McKeown Medical Introduces Ground-breaking Vascular treatment at Scottish ‘Super Clinic’
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- October 8, 2024
McKeown Medical has announced its latest advancement in Scottish healthcare, being the first facility in the country to offer VenaSeal – a minimally invasive varicose vein treatment. The introduction of the procedure marks a significant advancement in the treatment of venous disease in Scotland.
Varicose veins impact 18% of Scots* , affecting both men and women equally. VenaSeal, which is used in 50% of varicose vein treatments in the USA, will offer patients an option that boasts substantially less recovery time than what is currently on offer in Scotland both via the NHS and privately. The treatment is performed using keyhole surgery in under an hour with patients able to return to normal activities immediately, without the need for traditional compression garments.
McKeown Medical is poised to transform the patient experience by providing faster, more effective treatments with minimal downtime.
The clinic is open for varicose vein consultations now with surgery launching in November under the care of Consultant Vascular Surgeon, Dr Alex Vesey. Vesey is the latest Consultant to join the team of medical ‘super specialists’ at McKeown Medical, as the team led by Dr Darren McKeown forge ahead with plans to open a brand new five-star facility on Bath Street, Glasgow.
Addressing NHS Pressures
With the NHS facing unprecedented pressures, resulting in long waiting times and restricted access to non-urgent procedures, many patients are left without timely treatment options. Despite patients facing pain and discomfort; varicose vein treatment is considered low priority under current NHS guidance, leading to significant delays that can have a serious impact on patients’ quality of life.
Dr. Alex Vesey, Consultant Vascular Surgeon at McKeown Medical, highlighted the importance of private provision in addressing this issue:
“The NHS continues to deliver outstanding care under extremely challenging circumstances, but the reality is that many patients with conditions like varicose veins are left waiting months, even years, for treatment.
“People sometimes think of varicose veins as a cosmetic issue, but they aren’t just that. For many patients they cause pain, discomfort, itching, heaviness – especially if they are in jobs that require them to be on their feet all day. Eventually varicose veins can lead to skin changes with venous eczema and even skin breakdown and venous ulceration.
“Historically, treatment could be delivered at an earlier stage, but the restricted resources mean patients usually need to wait until they have skin changes before they become eligible for treatment on the NHS. It means that there are lots of people out there living in discomfort who cannot access intervention on the NHS.
“The NHS is also under pressure to keep treatments as cost effective as possible. It means that when new innovations like VenaSeal come along they are typically not picked up by the NHS because they cost more money to provide. In the private sector doctors tend to mimic what they do in their NHS practice, but I want to do better.”
Speaking of his own drive to ‘do better’ for patients, Dr Darren McKeown, founder of McKeown Medical said:
“Until now the private sector has had the chance to be a bit lazy. People can’t access treatment on the NHS, so all the private sector needs to do is show up with some availability and people are so desperate for treatment they will accept mediocre standards.
“As McKeown Medical grows in this new era of expansion, we want to stay true to our founding principles of excellence and innovation. In everything we do, we are aiming to combine the latest medical advances with an exceptional level of care that I am proud to say our brand has become known for.
“Our vision is to continue developing into new areas of medicine looking for ways to make things better. My approach is to think ‘what would I want for myself or my family’ because that’s what I want to deliver to our patients. That’s exactly what we’ve done with the launch of our vascular service, and what we have in store for the new services we have in the pipeline over the next 12 months.”
