Referring a patient

Many doctors find migraine a common but challenging condition to manage – we work in partnership to diagnose patients and develop a treatment plan

Headaches are a common presentation in primary care and generate a large volume of secondary care activity and quite expensive prescribing costs recurrently. The National Migraine Centre is a charitable organisation that is the antithesis of all of this and has consistently provided me with the highest quality evidence-based and cost-effective headache management advice.

– Dr Shahid Dadabhoy

The UK’s leading migraine clinic

The National Migraine Centre is the only charity in the UK dedicated to delivering treatment for those affected by headache. Over more than four decades, our team of world-class consultant neurologists and GP headache specialists has helped tens of thousands of people.

National Migraine Centre clinicians are based around the UK, seeing patients through video consultations, where they can also issue prescriptions for anti-CGRP medication. For those requiring face-to-face treatment, we operate procedure clinics.

A trusted partner

The National Migraine Centre is inspected and regulated by the Care Quality Commission and enjoys extremely high and consistent patient satisfaction ratings.

Alongside their work with the charity, our clinicians have all worked within the NHS, with leading consultants and GP specialists also involved at a governance and leadership level.

All our medical staff are qualified and experienced clinicians with a special interest and additional training in migraine and headache, registered with the General Medical Council or the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

Our service

Our clinicians devote one hour to each first appointment, giving every patient around 40 minutes with the doctor. Our doctors will then liaise with patients’ own GPs to ensure continuity of care, recommending medication and care plans based on evidence-based, proven treatments.

With short waiting times, we can often get expert advice and help to patients in a fraction of the usual time. We can also provide individuals with access to treatments not readily available to most headache patients, including Botox, greater occipital nerve blocks and anti-CGRP prescriptions.

Referrals

We don’t require patients to be referred by a medical professional – they can self-refer through this website. You can simply direct patients to our website to make a booking request here.

Medical professionals can help their patients by providing a list of current and past medications and dosages, which enables headache specialists to understand patient histories and make informed treatment recommendations.

Charitable and private options

Patients opting for charitable appointments will be invited to make a voluntary donation. Patients can also opt for a private consultation, where they may be seen sooner, although a triage system ensures those in greatest clinical need will always be prioritised. In all cases, patients will be seen by experienced headache specialists.

Procedures, including Botox and nerve blocks, are available on a fixed fee basis.

Find further information on our funding and appointment types here.

Self-management tools

We also help those affected by headache by supporting self-management, with a range of tools, including our award-winning Heads Up podcast and factsheets, providing trusted, evidence-based guidance and information on all aspects of primary headache.

Find out more

To find out more, email us at admin@nationalmigrainecentre.org.uk and we’ll get back to you.

Please note, this email address is staffed by administrative staff only, who cannot provide medical advice. For general information about migraine and headache, check out our resources here.

Interested in working with us and training to become a headache specialist? Find out how here.

Factsheets & resources

Expert factsheets, free resources and headache diaries: trusted information on all aspects of headache and migraine, produced by leading doctors.

Check out our range of factsheets

Join our team!

Looking for more rewarding work and a chance to develop new skills? Interested in headache medicine? With full training and ongoing mentoring provided, join a respected national charity.

Find out more about joining our team