Practice Office Policy

1. Application

These Terms and Conditions shall apply to the provision of services detailed overleaf (“Services”) to you (“you” or “Client”) by Synthesis Nutrition Ltd trading as Synthesis Clinic, a company registered in England under number 11457261, whose registered office is at the 59 Dukes Wood Avenue, Gerrards Cross, United Kingdom SL9 7JY (“we” or “Synthesis Clinic”). No other terms and conditions shall apply to the provision of the Services unless agreed upon in writing between you and Synthesis Clinic.

1.2. Why you should read this document

Please read these Terms and Conditions carefully before you book a consultation with Synthesis Clinic. These terms tell you who we are, how we will provide services to you, how you and we may change or end the contract, what to do if there is a problem and other important information. If you think that there is a mistake in these terms or you would like anything clarified, please contact us to discuss.

1.3. How to contact us

You can contact us by telephoning our Synthesis Clinic reception team at 02380 178 340, by writing to us at hello@synthesisclinic.co.uk or at our postal address: The Old Yard, Sunnyside View, Stockbridge Road, Stockbridge SO20 6PH. You can also contact our Practice Manager on marianne@synthesisclinic.co.uk.

1.4. How Synthesis Clinic may contact you

1.4.1 If we have to contact you, we will do so by telephone or by writing to you at the email address or postal address you provided to us during the booking process.

1.4.2 "Writing" includes emails. When we use the words "writing" or "written" in these terms, this includes emails.

2. Services

2.1 The description of the Services is as set out in the Synthesis Clinic’s website, promotional materials or at Synthesis Clinic’s premises (together “the Synthesis Clinic’s Materials”). In accepting these Terms and Conditions, you acknowledge that you do not rely on any other representations regarding the Services save for those made in writing by Synthesis Clinic. No descriptions of the Services set out in the Synthesis Clinic’s Materials shall be binding on the Synthesis Clinic and are intended as a guide only. Please note that while the individual practitioner is responsible for the clinical management of your case, the Services are booked with and administered through Synthesis Clinic, following the practice's and healthcare regulator's guidelines and procedures. No transfers to any practitioner's private practice outside of Synthesis Clinic will be permitted without the Director's express consent due to exceptional circumstances.

2.2 Advice, care and Services provided by Synthesis Clinic is not a substitute for any urgent care services or regular care with your GP or hospital care. You understand that no emergency or acute care or urgent medical advice will be provided to you by the Synthesis Clinic and that you should use the normal NHS pathways and contacts for any urgent medical advice.

2.3 Our service packages may have time limits to enable us to manage practitioner diaries and deliver an effective timely service, usually this means completing your package within 3-6 months of the initial appointment. The clinic staff will make contact to offer an appointment but the responsibility to book and confirm package appointments within the specified time limit lies with the Client. Where a time limit is specified, no further services within the package will be booked outside that period and any outstanding appointments will be considered null and void. Further appointments can be booked but at the usual fee for the service, not being included in the expired package of services.

3. Price

3.1 Subject to clauses 3.2 and 3.3 of these terms, the price (“Price”) of the Services (with VAT stated, if applicable) will be the price as informed by us verbally during the booking process, or in writing for specific Services, in force at the date of your consultation unless we have agreed another price in writing. Synthesis Clinic takes all reasonable care to ensure that the Prices of Services advised to you are correct. However please see paragraph 3.6 for what happens if we discover an error in the Price of the Services you book.

3.2 In addition to clause 3.1 hereof, Synthesis Clinic reserves the right to also charge additional fees with respect to Services, such as phlebotomy, postage, written correspondence to other healthcare professionals or outside agencies and any other fee and/or charge as Synthesis Clinic may represent in the invoice. Unless otherwise specified, the package and consultation fees do not include other items outside the consultations specified and consultation notes, e.g. laboratory tests, phlebotomy, letters, supplements and medications are not included.

3.3 Any increase in the cost of the Services to Synthesis Clinic due to any factor beyond Synthesis Clinic control including, but not limited to, material costs, labour costs, alteration of exchange rates or duties, or changes to delivery rates, shall be reflected in the invoice in accordance with Synthesis Clinic right to increase the Price prior to a consultation. Please note that laboratories change their prices regularly and while we make every effort to update the prices on the Clinic’s portal, it is your responsibility to confirm up-to-date test costs with the clinic co-ordinator or other members of the administrative team before placing your order.

3.4 Any increase in the Price under clauses 3.2 and 3.3 shall only take place upon Synthesis Clinic informing you of the increase in writing.

3.5 If the rate of VAT changes between your booking date and the date Synthesis Clinic provides the Services, Synthesis Clinic will adjust the rate of VAT that you pay, unless you have already paid for the Services in full before the change in the rate of VAT takes effect.

