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Article by Stuart Mitchell

Harley Street is often referred to as “Medical London” due to the fact it has one of the largest concentrations of medical proficiency in the world. With a long-standing reputation as a centre of private medical excellence, Harley Street’s earliest associations with medicine can be traced back to around 1860 when many doctors moved into the area due to the central location and close proximity to major train stations, such as Kings Cross, St Pancras and Marylebone. Since the nineteenth century the number of doctors, mau fare ma'i, eye surgery clinics and other medical organisations located in and around the Harley Street area has greatly increased. There were around 20 doctors practising in the area in 1860 and a tenfold increase was recorded by 1914 when the figure rose to 200. Another two welcome additions to the area which further enhanced the area’s reputation were the Medical Society of London, which opened in Chandos Street in 1873 and the Royal Society of Medicine which started up in 1912 on Wimpole Street.Over the years Harley Street has been home to many famous medical professionals. Sir Henry Thompson, a great British surgeon and polymath, practiced in the area during the 1870s and went on to be appointed as chief surgeon to the King of Brussels.Doctor Edward Bach practiced from Harley Street in the 1920s before moving to the London Homeopathic Hospital and then developing the Bach Flower Remedies which are still so popular today. Times have obviously changed since the nineteenth century when medical practitioners would have set up a surgery in their own home and arranged their own appointments and Harley Street continues to flourish as a centre for all things medicinal. Needless to say the clinics found here offer the latest technology alongside some of the country’s best medical expertise.Today there are over 3,000 people employed in the area which offers a broad range of medical services, from complementary medicine to plastic surgery. So whether you’re looking for laser eye surgery in London or simply need to register with a GP you are sure to find what you need here Harley Street makes a highly desirable location from which to practice and the area continues to attract a large number of top medical practitioners, from eye surgeons and doctors to psychiatrists and plastic surgeons. If you need to get to Harley Street for an appointment then you have several options to choose from. If catching the tube you can get off at Bond Street or Oxford Circus for the more southerly area, while Regents Park and Great Portland Street lie to the north so you can easily catch a tube to fit in with exactly where you are going. What’s more, Marylebone and Euston railway stations are both close-by and the car parks at Portland Place and Harley Street make life that little bit easier for those arriving by car.