Healthcare in Guernsey

Healthcare in Guernsey

Although it is not part of the NHS, Guernsey follows UK’s best practice across its network of medical centres and the Princess Elizabeth Hospital (PEH).

Primary care

GP visits, A&E visits, Ambulance use, Dentists and physiotherapy requested by the GP are all delivered privately in Guernsey and referred to as “Primary Care”. There is a small grant towards the cost of a GP consultation, but the balance is paid by the patient (or by private medical insurance if they have a suitable policy)

Secondary care

Secondary or specialist healthcare is funded by social security contributions and is available free of charge to islanders via a referral from a GP. 

Medical Specialist Group (MSG) consultants provide the majority of emergency and elective specialist medical services for islanders under the secondary health contract with the States of Guernsey.

The States of Guernsey run the Princess Elizabeth Hospital (PEH), the only acute hospital in Guernsey which has 12 wards and 104 beds. As well as the consultants provided by the MSG, Heath and Social care employ their own clinicians, including radiologists, emergency care doctors, pathologists, psychiatrists, physiotherapists, community doctors and nursing staff. 

Private patients – see Private patients - MSG

Emergency services

Guernsey’s Emergency Department is at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital. Any emergency medical treatment will incur a charge. Patients who have health insurance are covered for some of these charges.

The Guernsey Ambulance & Rescue Service is a charitable company, which operates the island’s only ambulance service. Ambulance call-outs incur a charge so some islanders choose to take out an annual subscription.

Guernsey Therapy Group

The States of Guernsey has a contract with the GTG to provide physiotherapy for hospital patients.

Off-island treatment

With a population of around 67,000, it’s not practical for Guernsey to offer the full range of secondary healthcare services and some patients need to travel off island for treatment.

Most treatment outside the Bailiwick is commissioned by HSC and covered under the States’ contract, at no cost to the patient. 

For patients who require treatment which isn’t provided locally, their treating doctor will request to refer them to a hospital or treatment centre in Jersey or the UK. All referrals are screened by the HSC’s off island services team who will authorise or reject the referral based on certain criteria.

HSC also commissions visiting services such as neurology, haematology, rheumatology and microbiology which are provided by UK-based hospitals.

What’s great about secondary healthcare in Guernsey?

• Free at the point of use
  Specialist health care is free of charge if you are referred by a GP, unless you opt to go private.

• A consultant-only service

  Because there are no junior or trainee doctors, you always get to see a fully trained consultant with many years of specialist experience.

• Continuity of care

  It’s very likely that you will see the same specialist throughout your treatment with the MSG.

• A strong local medical network Consultants at the MSG form strong long-term relationships with each other, with other specialists at the hospital and with GPs. We know each other and we know our patients.

• Shorter waiting times
  For most specialties, you’ll be seen within eight weeks if you need non-urgent care. If you are an emergency referral you will be seen within 24 hours and if you are an urgent referral, you are likely to be seen within a week.

  For some specialties, waiting times are longer than we would like and we’re working hard to reduce these. See Latest Secondary Healthcare Contract KPI report shows more patients treated and improvements in waiting lists - MSG

What are the challenges?

Just like other developed nations, we’re facing increasing demand for healthcare.

• People are living longer which means they become frailer and have more complex healthcare needs.

• Medical and technology advances mean so much more can be done for patients, and this needs to be funded.

• The obesity crisis increases demand and the complexity of treatment for every specialty.

And we have particular challenges as a small island:

• Medicine is becoming more specialised. Whereas 30 years ago, a general physician could cover all on-call emergencies, today’s physicians tend to specialise in one body system or technique. The same is true for surgeons.

• But with a population of just 67,000 people, there are unlikely to be enough patients for a doctor to just focus on their sub-specialty.

• This can make it more difficult to recruit consultants, particularly for specialties and sub-specialities where there are already global shortages.

See also – the 117^th Medical Officer of Health report, published January 2025, on the need to shift the focus to the prevention of disease and ill-health to prevent health and care services from being overwhelmed.

Find out more about health and social care services on gov.gg - Health, Social Care & Wellbeing - States of Guernsey