| The REAL state of the NHS | for everyone |
We
are so lucky in this country to have the NHS. At the moment the media
is full of horror stories about the failings of the NHS and no one, it
seems, is recognising what a valuable service we have. I’m sure there
are bits of it that could be improved, there’s room for improvement in
every thing, but on the whole, I think it’s a great service and I’d like
to see more people appreciate what we have. The media and the
government have a vested interest in presenting the NHS as flawed; they
need justification for the proposed ‘reforms’ that would change forever
the service most of us depend on. These greedy people at the top are
manipulating the population into believing the only thing that can save
the NHS is the introduction of profiteering and privatisation. For
every horror story thrust down our throats by the ever obliging media,
there are hundreds and hundreds of ordinary people going about their
daily lives who, with out this service would be dead. When all we see in
the media is the constant drip, drip, drip of criticism, it’s easy to
forget the true value of what we have. These stories are picked up on by
the media, devoured by the public who love the opportunity to have a
good moan about any thing, and then used as evidence for the ‘reforms’.I worked in the NHS for many years and I know how complaints can stem not from a poor service, but from a patient or relatives anxiety about what is happening to them. If you are terribly worried about something, a wait of a few weeks for an appointment to see a specialist seems like an eternity, in reality, even with private health insurance you would face a wait to see a specialist. When I worked on the wards, complaints from relatives about their elderly mother/ mother-inlaw/ sister or other relative were not uncommon. But the underlying cause was very often guilt that they had not been able to care for the relative themselves, anxiety about the diagnosis and treatment or sheer denial about the patients prognosis. I remember clearly one family who made an official complaint about the ward, citing neglect and ill treatment, because their 96 year old mother had died. The lady was admitted for terminal care, but the family were unable to accept that and needed someone to blame. The ‘good’ stories tend not to have the sensationalism of the government sponsored horror stories, the positive stories are told in quiet appreciation by ordinary people about experiences that changed their lives. The NHS is not a second class service used by poor people who can't afford to 'go private'. It is a service used, owned and paid for by all of us. Its not free, we pay for it, it doesn't belong to the government, it belongs to us, and its not the terrible service the government and media would have us believe. Many people in this country don't even think about 'private insurance', why should we when we have a perfectly good service that we pay for collectively, directly from out income.
Consider this scenario. A family are driving along the back roads from one town to another. Its not in the middle of no where but it is a rural location. The breaks fail, the car goes off the road, into a ditch, turns over and crashes into a tree. Luckily a farm worker sees what has happened and dials the emergency services. The police attend, make the area safe and divert the traffic, the ambulance service attend and paramedics assess the situation and give immediate first aid. The fire brigade attend because the driver needs to be cut out of the car. The paramedics in the ambulance transport the less injured mother and children to a local hospital. The driver is assessed as being more seriously injured and in need of emergency, specialist treatment. The paramedics arrange for an air ambulance to attend and lift the driver to a major hospital where a specialist surgical team are waiting to carry out life saving surgery. The car is a total write off and the insurance goes no where near compensating for the financial loss. Every member of the family survive and their bill is A BIG FAT ZERO. You think this is far fetched, it isn't, it happens more often than you would think. I would like to say to my fellow Brits...........wake up,
stop moaning and appreciate what you have before you lose it.
I would like to see more reporting of the ‘good’ NHS stories; here are a couple of simple stories of simple sucsess.
http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/120874/Obama-s-stepmother-The-NHS-saved-my-life
Apparently the NHS saved the life of Obamas stepmother. She is quoted as saying; ‘“It’s very simple: I owe my life to the NHS. If it wasn’t for the NHS I wouldn’t have been alive to see our family’s greatest moment, when Barack became President.”
http://www.getreading.co.uk/news/s/2095620_praise_for_gps_who_understand_teenagers
Praise for GPs who understand teenagers
The University Medical Practice has received an award for its accessibility to young people.
21 Comments
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skeezicks1957 wrote on Oct 20, '11
forgetmenot525 said
 Like
I said its a long time since I've worked on a ward, but no, I don't
remember ever being unable to get hold of dressings or other basic
equipment. We did have staff shortages, but not due to unfilled
positions or not enough staff being assigned to a ward, shortages were
usually due to sickness, holiday leave, maternity leave, study leave
etc...........and when this happened either some one would volunteer to
work extra shifts or the ward manager would get in agency staff. 
