last between 30-45 minutes and they will carry out an extensive examination, explaining to you in an open discussion their recommendations and a treatment plan. They will provide an estimate of the treatment costs and together you will work out your desired course of action. You may wish to make some notes and questions beforehand about your pet’s condition or symptoms to discuss with the veterinary surgeon in your consultation. Hospitalisation If your pet requires further diagnostic work or procedures, they will then be admitted to the hospital. The practice is staffed 24 hours a day by veterinary surgeons and qualified veterinary nurses. You will receive regular updates regarding your pet’s progress during their stay and you can call the hospital anytime if you are worried. We do realise that having a sick or injured pet is very stressful and we are here to help you. Please telephone reception if you have any queries or concerns about your visit to ChesterGates. Our friendly and reassuring reception and customer care team is always ready to help. 5
• Six modern consulting rooms and a cat waiting area. • Three modern operating theatres including one dedicated to key-hole surgery and cardiac interventions. • High-field (1.5Tesla) MRI. • 16-slice CT scanner. • Fully digital X-ray suite. • GE Logiq S8 ultrasound. • Hydrotherapy and physiotherapy suite. • Radioiodine suite. • Arthroscopy with three sizes of arthroscope to suit a large range of patient size from small dogs up to giant breeds. Images are stored digitally as videos and stills. • Endoscopy suite consists of a fully comprehensive set of Storz fibre - and video endoscopes for gastrointestinal, bronchoscopy, rhinoscopy and cystoscopy procedures’. • PACS system to store and access all our diagnostic images from all our diagnostic modalities. • Modern, comfortable wards for dogs with plenty of walk-in kennels for larger dogs. • Quiet “cat-friendly” ward space for cats only. an orthopaedic specialist at ChesterGates Referral Hospital. As a result, Jinx was rushed in as an emergency to ChesterGates where Ben Walton, veterinary surgeon investigated further and the conducted a major operation which involved fixing a major abdominal wall rupture and amputating her tail at the base of the spine as she had lost all feeling there. Facilities Facilities at ChesterGates are of the highest standard. We have a reception area, consulting rooms, wards, diagnostic facilities and operating theatres. Our advanced imaging centre includes a high-field MRI which provides very detailed images of the brain and spinal cord. Our CT scanner rapidly scans the head, chest, abdomen or skeleton providing our clinicians with excellent diagnostic accuracy. In addition, we have excellent endoscopy facilities. We also have three large operating theatres and six consulting rooms. Our wards are spacious, with separate cat and dog areas built to minimise stress of patients. • Internal Medicine • Neurology and Neuro surgery • Soft Tissue • Orthopaedic • Ophthalmology • Cardiology • Physiotherapy and rehab • Hydrotherapy • Anaesthesia and analgesia 6
Payments and Insurance claims We do try to ensure that all aspects of your pet’s treatment at ChesterGates are looked after as efficiently as possible including the financial aspects. When you come for your initial consultation, the vet will give you an estimate of costs for any further recommended investigations and/or treatment. We would prefer that you pay for your pet’s treatment at the time of discharge. We will aim to make this as simple as possible for you by having a detailed invoice ready for you on departure. Cash, debit and credit cards are accepted both in person and over the telephone. Please note we are not able to accept payment from American Express, Solo, Diners cards or cheques. If you are not insured, you will be required to settle your pets account in full on discharge. If your estimate is over £2000, you will be required to pay a 50% deposit. If you have any payment concerns, please contact our accounts department before your appointment. Insurance: Our preferred method is for you to settle your full balance upfront and claim back from your insurance for them to reimburse you. If you wish to make a direct claim, please complete our Pre-insurance form attached to your welcome letter and return to [email protected] before your appointment. We charge a £21 admin fee to process your claim direct and a £10.50 per continuation claim. If your insurance do not settle your claim for any reason, you are liable for paying your account balance in full. 7
Where are we? The hospital is conveniently located close to the motorway network (M53/M56) and therefore very accessible from Wales, Northern England and the Midlands. Chestergates Veterinary specialists Unit E&F Telford Court Gates Lane Chester CH1 6LT Please see our website for further directions: https://chestergates.org.uk/contact/ We have free parking outside the practice. Contact us T: 01244 853 823 E: [email protected] W: www.chestergates.org.uk What is nearby? Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet - 9 minutes Chester Zoo - 10 Minutes Chester City Centre - 13 minutes 8
Our terms and conditions: This veterinary practice is a member of the CVS (UK) Limited group of veterinary practices, registered in England and Wales with registration number 3777473 and whose registered office address is below. This document sets out the terms of the contract established between us (ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists) and you (the registered animal owner or individual requesting veterinary services) which comes into being when you register your animal with our veterinary practice or when you ask us to provide veterinary services. Should you have any queries regarding any aspect of these terms of business please do not hesitate to ask us for further clarification. Payments All fees for services and medications are subject to VAT at the applicable rate (currently 20%). A member of staff will provide you with an estimate of costs at the start of any treatment or investigation. You will be informed if these costs are likely to exceed the estimate and you will be kept informed of your account on a regular basis. You (the registered animal owner/owner’s agent) are responsible for the full settlement of your account at ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists, including the initial consultation fees, insurance excess and charges in accordance with the business terms. If you have not informed ChesterGates and arranged a direct claim through your insurance company prior to the first consultation and the commencement of any treatment (this will incur a £20 process fee for this service), then the balance of the account must be settled when your pet is discharged from ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists. If your account reaches £1000 you may be asked to make an interim payment. If your insurance company has not settled within 45 days, then you will be asked to settle your account by other means. A follow up consultation can be carried out on the telephone but this may incur a fee. All payments are to be made in full and without deduction, set off, or counterclaim upon presentation of invoice. The payment can be accepted by cash, debit/credit card, or BACS transfer. We do not accept cheques. In the event that an account is outstanding, we shall take such action as we consider appropriate to recover the outstanding balance which may include engaging a third party debt collection agency and/or instigating proceedings against you in the county court (this may affect your credit rating). In such cases any costs levied by the debt collection agency will be added on to the outstanding balance owed. Prescriptions A written prescription for the cost of your pet’s medication can be provided at your request. There is a small fee for the written prescription. Please note that we cannot accept the return of any prescription drugs as such items cannot be resold. If you wish us to safely dispose of any unwanted medication then we can do so. Data protection We comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 and the GDPR rules 2018 and will take reasonable precautions to ensure that your data is kept securely, It forms part of your pets clinical records so is used appropriately and is not shared with third parties except as required for the purposes to pass on to a debt collection agency or legal advisors or on your instruction. You are entitled to be provided with details of the data that we hold about you upon request. For more information on our Privacy Policy please go to our website https://chestergates.org.uk/privacy-and-cookie-policy/ In order to comply with the regulations can you please check all your details are correct and please inform us of any changes to your personal details as soon as possible. We can store email addresses and mobile phone numbers with the ability to exclude them from account updates/client surveys. Complaints We pride ourselves on offering a quality service, and take customer complaints seriously. Should we not meet your expectations on any aspect of our service please discuss this in the first instance with the consulting Vet as soon as possible. If a satisfactory resolution cannot be reached please forward your complaint in writing to [email protected] Please find a copy of our complaints procedure on our website under FAQs. ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists is a trading name of CVS (UK) Limited; a company registered in England and Wales. Registered number: 03777473. Registered office: CVS House, Owen Road, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4ER. 9
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