for the patient
for the practitioner
Regarding your proposed operation, your specialist will have informed you about the:
Benefits of the operation
Alternative therapies
Operative risks
Post-operative phase: Physiotherapy, rehabilitation, time to and expectations for recovery
All this information must be a part of the Informed Consent discussion, preferably put in writing and signed, according to the Swiss Code of Obligations Art. 394 ff and Art. 97 ff.
Are you still in doubt?
Then ask ISOM to arrange a second opinion
ISOM undertakes to collect, on your behalf, all the necessary medical records and send them to a selected member of our Expert College for a second opinion. You will not need to ask anything from anyone, including your first opinion doctor whose name will be anonymised.
The expert will decide whether an examination is necessary and, in this case, you will be given an appointment, through ISOM, in the expert’s office.
Within 15 working days you will receive the expert’s second opinion regarding both the original diagnosis and the course of therapy that he deems most indicated for you. This will help you reach a calm and pondered decision regarding your operation.
Your patient has doubts regarding the operation?
Then ask ISOM to organise a completely independent and impartial second opinion.
How? Contact us directly or encourage your patient to do so.
ISOM will collect the patient’s medical records and forward them to a member of our expert college. The name of your patient’s specialist will be anonymised. The expert will decide whether an examination is necessary and, if so, provide your patient with an appointment, through ISOM, in his office.
Within 15 working days you will receive the expert’s opinion on the original diagnosis* and the course of treatment which he deems to be the most indicated. This will help your patient reach a calm and pondered decision regarding the proposed operation.
*A study performed by the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, USA, compared the original diagnosis to the final diagnosis in second opinion referrals and found that in only 12% of the cases was the diagnosis confirmed. In the remaining cases the final diagnosis was better defined/refined or in 21% distinctly different. (31).
Costs
The expert will send his invoice, based upon the TARMED tariffs, either directly to your health insurance or to you for reimbursement.
The services provided by ISOM will be similarly invoiced according to TARMED.
Patients not insured in Switzerland can also use the service paying privately.
