At 66, Alan is used to being on his feet. As a postman in Brighton, his job keeps him moving. But after sustaining a painful knee injury, he found himself stuck at home, off work for over two months, and facing a 34-week wait for an NHS referral.
“I had severe inflammation,” he explains. “I’d been asking for a referral to the musculoskeletal department near me. But when I checked the waiting times online, I saw it was 34 weeks. I knew unless I got dropped off in an ambulance, I wouldn’t be seen urgently.”
That moment was a turning point.
“I asked myself: What am I supposed to do now?”
Finding a faster way forward
Not wanting to spend the next eight months waiting in pain, Alan turned to the internet. That’s where he found Scan.com.
“I looked at the website, and for me, it was so easy to navigate. Very clear and concise, and nothing was hidden. The price was excellent compared to many others. I knew exactly where I stood.”
One of the standout moments for Alan? Choice.
“There were four places within a stone’s throw from me. When I saw it could be done at my local hospital, I was over the moon. I know it’s easy to get there, easy to park, just easy all round.”
A smooth, reassuring process
From booking through to results, Alan was impressed by how straightforward everything felt.
“As soon as I’d booked, I got a series of explanatory emails. They were very clear and concise and I knew exactly what to do next.”
He received a call from one of Scan.com's clinicians within two days.
“In my case, it was a clinician called Simon, and we had a great chat. He explained what was going to happen, what I needed to do, and what to expect. He also said that once he had the results, he would call me back to explain them.”
Then came a call from the patient care team to confirm the scan.
“She asked if I’d like an earlier appointment than the one I’d chosen. I said, ‘Absolutely, yes!’ They didn’t have to offer me that, but they did. That was another standout point that made this an excellent service.”
No confusion. No hidden costs.
Like many patients, Alan compared providers before booking his scan.
“Scan.com's website told me everything with no ambiguity. I didn’t have any worries about pressing that button to pay £350 for my MRI.”
He also appreciated the all-inclusive pricing.
“You don’t get an email saying you’ve paid £350 for an MRI, but now you need to pay £75 if you want a consultation and another £75 for the images and £45 for the Scanslated report. With Scan.com, it’s all upfront.”
A clear diagnosis without waiting lists or referrals
Alan’s MRI results provided answers he hadn’t been able to get elsewhere. More importantly, it stopped him from going down the wrong treatment path.
“In my situation, I was getting driven towards physiotherapy, no matter who I spoke to. My physiotherapist is very good, but my Scan.com results showed I needed to see a consultant. My physiotherapist agreed. He said he wouldn’t be able to help me with the issue that was found.”
Without the MRI, Alan says, “I would have gone down that long, painful route of physiotherapy for no gain, for months and months, just to get to this point.”
Instead, he got the consultant referral he needed within three days of sharing his Scan.com report with his NHS GP.
“The report has been worth its weight in gold. Without it, I felt like I had no hope in hell. So for me, going private helped me get over so many hurdles.”
Confidence in the next step
What gave Alan real peace of mind was his Scanslated report, which is a patient-friendly explanation of his medical results.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. It was absolutely fantastic. It put everything into simple terms, so I could really understand where I was at and what could be done for me.”
“Without a shadow of a doubt, the right decision.”
Alan says he’d recommend Scan.com to anyone in his position.
“I have been moved from pillar to post. Had appointments that weren’t right. Arrived for appointments that weren’t in the system. It’s rare to find a company like Scan.com that has really got it together.”
From clear communication to compassionate care, Scan.com helped Alan take control of his recovery and get back on track, on his terms.
“The decision I made to use Scan.com was, without a shadow of a doubt, the correct one.”
Need a scan without the wait? Book an MRI scan without a referral
You can book online in minutes with no GP referral needed via Scan.com.
Read more real patient stories
Alan is just one of many patients who have taken positive steps forward with a private scan. We're grateful to them for sharing their stories.