To
be fair to the company I work for, I think the supply problem may be
directly related to the person in my particular building who is in
charge of it. I worked for another building with this company and
needed supplies were available.
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forgetmenot525 said
We did have staff shortages, but not due to unfilled positions or not
enough staff being assigned to a ward, shortages were usually due to
sickness, holiday leave, maternity leave, study leave etc..
That happens here as well.
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Yes,
I think I did, and on one level these 2 (there are only 2) are such
nice people. I have known them since they were here on Multiply, send
me email birthday cards and whatnot, so I have too tender a heart and
don't wish to drop them as friends although I did ask them to knock it
off with the racist emails which included many interesting things, but
also such unpleasantries towards Muslims and Indians. And the Irish
jokes!! The Irish are always portrayed as dull witted drunkards.
Fortunately, on FB, one doesn't need to read everyone's home page, and
mostly I don't. I make kind comments about the garden and grandchildren
(both charming) and leave it at that.
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forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 19, '11
skeezicks1957 said
By
supplies I meant finding things when you need them. Things like
dressings, foley set ups, foley's themselves, irrigation sets, sterile
saline, plastic spoons, I was thinking more of the many disposable
things we use.
Like
I said its a long time since I've worked on a ward, but no, I don't
remember ever being unable to get hold of dressings or other basic
equipment. We did have staff shortages, but not due to unfilled
positions or not enough staff being assigned to a ward, shortages were
usually due to sickness, holiday leave, maternity leave, study leave
etc...........and when this happened either some one would volunteer to
work extra shifts or the ward manager would get in agency staff.
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forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 19, '11
bennett1 said
The thing that infuriates me is people I know from FB who are Tories and criticize the government for subsidizing
Bennie
I think maybe you 'got in with a bad crowd' as they say, who ever these
people are they sound revolting. I wish I could say they are a rarity
here.............but they are not, guess you get people like that every
where. Actually..............I don't think its common for people to
think that way here, in general, and I am generalising, ...........the
further south you go the more right wing the people seem to get.
As for the Irish................yes...........it is a long story, where to begin? basically the English have a long history of invading pillaging, stripping of assets and land etc from the Irish, the Irish were a tad peeded off with the situation and eventually fought back, the English interpreted that as unprovoked aggression. Then there was the potato famine 1845 - 48 ( made much worse by our distribution system see) http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/victorians/famine_01.shtml when hundreds if Irish migrated to the UK in search of a better life, we interpreted that as them coming over here taking our jobs etc. More recently..............the 'traveller' problem, you can't have missed it in the news, these people are mostly of Irish origin. A potted history gives you some idea, 1649 Cromwell invades Ireland. 1653 Under the Act of Settlement Cromwell's opponents stripped of land. 1689-90 Deposed James II flees to Ireland; defeated at the Battle of the Boyne. 1704 Penal Code enacted; Catholics barred from voting, education and the military. 1775 American War of Independence forments Irish unrest. 1782 Grattan's Parliament persuades British to declare Irish independence, but in name only. 1795 Foundation of the Orange Order. 1798 Wolfe Tone's uprising crushed. 1801 Ireland becomes part of Britain under the Act of Union. 1829 Catholic Emancipation Act passed after Daniel O'Connell elected as MP. 1845-48 The Great Famine. 1879-82 The Land War; Parnell encourages boycott of repressive landlords. 1914 Implementation of Home Rule postponed because of outbreak of World War I. 1916 Easter Rising. After the leaders are executed public opinion backs independence. 1920-21 War between Britain and Ireland; Irish Free State and Northern Ireland created. 1922 Civil war breaks out. 1932 De Valera elected. 1969 Rioting between Catholics and Protestants. British troops called in. 1971 Provisional IRA begins campaign to oust British troops from Ireland. 1972 UK and Republic of Ireland join European Community. 'Bloody Sunday' in Derry. 1985 Anglo-Irish Agreement signed. 1994 Peace Declaration and IRA ceasefire. so.............from the NHS to the 'Irish problem'............... |
skeezicks1957 wrote on Oct 19, '11
By
supplies I meant finding things when you need them. Things like
dressings, foley set ups, foley's themselves, irrigation sets,
sterile saline, plastic spoons, I was thinking more of the many
disposable things we use.
