Private MRI scans in Chesterfield
A market town with a crooked spire, Chesterfield sits where north Derbyshire meets the eastern edge of the Peak District, the M1 running past it and Dronfield, Staveley, Bolsover and Clay Cross close by. When a knee, a shoulder or a lower back stops cooperating, an MRI shows ligaments, cartilage and discs that an X-ray cannot. Booking one privately takes days rather than a place in a queue.
Chesterfield private MRI scan costs
Private MRI scans start from £115. Included in that: a consultation with a clinician and the referral written off the back of it.
How do I book a private MRI scan in Chesterfield?
Payment confirms the appointment, and before that there is a short booking and safety form to fill in. Getting to that point means searching by postcode or browsing the map, then comparing centres on price and on what each one offers. No GP referral is required at any stage. Once you have paid, scheduling and results are handled at our end.
Why book with us?
Hundreds of locations, one network, and it is the largest for medical imaging in the UK. Referrals are not needed. Book online inside a few minutes, hear from a clinician within hours, and have the scan done within days. Waiting lists do not apply, so you pick the timing and the place. Results are sent digitally for you to share with your healthcare professional.
Preparation for MRI scans
Very little preparation is usually needed, although you may now and then be asked to fast for a period beforehand. Clothes should be comfortable and soft, with no metal fastenings on them, meaning nothing with buttons, toggles or zips. Changing into a gown is an alternative you may be offered. The magnets in an MRI scanner are strong and will react with metal, so glasses, jewellery, watches, belts, wallets, phones and any other personal items are taken off first. If you have an implanted medical device, a pacemaker among them, further preparation might be necessary for safety. You are told everything you need to know ahead of the appointment. Contrast scans require one thing more, recent blood tests confirming kidney function, because the gadolinium contrast agent is cleared by the kidneys afterwards.
The procedure
A radiographer, trained in this form of imaging, performs the scan and talks you through it beforehand. The bed is flat, you stay still on it, and it slides into a scanner shaped like a doughnut. How long it runs for depends on what is being imaged, somewhere between 15 and 90 minutes. If contrast is part of your scan, an IV delivers it. There is a fair amount of noise, offset by music in most cases and by radiographers talking to you through headphones.
How long does it take?
From 15 minutes up to 90. Scanning more than one area of the body stretches it out, and so does contrast. You will get a clearer idea from your clinician and from the imaging centre you have chosen before the appointment.