Two destinations from Southampton
Southampton is well served for general eye care, and it would be silly to suggest otherwise. Oculoplastic surgery is a narrower field. From here you have two sensible options, depending on what you need.
Private consultations and the operations on the published price list run from Medicana Winchester, about 20 minutes north on the M3, at Chilcomb Park on the eastern edge of the city. That is usually the shorter trip for Southampton patients.
NHS care, and the regional work that depends on the joint lacrimal clinic, the periocular oncology MDT and the orbital service, stays at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth, about 35 minutes east on the M27. Portsmouth runs the largest oculoplastic service in the region: three consultant surgeons, more than any other unit nearby, and over a thousand new referrals a year. The endoscopic lacrimal service is the highest volume nearby, with weekly operating lists that I lead. For a watering eye that has already had a failed procedure, or for complex eyelid reconstruction, that concentration is the reason to make the longer trip.
I also know the area well. My medical degree and BSc were at the University of Southampton, and part of my ophthalmology training was in Southampton within the Wessex Deanery, alongside placements in Salisbury, Bournemouth and Portsmouth.
What I treat
- Watery eye assessment, endoscopic DCR and external DCR
- Punctoplasty and upper system tear surgery, including Lester Jones tubes
- Thyroid eye disease and orbital decompression
- Orbital tumours
- Eyelid skin cancer excision and reconstruction
- Ptosis correction, upper eyelid surgery and lower eyelid surgery
Getting here from Southampton
For Medicana Winchester, take the M3 north toward Winchester and leave for Chilcomb Lane. The clinic is at Chilcomb Park, SO21 1HU, on the eastern edge of the city, so there is no city-centre driving. Allow about 20 minutes from central Southampton outside peak times. Free on-site parking is available.
For Queen Alexandra Hospital, go east on the M27 and leave at junction 12 for Cosham. The hospital is at PO6 3LY just off the A27, on the northern edge of Portsmouth. Allow around 35 minutes outside peak times, and closer to 25 from Hedge End, Botley or Bursledon. Parking is multi-storey on site with accessible bays at the main entrances.
What the NHS funds here
One point that confuses Southampton patients: travelling for surgery does not change who pays for it. Southampton and Portsmouth sit inside the same integrated care board, NHS Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, so exactly the same policies apply at both ends of the M27. Southampton has no eyelid-funding rules of its own. In practice that means Policy 52, under which surgery for a drooping lid or excess upper-lid skin is not normally funded and no threshold is published, while eyelid lumps and lid malposition do have criteria you can meet. The commissioner is identical; only the journey is different. The detail is in is eyelid surgery funded on the NHS?
Arranging an appointment
Private appointments go through my secretary, Gina Stacey, or you can book a time online. A referral letter from your GP or optometrist is helpful but not essential if you are self funding, and insured patients will need a referral and a pre-authorisation code. I am recognised by Aviva, Allianz, Alliance Healthcare, Bupa and Vitality.
For NHS care, speak to your GP or optometrist, who will advise whether a referral to Queen Alexandra Hospital is straightforward from your practice.