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I
agree. It can seem long at the time, but for people here, with no
insurance, the wait is ... forever. Sometimes they can get into a free
clinic.
But this is the sort of thing people here use to denigrate "socialized medicine". They point out long waits and I am sure they would look on a wait of 8 weeks to see a rhemotologist as long. They are forgetting that, as you pointed out, she was being treated by her GP, and that rheumatoid arthritis, while painful, is not life threatening. The thing that infuriates me is people I know from FB who are Tories and criticize the government for subsidizing "lazy" "undeserving" people, mock and Muslims, Indians and the Irish, but then enjoy the NHS and all its benefits. I am sure they thought Maggie was a great PM and I know they want the "wogs" out of the UK. They should come over here, they would love living in Texas or one of the Red States. But then - oops - they wouldn't wouldn't have the NHS and wouldn't they be sorry. And what's with hating the Irish? Nevermind, I'm sure it is a long ans sorry story. |
forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 19, '11
I
think she's ok about that now, while she was waiting she was being
treated by her GP with pain relief and anti inflammatory so she wasn't
left untreated. I think she agrees with you about the overall service,
she knows that no effort was spared when her son was taken seriously
ill, which I guess evens things out a bit. Also.........people who are
ill and in pain get scared and if they have to wait, or they don't hear
what they want to hear, they often complain out of fear and frustration.
But afterwards when they are not so emotive, they don't complain. Same
goes for relatives, they complain for all sorts of reasons, but often,
once he immediate danger is passed, they realise they were just reacting
emotionally ( who wouldn't?)
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forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 19, '11
I
worked on the wards from early 70's to early 90's, a long time ago now
and no doubt things have changed. But yes, I loved my job and I thought
the NHS was a good employer. I'm not sure what you mean about
'supplies'? drugs were prescribed by the Dr's and sent to the ward from
the hospital pharmacy, clean laundry was delivered to the ward and the
cleaners came in every day.
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forgetmenot525 said
she was referred to the rheumatology dept and waited a little over 2 months for an appointment,
That
does seem long BUT I have waited 6 weeks for crucial tests when cancer
was suspected (not found, thank goodness). The other point about a 2
month wait is that it is a trade-off for everyone getting to see a
rheumatologist. So all in all, it seems like your sister is getting a
very good deal and so is England.
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skeezicks1957 wrote on Oct 19, '11
I
didn't realize you had worked for them Loretta. How cool is that! Can
you share with us if you feel you were treated fairly as an employee as
far as wages and benefits? Did you have adequate staffing? Did you
have enough supplies? Sometimes I feel taken advantage of as far as the
work load and the of cutting corners in our system here in the US.
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forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 18, '11
On
my post about the woman who is protesting to save the NHS you asked me
what exactly the differences between NHS Scotland and the NHS England
and Wales are. I said I would ask my sister in England what she thought
of the NHS.................this is her reply. Remember she lives in a
highly populated area of England with high demand for services
have spoken to my sister who lives in England and whose family have used the NHS maybe more than most. This is what she said; We spoke about the proposed changes to the NHS and agreed its just a ploy by the conservatives to sell it off and these changes are not really needed. She cited a recent example; they took their 18 year old son to the accident and emergency dept at the local hospital because he suffered severe abdominal pain. They arrived at the dept at 9pm and by 11pm he had a bed on a ward, was prepped ready for emergency surgery and the surgical team were there to assess him. She thought this was excellent service. On another occasion, she was referred to the rheumatology dept and waited a little over 2 months for an appointment, she thought that was too long to wait but once seen by the dept her treatment and follow up appointments have been excellent. She said her condition, although painful, was not an emergency, it is a chronic condition. She thought about all the contact she has needed with the NHS over the years for herself, her partner, her children and our mother, she thinks on the whole treatment has been very good. She really does appreciate the fact it is a free at the point of delivery service, the thought of the service not being there terrifies her due to the various medical problems suffered by her family. The only thing she seemed concerned about was the time it sometimes took to see a specialist after being referred by the GP, the wait time has been a couple of months. We agreed this was probably due to the large population numbers in her area.If something serious has been suspected, by this I mean a cancer or heart problem or another life threatening illness, there is very little wait time for appointments and/or tests, they have been carried out within the week or at most a couple of weeks. We spoke of the recent newspaper reports which stated 20% of hospitals are failing to reach good standards of care, her husband investigated this on the NHS WEBSITE , looked at the reports and found that was in fact 20 HOSPITALS that were identified as failing to meet standards, NOT 20% as reported. This is an example of how the media manipulates information to mislead the public and support these so called 'reforms'. I listened to the news late last night and suddenly the 20% had changed to 1/5, which sounds even worse. This was a BBC report.............. On the whole she has no serious complaints, we talked about it and agreed that when someone is ill, the relatives are worried and tend to complain out of frustration, but when there is not an immediate emotional issue to cloud opinions, there is appreciation of the service and very few complaints. |
forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 18, '11
it
happens here too, people are so busy picking fault and complaining,
they don't value what they have and at the moment, I'm convinced the
government is encouraging general discontent and using it as a way into
'reforms'. Which as far as I can see is a euphemism for privatisation.
