Refer a Patient

How Do I Refer a Patient?

There are three ways, and all of them work. Send a photograph of the wound with a brief history on WhatsApp and you will usually have an opinion the same working day. Call directly if the case is urgent. Or simply give the patient the clinic details and ask them to mention your name when booking.

Nothing formal is needed. A referral letter is welcome for record keeping but has never been a condition for seeing a patient.

What Information Helps Most?

A useful referral message contains very little but the right things:

• A clear photo of the wound in good light, with a scale object if possible
• How long the wound has been present and what has already been tried
• Diabetes status and recent blood sugar or HbA1c values
• Whether foot pulses are palpable
• Current antibiotics and other significant medication

Which Cases Need to Come Urgently?

Any foot that is spreading redness upward, producing foul discharge, turning black, or is cold and severely painful needs same-day attention rather than a scheduled appointment.

These situations move fast. A limb that could be saved on Monday can be beyond saving by Friday, so please call directly instead of sending a message and waiting for a reply.

Less urgent but still worth referring early are wounds open beyond four weeks, wounds that keep returning at the same site, ulcers in a patient with absent pulses, and any wound where you suspect underlying bone infection.

Will I Lose the Patient?

No, and this matters enough to say plainly. Referred patients are treated for the wound and returned to you. Their diabetes management, general medicine and ongoing care stay where they were. You receive a summary at the first visit and again at discharge so your records remain complete.

Can You Help Without the Patient Travelling?

Frequently, yes. Many referring doctors in smaller towns send photographs and receive guidance on dressing selection, offloading and whether antibiotics are actually indicated. Where the patient does need to be seen, we try to plan the visit so that assessment, investigations and the treatment decision happen in a single trip.

For patients who live far away, follow-up dressings can be shared with you locally, with review visits only at the points where a decision has to be made.

What Does a Referred Patient Pay?

Consultation and assessment are charged at standard clinic rates. Treatment costs depend on what the wound needs, and every patient receives a written estimate before anything begins. Patients are never committed to a procedure at the first visit.

To refer a case now, use the WhatsApp button on this page or call the clinic directly. For complex cases, a short conversation usually saves everyone time.