HOMEOPATHIC CONSULTATIONS
You may be wondering what consultations are like!

Consultations are completely confidential, and depending on the nature of the illness, the initial session can last for up to one and a half hours so that we can get a full history of your case as well as your life. Subsequent consultations usually last up to half an hour.

Often we ask very few questions – we just listen. At other times, we may need to ask many questions, about the illness, what makes you feel better or worse, what suits you or not, your reaction to it, and personal questions about your life, your likes, dislikes, habits, moods, reactions, and predispositions, to find the remedy for you.

Some of the questions may seem quite remote from the illness you are bringing for treatment, but bear with us! We are not just being nosy: the questions have a purpose, and if they help us find the right remedy for you, the remedy that gets you better in the ‘shortest, most reliable and least disadvantageous way, according to clearly realizable principles’ (as per paragraph 2 of the Organon of Medicine by Samuel Hahnemann), then you will consider the time well spent.

However, if at any point in the consultation you feel uncomfortable, then just let us know. Please remember that the consultation is completely confidential. Remember you can share whatever you like with us, but you also have the right not to share things and that is completely all right.

Fees. The cost of the first session varies broadly speaking according to how long it takes. Subsequent sessions are charged at £45 each time – usually 30 minutes. However, the first session is the most important, and we charge it at £45 per half-hour, but bear in mind that this first session can take as much as 90 minutes. This is worth every penny if it enables us to find the right homoeopathic treatment for you because this will enormously hasten the speed with which you improve, and mean you need less treatment in the future.
We can accept payment by cash or cheque.

How frequent are sessions? The second session usually occurs within a month of the first, but sometimes after two or three weeks. Where the problem is acute, it may be more often. Subsequent sessions occur at monthly intervals, the period between sessions lengthening as you get better. Many people come annually. Some come every five years.

Diagnosis Although highly trained and with a knowledge of Western, orthodox or conventional, medicine, we do not wish to replace your own doctor/GP. If you wish for a diagnosis in terms of Western, orthodox, medicine, please consult your GP.

How you can help yourself We may suggest changes in your habits to help you get or stay better.

Expectations We know you want to get better fast. Often this is possible, but if you have been suffering from something for many years, or have been treated for it with powerful medications, do not please expect one or two treatments to cure you! We shall discuss with you, when we have enough information, what we hope will be reasonable expectations for the treatment you receive.

Questions Please do ask questions and seek advice if there is something you do not understand. Equally, please do tell us if there is anything that concerns you.

Other Treatment If you are undergoing, or have undergone, other treatment, whether homeopathic, orthodox or otherwise, please do tell us. It may help us. Normally it is professional courtesy for us to write or communicate with your former practitioner. We understand if you do not wish us to, and we respect your wishes: but we prefer to, in general. If you have received a diagnosis from another health practitioner, or are taking or have taken medication, nutritional, recreational, over-the-counter, herbal, homeopathic, magnetic, energetic, physical or other substances or treatment intended to have effect on your health, please tell us.

The Consultation: with other present If you wish to have someone else with you during the treatment, this is fine. We would like to point out that sometimes, however, you will feel more free to discuss your problems, or answer our questions, if you are alone, and this may help us.

Notes and Confidentiality We keep careful notes of the consultations. These are kept securely and in confidence. You have a right to inspect these notes if you wish, and to receive copies – for which a reasonable charge may be made to cover photocopying, time and postage. At your first visit, we ask you to fill out a patient information form, which gives your name, address, telephone and other details. We need this information so that we can contact you. We do not give this information to anyone else. It is not sold to any other party.

If, for instance when you move to another part of the country, you wish to move to another homeopathic practitioner, we can, with your permission, send a copy of your notes to him or her, or discuss with him or her the treatment you have received.

We do not keep patient notes indefinitely. Ultimately they will be shredded and destroyed. If you return after some time, we may need to do an initial consultation again, whether or not the old notes exist.

The Centre is registered with the Registrar for Data Protection. Full details of what this means can be found on their website:

www.dataprotection.gov.uk
Tel: 01625-545740.

Out of Hours We do not yet offer a full 24 hours a day service. If you wish to contact us outside business hours, please leave a message on the answer-phone. This is monitored regularly.

Cancellations Please tell us as soon as possible if you have to cancel or postpone your consultation. We normally make a charge if we receive less than 24 hours notice without acceptable reason, or if you forget to come for an appointment.

Complaints We hope you will be glad you came for treatment. If you are unhappy about some aspect of your treatment or the outcome, the first expression of your dissatisfaction should be to the practitioner. If you do not receive satisfaction, the next recourse is to the Scottish Association for Professional Homeopaths through their Secretary, John Smith at 01292 313290, or visit their website http://www.saph.org.uk

ACUTE CONDITIONS
Homeopathy is very effective at treating acute conditions, without the unpleasant side-effects of some medications. However, since the homeopath relies on your symptoms, you may have to put up with taking less pain-killers or anti-inflammatory drugs etc. This means that initially you will experience the symptoms more strongly than you are used to. The advantage is that, when the homeopath can clearly perceive your symptoms, you will receive the correct, homeopathic, remedy and get better much faster.

Telephone Consultations If you are already a patient, we can often – but not always - prescribe over the telephone where we think it is safe to do so. We make a charge usually only if a prescription is necessary. Getting the remedy to you may be a problem, especially if you ring after the last post has gone. If you are nearby, we can put the remedy out for you to collect. If you live far away, there may be a homeopathic pharmacist, or a health shop, which has the homeopathic remedy that you need.

An alternative is to keep a stock of the most frequently used acute remedies at home in the hope that one of them will be appropriate. We have very good and reliable remedy packs for £36.00 excluding postage: these include most of the important remedies you might need in acute situations.

However, in most cases we get better results when we see you, and if your symptoms have been with you for a time, and are no longer acute, we definitely need to see you: this is because the longer you have been ill or out of sorts, the more the picture has become generalised, less obvious, lived with, and the more treatments you will have tried – usually – that may conceal important symptoms that we need to unearth.

Besides, seeing you in the flesh gives us a much clearer idea of what you are like, and that may also help us find the remedy.

How to book an appointment Ring Mobile 07950-012501.

Jonathan Clogstoun-Willmott is usually available Monday to Friday 9-6pm.
Times outside these can sometimes be arranged. Sometimes if you just turn up, we can see you then and there. But as we are quite busy, you may have to wait quite a while, so it is usually best to book, to be sure of getting an appointment on the day and at the time that suits you.

HOW DO YOU FIND A GOOD HOMEOPATH? Consult the Register of the Scottish Association for Professional Homeopaths, see their website

www.saph.org.uk
for a list, or ring them
01292 313290.

All homeopaths registered with the Society practise in accordance with a Code of Ethics and Practice, hold professional insurance, and have passed stringent academic and clinical assessments before being admitted to the Register.