X-rays from £120

No — you can book an X-ray here yourself, which is one of the advantages of a private clinic: there is no referral letter to chase and no wait for one. If you already have a referral from a GP or a consultant, bring it with you, because it tells the reporting radiologist what to look for.

£120 for one area, with your clinical report by a consultant radiologist included. Each additional area is charged at the same rate and you are told before it is carried out, so there is no bill afterwards that you did not agree to. Nothing is paid online — the fee is confirmed with you when the team call you back.

The clinic X-rays the chest, cervical spine, thoracic spine, lumbar spine, pelvis, hip, ankle, foot, collarbone, wrist, shoulder, abdomen, elbow, hand and knee. Each is a single area, booked and priced on its own, so you pay for the one you need rather than a bundle. Every examination is listed with its fee and its appointment length in the fees section on this page.

Allow 10 minutes for the appointment itself. The exposure lasts moments; the rest is checking you in, getting you positioned for the view the radiologist needs, and making sure the images are clear before you leave.

For most X-rays there is nothing to do — eat and drink as normal and carry on with your day. Wear something comfortable and easy to move in, and expect to take off jewellery, a watch, glasses or anything metal over the area being imaged, since metal shows on the image and can hide what the radiologist needs to see. If your particular examination needs anything else, the team will say so when they ring to confirm your appointment.

Photo identification, and your referral letter if you happen to have one. If you are claiming on private medical insurance, bring your policy or membership number and the authorisation reference your insurer gave you.

An X-ray uses ionising radiation, which is why it is carried out by a trained radiographer and only where there is a clinical reason for it. The exposure itself is brief and the radiographer explains what is involved before you start. If you want to talk through what the examination you are having involves, ask them or the clinician first — it is a reasonable question and they would rather answer it than not.

Tell the team when they ring to confirm your appointment, and tell the radiographer again before the examination starts, if you are pregnant or think you might be. They will discuss it with you before anything goes ahead, so it is known in advance rather than raised on the day.

An X-ray is the test most often used to look at bone, so a suspected fracture, an injured wrist or knee and a painful hip are the usual reasons for one, along with the chest. What the images show is interpreted by a consultant radiologist rather than left to you to read, and their report is what comes back to you.

An X-ray uses ionising radiation and is the test most often used to look at bone. An ultrasound scan uses high-frequency sound waves rather than radiation, and is used to look at soft tissue and organs. Which is appropriate depends on what is being investigated. The clinic offers both, and private ultrasound scans have their own page on this site.

Your images are reported by a consultant radiologist and the report is sent to you. The team will tell you at your appointment how and when to expect it, rather than this page promising a turnaround that your particular examination may not match. If it has not arrived by when you were told to expect it, call the clinic and ask.

Often, but it depends on your policy and your level of cover — an insurer recognising a clinic is not the same as your policy covering a particular test. Check with your insurer before you book and ask whether they need to authorise it first, then bring the authorisation reference with you.

X-rays are taken at the London Diagnostic Centre in London, N13 — a short journey from Southgate, Winchmore Hill, Enfield, Wood Green and Muswell Hill. The full address and directions are on the contact page.