Completing an erectile dysfunction consultation with your partner

Reviewed by our clinical team

Does your partner experience erectile dysfunction (ED) and is it causing problems with your sex life and relationship? Have you discussed the idea of your partner trying ED tablets like Viagra? If so, Online Doctor could help you take the next step.

Our online erectile dysfunction consultation is a great way to get help without needing to make time for a GP appointment or a trip to the pharmacy. We can safely prescribe a variety of effective ED tablets using a confidential questionnaire that asks the same questions a GP would in person. Once the consultation is complete, our clinicians can check your partner’s answers to ensure treatment is safe, before approving his order. 

Read on to find out how you can help your partner complete his erectile dysfunction consultation with Online Doctor. 

Step 1: Talk it through 

Before you get as far as opening a browser window, it’s important to sit down with your partner and talk through the process of doing the online consultation and what you both expect from it.

If you’re both keen on the idea of your partner using ED tablets, this shouldn’t be a difficult chat – but just remember that he may still feel embarrassed and hesitant about starting the process, and may need to come to it in his own time.

As for choosing the right ED tablet? No worries there. If your partner doesn’t have a preference or isn’t sure which type is right for him, he can visit this page and click “Help me choose a treatment” – we’ll recommend the best tablet for his needs. 

Step 2: Help him create an account

Your partner will need his own account if he wants to order ED tablets through our service. You may have your own account with us, but you can't use it to request a treatment on behalf of anyone else. 

The good news is, setting up an account is really quick and easy. All your partner needs is a dedicated email address and phone number to use for login and security. 

With that done, he can head to our online ED clinic, select a tablet and click “Request treatment” – or alternatively complete an online assessment by using the "help me choose a treatment" option. 

Step 3: Find a quiet, private place

Our ED questionnaire doesn’t take long to fill out but it does require your partner’s full attention. Make sure you can go somewhere private to look at the questionnaire together, and that you aren’t pressed for time. If your partner is feeling particularly worried about other people seeing him fill out the questionnaire, wait until you have time alone e.g. your children are in bed or at school.

It also helps to have a stable internet connection and plenty of battery on your laptop, tablet or smartphone! 

Step 4: Answer the questions carefully 

ED symptoms 
We start our questionnaire by asking a few questions about symptoms, including:

• How did your ED begin – suddenly or gradually? 
• Do you get normal erections in the morning or when you masturbate? 
• Has your sex drive gone down?

Medical history & medication
We’ll also ask lots of questions about medical history e.g. whether your partner has any: 

• Heart problems 
• Blood pressure problems 
• Kidney or liver problems 
• Problems with the penis itself 
• Mood changes 

We’ll also ask about medication, as it’s vital that we know which medications your partner is taking. Certain types – particularly nitrates – can have a negative interaction with ED tablets, so if your partner is on any prescription medication, make sure he lists them all correctly.

Lifestyle
We’ll ask some lifestyle questions, starting with weekly alcohol consumption – this is an important step as ED can be worsened by drinking too much. Encourage your partner to be as honest as possible about how much he drinks each week, and whether he smokes or uses any recreational drugs.

Height and weight 
The final step is to enter an accurate figure for your partner’s height and weight, in either metric or imperial measurements. It’s worth taking both of these before you start the questionnaire so you don’t have to interrupt the process.

Step 5: Help him review his answers

Before submitting the questionnaire, we’ll give your partner the opportunity to look back at his questions and make sure everything is accurate. 

This shouldn’t be rushed over – remember, our clinicians need to know as much as possible about your partner’s symptoms, medical history and lifestyle if they’re going to prescribe ED tablets safely. Take this time to double check everything is correct! 

Step 6: Make an order

Once your partner has submitted his questionnaire, he’ll need to enter payment details and choose a delivery or collection option. We won’t send his questionnaire to our clinicians until payment has been received, so don’t quit before this point!

In some cases, treatment may not be approved, in which case, payment either won’t be taken or will be refunded. One of our clinicians will contact your partner through his secure Patient Record to tell him why the order was declined, and to give advice on what to do next. It may be that your partner needs to speak to his GP for some tests. 

Step 7: Get started with treatment

If your partner’s ED medication is approved, we’ll provide some guidance on taking it correctly. How your partner takes his tablet will depend on the type, but generally he’ll need to take it: 

• Up to one hour before sex 
• Preferably on an empty stomach 
• Without drinking a lot of alcohol

For some men, ED tablets don’t work the first few times. We generally advise taking a particular tablet at a particular dosage for eight times before switching to a different dosage or tablet. So, if your partner finds that the tablet doesn’t work for him, encourage him to keep trying!