i needed to see a dermatologist here in the UK (peterborough area) to check a few moles that were changing.
i went to my GP. she said that she thought they were all fine, but if i wanted to see a dermatlogist she'd be happy to refer me. she asked if i had private insurance, and if i wanted to go through them. she said that even on NHS, there wouldn't be more than a few weeks wait, so i decided to stay within the NHS.
a few weeks later i got a letter stating that i had been referred & to call a certain number to set up a specific appointment.
start to finish- about 6 weeks? moles were fine. but the derm did give me a "open appointment" for 1 year. if i want to see him again within a year, i can just call him again instead of going through my GP first.
