Surge in patients searching private doctors online

Searches for private doctors, independent healthcare and doctors are surging as patients try to avoid long waits in the NHS.

Internet searches for ‘private GP near me’, ‘private healthcare near me’ and ‘private dentist near me’ exploded by 278%, 261% and 213% above the average volume last month.

According to an analysis by cosmetic dentistry provider Longevita, there has been a threefold increase over the last ten years.

The figures underline the importance of a strong website presence for private doctors seeking to increase their work in the independent sector.

A spokesperson for the company said: ‘For those that can afford private medical care, it can be a lifeline to those in need of a quick appointment. 

‘Our findings also show that almost a quarter-of-a-million searches are made each month for private doctors and dentists just in the UK alone. And while demand is swelling on both sides, private dentists are most in need.’

Searches for ‘private dentist near me’ is one of the most searched in the UK – with 23,000 monthly average searches, ranking 14th highest search volume out of over 10,000 search terms related to private medical care. 

Seven out of ten of the top ten national searches are for health insurance.

The data also reveals that some searches for private medical care are almost exclusively made in the UK.

At least over nine in ten global searches for ‘private GP’, ‘private GP near me’, ‘private dentist near me’, ‘private healthcare near me’ each are made from within the UK – an estimated 41,800 out of 44,300 global average monthly searches.

Over two-thirds of global searches for private doctors are made from within the UK, an estimated 108,170 average monthly searches nationally.

An estimated 238,100 searches are made for private doctors or dentists per month on average in the UK, with dentists more in-demand as over half of searches skewed to private dentists (55%) compared to private doctors (45%).

Google search data reveals that there are currently an estimated 2.5m searches relating to private medical care and insurance in the UK per month, which accounts for almost one in five of all global searches.