Information about your referral, assessment, and what we offer

This page has information for people who have been referred by your GP or specialist to the Bristol M.E. Service for an assessment.

What happens now?

Your first appointment normally takes about an hour. We can offer face to face, video, and telephone assessments. We hope to offer a time that works for you. If you need to take a break part way through your assessment, please let us know.

The assessment appointment will give us more information about your health problem and the effect this has on your everyday life. It does not involve any kind of physical tests.

We will also send you a link to some questionnaires which include the questions we ask in the assessment so you have time to think about your answers. This is so that we can build up a clearer picture of your difficulties, and answer any questions you may have. We can then work out with you the best way to take things forward.

We offer a variety of approaches depending on your needs. Our main focus is to help you develop a range of coping strategies to improve your quality of life. You may be offered one or more of the following:

Individual contact based on your needs.
Group self-management programme using video conferencing/calls.
Us giving advice to existing services or organisations involved in your care. Face to face, video, or telephone appointments.
Face to face, video, or telephone appointments.

Who is involved in running the service?

This service includes:

Occupational therapists
Physiotherapists
Psychologists
Specialist dietitians

All these professionals are specialists in helping people to manage ME/CFS and post viral fatigue syndromes such as long COVID. We are all committed to understanding your individual difficulties. Fatigue and other symptoms can affect your life in many ways and this varies between people. Because of this we tailor our approach to meet your needs.

Where can you find out more about ME/CFS, post viral fatigue syndrome and long COVID?

You might find these web pages from our website to be helpful:

Please note that not everyone that we assess will have (or be given) a diagnosis of ME/CFS, post viral fatigue syndrome, or long COVID. So, please be aware that this information might not be appropriate to everyone referred to the Service.