LifeScan

LifeScan is a private clinic in Naxxar that combines a full radiology department with outpatient specialists, so a single visit can cover a scan, a consultation or both. It is aimed at families, expectant mothers, children, adults looking for screening and people who need a chest X-ray for a visa or work permit.

The clinic is listed on VisitMalta.co.uk among the island's private clinics in Malta and its paediatric clinics. This page describes what the clinic offers and how booking works. It is not medical advice, and any questions about your own health belong with a doctor.

Who runs LifeScan and how it started

The clinic was founded by three doctors: Dr Andre Gatt, Dr Robert Cassar and Dr Olivia Ann Cassar. They have been friends since sixth form, went through medical school together, then trained in different specialties and worked across both the public and private healthcare sectors.

They opened the clinic out of frustration with long waits, endless phone calls to book, poor communication and paperwork. They set out to keep what people like about a traditional family clinic and redesign the rest around convenience and respect for patients' time. The result is a largely paperless radiology department, online booking with real-time availability, instant email confirmation and a calm, personal feel.

Consultant radiologists are on site every day, and all reporting is carried out by fully registered consultant radiologists. Technology matters to the founders, but they say people matter more, and their aim is to treat every patient the way they would want their own families treated.

Imaging and radiology services

Radiology is the heart of the clinic. Ultrasound covers a wide list of examinations for women, men and children, including abdomen and pelvis, thyroid and neck, breast, liver with elastography, prostate, urinary tract, venous Doppler and joint, lump and hernia scans, as well as abdominal aortic aneurysm screening. Low-dose digital X-ray handles the chest, joints and spine, and a scoliogram is also available.

The breast clinic offers 3D mammography, known as tomosynthesis, as well as breast ultrasound and combined packages, and the website includes guides to help patients understand the difference between a mammogram and an ultrasound. DEXA scanning measures bone density and whole-body composition, with a two-person package and a three-scan package for tracking progress.

For interventional work, the team carries out image-guided procedures: ultrasound-guided aspiration and drainage, core biopsy, fine needle aspiration, steroid injections and ganglion aspiration, among others. A radiology consultation service also reviews CT and MRI studies.

Gift vouchers can be bought and redeemed for scans, which makes the clinic an option for a present as well as for your own appointment.

Women's, children's and men's health

For women, the clinic offers gynaecology and fertility care, pregnancy and postnatal care, breast health and menopause and bone health services. Fertility and IVF support has its own page, and obstetrics and gynaecology specialists see patients on site.

Children are well catered for. The clinic has paediatric specialists, vaccinations and well-baby care, newborn and baby check-ups, and a pectus clinic for chest wall conditions. Imaging for young patients includes paediatric ultrasound of the hips, brain, abdomen and other areas, newborn screening, baby hip checks, bone age X-rays, paediatric X-ray and bone density scans for children aged four and above. The imaging rooms are set up to be child-friendly.

Men's health services cover ultrasound, DEXA body composition, assessment of joint and muscle pain and a team of men's health specialists. The broader specialist list also includes medical and surgical specialists, psychology and psychiatry, physiotherapy and podiatry, and swallowing, feeding and speech therapy. For more clinics in the area, you might also look at Clinica Joia.

Specialists, therapy and screening

Outpatient consultations run alongside the scans. Medical specialists see patients for areas such as cardiology, rheumatology and internal medicine, and surgical consultations are available for joint pain and related concerns. The paediatric clinic provides child health consultations and well-baby reviews, and obstetrics and gynaecology care is also offered, with scans on the same premises.

Therapy and support services broaden the offer further. Psychologists and psychiatrists, physiotherapists and podiatrists, and a clinic for swallowing, feeding and speech therapy all practise from the clinic. A separate health screening service provides preventative check-ups and diagnostic screening packages, so adults can arrange routine checks in the same place as any follow-up imaging.

Reports from any scan can be sent securely to the doctor you name, which keeps your GP or specialist informed without extra paperwork on your part.

Chest X-rays for work permits and visas

If you are moving to Malta from the UK or taking a job here, you may need a chest X-ray as part of a health screening. LifeScan offers low-dose digital chest X-rays for residency, visa and work permit applications, suited to initial applications and renewals, including the Single Permit and the online process run by the HDPD. Our guide to relocating to Malta from the UK explains the wider move, and remote workers can start with the digital nomad guide.

An appointment is always required, but no referral is needed for this X-ray. The clinic aims to issue results within one to two hours, often faster, and emails a PDF report for your doctor along with a digital copy of the radiograph once payment is made.

LifeScan carries out the chest X-ray only. It does not complete or sign application forms, so you take the report and radiograph to a clinic of your choice, or the clinic can recommend partner clinics that complete the forms.

Booking, referrals and results

Booking is done online at any hour through a live calendar, with an email confirmation straight away and no call-backs or approval stage. Prices for each scan are also shown in the online system. The clinic also offers a web app that can be added to a phone's home screen for quick access to the booking page.

On referrals, X-rays generally need a doctor's referral, apart from visa and work permit chest X-rays. Many ultrasound, mammogram and DEXA examinations can be booked directly, although a referral letter is still helpful. If you plan to claim on health insurance, your insurer may require a referral from a doctor other than the radiologist you are seeing, so check with them first. The clinic also has a referral portal for doctors.

The findings of your scan are explained during the appointment. Urgent cases are reported straight away and final written reports are typically completed the same day. Reports go to your email and, if you give the doctor's name, directly to your doctor. Images are not routinely handed over but can be supplied electronically on request.

Finding the clinic and getting in touch

LifeScan is at 1 Wesghet il-Frott, Naxxar NXR 3080, in a modern building on a street with balconied apartment blocks. The clinic is on the ground floor with full wheelchair access, and the booking system is designed to keep waiting times short. If you are visiting Malta and want to know where to base yourself, our where to stay in Malta page compares the areas, and our about Malta page gives a general introduction before you book flights to Malta.

To ask about a scan, a specialist or a work permit X-ray, use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page and we will pass your message to the LifeScan team, who will reply to you directly.