Second opinion

Second opinions are required for the following interventions:

• Removal of the uterus (hysterectomy)

• Elective caesarean section

• Bunion surgery (hallux valgus)

• Joint replacement

• Joint endoscopy

• Ligament reconstruction on the knee or ankle

• Intervertebral disc operation

• Removal of the prostate (prostatectomy)

• Tonsillectomy

• Removal of the gallbladder (cholecystectomy)

• Cataract surgery

• Cornea transplant

• Varicose vein surgery

• Cardiac catheterization

• Shoulder impingement syndrome

• Knee arthroscopy (incl. associated interventions on meniscii, ligaments etc.)

This list may vary slightly depending on your insurer. However, all these surgical interventions are often performed without medical necessity so the dates for these interventions may – to a certain extent – be determined in advance. They are therefore referred to as elective surgery. Note that if you do opt for a policy requiring a second opinion, you may be penalized if you don't obtain the second opinion before the operation. You will usually have to pay 10% of the operation costs – up to a maximum of 3,000 francs – yourself.

For example: A young, slim smoker has been taken to hospital because he has just suffered his first lung collapse (spontaneous pneumothorax). The thorax surgeon called in recommends endoscopic surgery without having seen the patient. The parents of the patient consult their family doctor. This doctor recommends conservative, less invasive treatment. This example shows that even in clear medical cases – a collapsed lung of this type is always treated non-invasively first – a second opinion makes good sense. It is not about the personal preferences of the patient. However, in medicine, there are too many options on which “opinions” almost always differ.

You can rarely go wrong by obtaining a second opinion. But you should note the following:

• The second expert must be truly independent (must be practising, possess excellent knowledge of the latest research and the most recent guidelines of the relevant medical association, and ideally should not be performing the operation) and should not know which colleague has recommended or will be performing the operation.

• In other words, a second opinion is only worth obtaining when the person consulted does not stand to benefit financially, so if an orthopaedic surgeon made the original recommendation, a second opinion should be sought from a specialist from a related field, like a rheumatologist or a non-invasive cardiologist.