3.6 It is always possible that, despite our best efforts, some of the Services we provide may be incorrectly priced. We will normally check prices before accepting your consultation booking so that, where the Service's correct price at your consultation date is less than our stated price at your consultation date, we will charge the lower amount. If the Service's correct price at your consultation date is higher than the price informed to you in accordance with paragraph 3.1 above, we will contact you for your instructions before we accept your booking.

4. Payment and cancellation

4.1 You shall receive an invoice electronically prior to the consultation, and this should be paid by the day of the consultation (the “due date”) or in advance to secure a booking for packages. Payment shall be made promptly via bank transfer or debit/credit card payment via the electronic invoice.

4.2 You are required to pay for sessions which are missed or cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice. Cancellations shall be made by contacting Synthesis Clinic reception with at least 48 hours’ in advance of the consultation.

4.3 Without prejudice to paragraph 11, if you do not make any payment to us by the due date (see paragraph 4.1) or for any cancellations with less than 48 hours’ notice or any missed appointments Synthesis Clinic may charge interest to you on the overdue amount at the rate of 4% a year above the base lending rate of Bank of England from time to time. This interest shall accrue on a daily basis from the due date until the date of actual payment of the overdue amount, whether before or after judgment. You must pay us interest together with any overdue amount.

4.4 If you think an invoice is wrong, please contact Synthesis Clinic promptly to let us know. You will not have to pay any interest until the dispute is resolved. Once the dispute is resolved we will charge you interest on correctly invoiced sums from the original due date.

4.5 While we always aim to work collaboratively, we reserve the right to terminate engagement at any point of care if it has become apparent that we cannot work with other non-NHS care providers engaged by the client i.e., conflict in clinical approach or concerns over safe and effective care delivered to you by external providers. Please ensure that you make the Clinic aware of all the additional support you are currently receiving outside of your core NHS medical care in advance of your first consultation and throughout your care with us if your circumstances change.

4.6 Cancellations of membership (flexible payment) packages:

4.6.1 Once your membership package has been purchased you are entitled to a cooling off period of 14 days, including the day you purchased the membership package. If you change your mind during this period, then the clinic will refund you 100% of the package amount unless you have already completed one of the package consultations. Any consultations completed during the 14-day cooling off period will be deducted from the package amount. Refunds will be made via BACS transfer to your nominated bank account or via Stripe through our clinical portal. Please allow 7 working days for refunds to be processed.

4.6.2 No refunds can be offered if you decide to cancel your membership after the 14-day cooling off period.

5. Your rights to make changes

5.1 If you wish to make a change to your programme, please contact us. We will let you know if the change is possible. If it is possible, we will let you know about any changes to the Price of the Services, their timing or anything else which would be necessary as a result of your requested change and ask you to confirm whether you wish to go ahead with the change.

5.2 Any and all loss or expense occasioned to Synthesis Clinic as a result of changes required by you shall be fully reimbursed by you to Synthesis Clinic.

6. Confidentiality

6.1 Everything that you discuss in the consultation is confidential with important exceptions for when your safety or safety of others may be at risk. It is important that you are aware that to coordinate your care your clinical details may be shared within the Synthesis Clinic team in a secure manner, please see our Privacy Policy for further details. Information sharing is an important part of the Clinic’s weekly multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings.

6.2 Synthesis Clinic will ask you to sign a consent form allowing the share of information for healthcare purposes. For full details please see our General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) consent form. If we do not receive a signed GDPR consent form from you, we will not be able to coordinate your healthcare with that delivered by other providers, which means the healthcare provided by us may be less effective.

6.3 As a part of Synthesis Clinic’s work, we aim to provide educational opportunities to healthcare students and professionals. If there is someone shadowing in clinic, you will be advised in advance and your consent will be obtained. All observers are required to sign a confidentiality agreement.

6.4 We will use the personal information you provide to us to:

(a) provide the Services;

(b) process your payment for such Services; and

(c) if you agreed to this in the GDPR consent form, to inform you about similar Services that we provide, but you may stop receiving these communications at any time by contacting us.

6.5 We will only give your personal information to other third parties where the law either requires or allows us to do so or where you have explicitly asked or consented for us to do so.

7. Informed consent

7.1 It is important that you understand the potential risk and benefits of some of our Services, such as any prescribed medications, including Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). If your programme includes any such Services, Synthesis Clinic will inform you and you may be required to sign a consent form indicating that you have discussed the potential side effects, risks etc. with your practitioner and that you understand the indications, risks, benefits, and alternatives for using such Services.

