Yes, with the right consent in place.
For a child under 16: a parent or someone with parental responsibility books and must be present for the consultation. See our children's consultations.
For an adult: you can arrange the booking, but the patient must attend the consultation themselves and consent to you being present if you are. We cannot discuss an adult's care with someone else without their agreement.
Where someone lacks capacity to consent, we can still help — tell us the circumstances when booking so the consultation is set up properly and the right people are involved.
16 and 17 year olds
They are presumed able to consent to their own treatment, and they are entitled to confidentiality in the same way an adult is.
A parent can book and can be present if the young person wants them there — but that is the young person's decision, and the doctor will usually offer them part of the appointment alone. That is normal practice rather than anything to read into.
Booking for a partner or parent
Arranging the appointment is fine. Being told what happened in it is not, without their consent.
The simplest approach is for them to say at the start of the consultation that they are happy for you to be there and to be kept informed. It takes ten seconds and it removes any awkwardness later.
Where someone holds power of attorney
Tell us when booking, and have the documentation available. A health and welfare lasting power of attorney carries different authority from a property and financial affairs one, and only the former covers medical decisions.
If you are worried about someone who will not seek help
We cannot consult with a patient who has not agreed to it, however well-intentioned the request.
What we can do is talk to you about how to approach it — and if there is an immediate risk to their safety, that is 999 or 111, not an appointment.