This is a question I am asked regularly, so I decided to write a blog to point people to.
When do we need an acute consultation?
Acute consultation is a short consult of 15-20 minutes and is usually for new, short-lived complaints not older than four weeks. You will be asked to describe your current complaint, what makes it better or worse, if there are any changes in your thirst and appetite, mood, sleep, and if you have a fever. For example, an acute consult is for you if you have a new cough or sore throat. If you fell and broke your arm, you may need a remedy to help you with the pain and the healing once you’ve been to A&E and your arm is fixed in the correct position for healing. If you are travelling and you are having food poisoning and so on. You get the idea. Ideally, you go to your homeopath for an acute consult, and they will be able to give you an acute remedy for the new complaint and let you know what to do with your ongoing treatment if you have one. It will be easier for your homeopth to advise you as he already knows you. Acute situations are suitable for self-prescribing if you can think straight and see the whole picture. This may not be possible if you are anxious, feel exhausted because your baby has been crying all night or because you are in pain. There is a website- Homeopathy247.com, where you can go for an acute consult if you are desperate. Homoeopaths are available to take your case straight away, 24 hours daily. 
What is full consultation?
A full consultation is 75-90 minutes long and is for chronic complaints. You will be asked about your whole life, starting with preconception and family history, going through all critical events in your life, all medical diagnoses, treatments, investigations and so on. Likes, dislikes, energy, bowel function and many other questions specific to the reason for your visit. I usually ask my new clients to download a ‘Timeline’ form from my website. Fill it in and email it back to me before the appointment. We will go over all questions and see the relation between the current complaint and everything that happened to them until the point of the visit. You will have this full consult when you first start seeing a homeopath, and after it will be a follow-up consult which is usually 30 minutes.
I often see clients with menopausal problems or ongoing Candida overgrowth. They usually have tried all other methods before coming to me, and their problem has been ongoing, sometimes for years. Those cases are not for an acute consult because they have underlying causes for the complaint which need addressing. Let’s say you are menopausal and you have a UTI. You can have an acute remedy to help with the UTI at the moment. Still, if your predisposition for those types of infections needs treating, you need a full consult and treatment on a deeper level to prevent it from happening in the future. If you have anxiety and panic attacks again, an acute consult can guide you on what remedy to have at the moment. You will need a full consult and possibly 2-3 follow-ups for deeper healing and rebalancing hormones to prevent you from getting these complaints. Past trauma and different toxicities often need addressing for you to be in your best possible health. The same is valid for hay fever and allergies. You can have an acute consult and get a remedy to help you with your watery eyes and sneezing, which are bothering you at this very moment. You will need a full consultation and some follow-ups to address your predisposition and sensibility to those allergens.
Disclaimer This article is for educational purposes only and not intended to replace the advice of your physician or health care provider. First aid situations may require medical or hospital care. Homeopathy is not instead of emergency care.