The health insurer, BUPA Ireland, is planning to offer members with serious illnesses the opportunity to have their diagnoses and treatment reviewed for free by international medical specialists.
Under the system, a patient can seek to have a copy of their medical records referred to a specialist abroad, who will review test results, diagnosis and prognosis and will send a report to the patient and their doctor.
The areas covered include cancer, heart disease, neurological and orthopaedic conditions and will be made available to all BUPA Ireland members.
The company says that should a treatment be identified that is not available in Ireland, it will provide benefit for the treatment abroad.
The service is being organised through an arrangement between BUPA Ireland and the US-based Best Doctors organisation.
It claims access to 50,000 medical specialists that doctors in the US, Canada, Japan, Britain and France have identified in their own speciality and whom they would recommend for themselves and their families.