7.2 The degree of benefit obtained from any therapy may vary. While the practitioner will make every effort possible to explain the risks and benefits of therapy, Synthesis Clinic cannot be held liable for any idiosyncratic reactions to therapies provided and no treatment outcome is promised or guaranteed.

8. Required information

8.1 Synthesis Clinic’s advice will be tailored to support health conditions and/or concerns identified and agreed between you and your practitioner. It is important that you give the Synthesis Clinic’s team full information regarding your medical diagnoses, medications, supplements or other therapies used, as this may affect Synthesis Clinic’s programme.

8.2 You are required to promptly contact Synthesis Clinic if anything in your programme requires clarification or if there are any changes to your medication or medical conditions. It is your responsibility to provide accurate up-to-date information that affects your care to your practitioner at Synthesis Clinic.

9. What will happen if you do not provide required information to us.

As we informed you during the booking process and as set out in these Terms and Conditions, we will need certain information from you so that we can provide the Services to you. We will contact you in writing to ask for this information. If you do not, within a reasonable time of us asking for it, provide us with this information, or you provide us with incomplete or incorrect information, we may either end the contract and cancel the consultation/package of services or make an additional charge of a reasonable sum to compensate us for any extra work that is required as a result. We will not be responsible for providing the Services late or not providing any part of them if this is caused by you not giving us the information we need within a reasonable time of us asking for it.

10. Reasons we may suspend the Services

Synthesis Clinic may have to suspend the Services to:

(a) deal with technical problems or make minor technical changes;

(b) update the Services to reflect changes in relevant laws and regulatory requirements;

11. Your rights if we suspend the Services

11.1 Synthesis Clinic will contact you in advance to tell you it will be suspending the Services, unless the problem is urgent or an emergency.

11.2 If the Services are suspended for longer than 21 days in any 3 month-period, we will adjust the Price so that you do not pay for Services while they are suspended. You may contact Synthesis Clinic to end the contract if we suspend the Services, or tell you we are going to suspend them, in each case for a period of more than 21 days and we will refund any sums you have paid in advance for Services not provided to you.

12. Supplements

12.1 Any specific supplement programmes recommended by Synthesis Clinic will usually be reviewed at 4-6-weekly intervals and unless specified, are not designed to be taken on a maintenance basis of over 3 months to avoid any potential adverse effects. If you have chosen to have herbal medicine support as a part of your care, we require regular reviews (at least every 6 months if the condition is stable), and we reserve the right not to issue additional supplies of herbal medicine if there are material changes to your medication, clinical condition or overall circumstances until an updated clinical assessment is conducted for safety reasons.

12.2 Synthesis Clinic may recommend supplements and/or functional testing as a part of your programme and may in some cases receive commission on these products or services as a part of their trade account.

13. Problems and complaints

If you have a problem or complained about the Services, which you have been unable to resolve with your practitioner, please contact the Practice Manager, Marianne Potgieter (marianne@synthesisclinic.co.uk), who will support you in finding a resolution.

14. Summary of your legal rights.

See the paragraph below for a summary of your key legal rights in relation to the Services. Nothing in these Terms and Conditions will affect your legal rights.

Summary of your key legal rights. These are subject to certain exceptions. For detailed information please visit the Citizens Advice website www.adviceguide.org.uk or call 03454 04 05 06.

The Consumer Rights Act 2015 says:

(a) you can ask us to repeat or fix a Service if it's not carried out with reasonable care and skill, or get some money back if we can't fix it;

(b) if you haven't agreed a price beforehand, what you're asked to pay must be reasonable;

15. Communications

15.1 All notices under these Terms and Conditions shall be in writing and signed by, or on behalf of, the party giving notice (or a duly authorised officer of that party).

15.2 Notices shall be deemed to have been duly given:

(a) when delivered, if delivered by courier or other messenger (including registered mail) during the normal business hours of the recipient;

(b) when sent, if transmitted by fax or email and a successful transmission report or return receipt is generated;

(d) on the tenth business day following mailing, if mailed by airmail.

15.3 All notices under these Terms and Conditions shall be addressed to the most recent address, email address or fax number notified to the other party.

16. The Client’s rights to end the contract

16.1 Without prejudice to your rights to cancel a consultation pursuant to paragraph 4.2 and subject to your obligation to notify Synthesis Clinic of any cancellation with at least 48 hours’ notice in advance, you can always end the contract before the Services have been supplied and paid for. You may contact us at any time to end the contract for the Services, but in some circumstances we may charge you certain sums for doing so, as described below.