I'm afraid people will not realise what they have until they have lost
it. The ruling classes, the elite of this country seem to have more in
common with the American government than other European countries.
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forgetmenot525 said
I
wish more people would publicly speak up in favour of the NHS is
because I know false accusations are made about it both at home and
abroad, and thats so destructive. It just fuels the lies of manipulative
governments..
They
won't listen. That is what is so frustrating. They don't listen.
But, yes, I will call upon you. Universal health care is a lost cause
in the USA right now. I am so angry. It infuriates me but there is
nothing I can do. So much infuriates me. I have hopes for this Occupy
Wall St movement but it is disorganized right now. And it is young
people who think nothing can happen to them so health care is lower on
their priorities.
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forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 18, '11
It
must have been a really scary time for you, such a good thing that you
had an excellent insurance and I do know how frustrating you find it
when others don't take on board the benefits of universal health care.
BTW.................if ever you need some on to say..........oh yes it does work ( universal health care) you know where to come. And part of the reason I wish more people would publicly speak up in favour of the NHS is because I know false accusations are made about it both at home and abroad, and thats so destructive. It just fuels the lies of manipulative governments.. |
forgetmenot525 wrote on Oct 18, '11
mitchylr said
My
own personal story: I was in a bad motorcyle accident when I was
younger. Thanks to the speed of the ambulance service and the brilliant
surgical team at the hospital I was taken to, my right leg was repaired
where I may otherwise well have lost it below the knee.
Thanks
Mitch, glad things turned out OK for you, my brother-in-law has a
similar story, he was knocked off his bike and dragged along the road,
he nearly lost his leg, what they did for him was truly amazing
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And
here is my story: When my husband had his serious heart attack he had
been in cardio intensive care for several days. I wanted him to stay
there as the care was better than in a "step-down" unit. So I asked a
nurse how long he could stay in CICU. Did she check his chart? No. She
asked me WHAT OUR INSURANCE WAS. Back then we had real good Union
insurance. As soon as I said what it was she said "Oh, then, there's no
limit on how long he can stay here."
Glad they saved your leg, Mitch. I hope you can save NHS!! |
Damned
right Loretta!!! It IS a world-class service and it annoys the hell out
of when people moan about it. The only bad part of the NHS is the
management of it by senior administrators and civil servants. We have
some of the best and most dedicated health care professionals in the
world.
My own personal story: I was in a bad motorcyle accident when I was younger. Thanks to the speed of the ambulance service and the brilliant surgical team at the hospital I was taken to, my right leg was repaired where I may otherwise well have lost it below the knee. |
What they say in the US about the NHS:
**There are long wait times. Hogwash. There are wait times here in the US too, they are just not called wait times, you are told that the doctor's next appointment is in 6 weeks. **Medical care is rationed over there. It is rationed here too, it's called what you/your insurance will pay for and what it won't. **Hospitals are grimy. I have heard this from people in the US; I have never heard this from a Brit. It's a scare tactic. **Certain drugs are not available there but they are here. More hogwash. There are drugs here that are not available unless you can pay out-of-pocket, even with insurance, a very high rate. And more blah blah blah. I am glad for you that you have the NHS and that Canada, Europe, Australia, NZ, and just about every other developed country in the world has it. People are always going to find something to complain about. At least they are alive to complain. Save the NHS!!! |
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