16.2 If you are ending the contract for a reason set out at (a) to (d) below the contract will end immediately and we will refund you in full for any Services which have not been provided or have not been properly provided. The relevant reasons are:

(a) we have told you about an error in the Price or description of the Services you have booked and you do not wish to proceed (see paragraph 3.6);

(b) there is a risk the Services may be significantly delayed because of events outside our control (see paragraph 11);

(c) we suspend the services for technical reasons, or notify you are going to suspend them for technical reasons, in each case for a period of more than 21 days (see paragraph 10); or

(d) you have a legal right to end the contract because of something we have done wrong.

16.3 If you are not ending the contract for one of the reasons set out in paragraph 15.2, the contract will end immediately, but we may charge you reasonable compensation for the net costs we will incur as a result of your ending the contract.

17. Synthesis Clinic’s rights to end the contract

Synthesis Clinic may end the contract at any time by writing to you if:

(a) do not make any payment to us when it is due and you still do not make payment within 3 days of us reminding you that payment is due;

(b) you do not, within a reasonable time of us asking for it, provide us with information that is necessary for us to provide the Services, for example, any information required pursuant to paragraphs 7 or 8;

(c) do not inform us of any material changes to your care team, medication or medical conditions which means that we are no longer able to provide an appropriate standard of Services; or

(d) manifest any inappropriate, offensive or violent behaviour against any of our medical practitioners or any member of staff or misuse staff time consistently

(e) the clinic team’s assessment is that we cannot provide the right services to fulfil your individual needs and you need to have an onward referral to another care provider

18. Liability

18.1 Synthesis Clinic will not be liable in contract, tort or otherwise for any economic loss (including, without limitation, loss of profit), or for any other special, indirect or consequential loss or damage arising out of, or in connection with, its provision of any Services to the Client.

18.2 It is the Client’s responsibility to ensure that he or she provide the Synthesis Clinic practitioner with all relevant medical details prior to each consultation or as requested by Synthesis Clinic in accordance with these Terms and Conditions. Synthesis Clinic will not be liable for any damage that occurs as a result of the Client’s failure to disclose such details.

18.3 The Client agrees to comply with all instructions and/or recommendations given to them by Synthesis Clinic regarding the programme, any supplements and/or medication recommended by Synthesis Clinic.

18.4 Nothing in these terms of business shall exclude or limit Synthesis Clinic’s liability for death or any personal injury resulting from Synthesis Clinic negligence.

19. Force Majeure

Neither party shall be liable for any failure or delay in performing their obligations where such failure or delay results from any cause that is beyond the reasonable control of that party. Such causes include, but are not limited to: power failure, Internet Service Provider failure, industrial action, civil unrest, fire, flood, storms, earthquakes, acts of terrorism, acts of war, governmental action or any other event that is beyond the control of the party in question.

20. No Waiver

No waiver by Synthesis Clinic of any breach of these Terms and Conditions by the Client shall be considered as a waiver of any subsequent breach of the same or any other provision.

21. Severance

In the event that one or more of these Terms and Conditions is found to be unlawful, invalid or otherwise unenforceable, those provisions shall be deemed severed from the remainder of these Terms and Conditions (which shall remain valid and enforceable).

22. Law and Jurisdiction

22.1 These Terms and Conditions (including any non-contractual matters and obligations arising therefrom or associated therewith) shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England and Wales.

22.2 Any dispute, controversy, proceedings or claim between Synthesis Clinic and the Client relating to these Terms and Conditions (including any non-contractual matters and obligations arising therefrom or associated therewith) shall fall within the jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

23. Professional Insurance information

Synthesis Nutrition Ltd t/a Synthesis Clinic holds the following insurance policies:

(a) Public and Products Liability Insurance with Hiscox Insurance Company Limited of The Hiscox Building, Peasholme Green, YorkYO1 7PR for the England and Wales territory.

(b) Medical Malpractice Insurance with the Beazley Group of Plantation Place South, 60 Great Tower Street, London, EC3R 5AD for the England and Wales territory.

(c) Employers Liability Insurance with Hiscox Insurance Company Limited of of The Hiscox Building, Peasholme Green, YorkYO1 7PR for the England and Wales territory.

24. Professional and regulated profession details

24.1 (a) Dr. Nina Fuller-Shavel – Medical Doctor, UK, GMC 7518227; (b) Dr Amy Shacaluga, Medical Doctor, UK, GMC 6144260; (c) Dr Helen Evennett, Medical Doctor, UK, GMC 4176772; (d) Dr Iain Jordan, Medical Doctor, UK, GMC 7051202. Please note that the medical team composition may change over time, and GMC details for any additional doctors that have not been updated on these Terms and Conditions and updated team composition details are available via the Practice Manager.

24.2 Professional membership:

(a) GMC registered, BANT and CNHC registered

(b-e) GMC registered

24.3 The Guidance relating to the professional GMC and CNHC rules can be provided on request and are available via the professional organisation’s website.