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The future of our health and our health system.

bulkbiker said:
Or how about free at the point of delivery is means tested?
Anyone earning over a certain amount would be expected to contribute something towards their costs?
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Do you really expect health care professional to grubby their fingers when cash is handed over?
The tax system is perfectly adequate to collect the revenue required in a graduated way related to the ability to pay.
D.
 
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bulkbiker said:
We do realise don't we that GP surgeries are not "run" by the NHS but are either composed of independent contractors (individual GP's) or partnerships of Doctors.
That's why they have "guidelines" to follow and not rules and explains why the quality of care can vary so much across different locations.
I wonder if these effectively private companies are included in what the NHS spends on "external" providers? Maybe someone who knows more can let us know.
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I don't think the conventional model of partner doctors float a company and have paid shareholders as investors?
D.
 
lindisfel said:
I don't think the conventional model of partner doctors float a company and have paid shareholders as investors?
D.
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The doctors are partners and "shareholders" in the business.. often buying in to the practise? or at least I though that was the model here.
 
lindisfel said:
Do you really expect health care professional to grubby their fingers when cash is handed over?
The tax system is perfectly adequate to collect the revenue required in a graduated way related to the ability to pay.
D.
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No I would expect the state to bill the taxpayer post consultation or the receptionist could sort out the cash as they do in other countries..?
Maybe a link to the NI number of the patient would trigger whether payment was required or not.
Might need a decent IT system but hardly rocket science...
 
bulkbiker said:
Might need a decent IT system but hardly rocket science...
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The NHS has recently proved that it cant get a decent IT system designed, written and installed.

By the way, I'm always a little wary of John Pilger's reports because of his politics. But this one seems quite truthful - just very depressing.
 
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JohnEGreen said:
or afford health insurance
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I'm lucky enough to have health insurance and there are things I don't like about it. They will exclude any pre-existing conditions, that's how insurance works, I understand that. It's open to a lot of interpretation because whatever happens to us, mention diabetes and that's the cause, whatever it is.

Also, last year, I had a lump on my head which I had removed, it took 10 minutes and the total cost was just over £600. I claimed on the insurance and thought nothing of it until the next premium came up for renewal. My premium had gone up by £1200, twice the cost of the procedure. I complained and eventually had to pay them back the £600 to reduce my premium by £1200, so not a lot of good really.
 
If a whole extra layer of staff are needed for billing, it's going to cost even more.

Given that the NHS can't yet coordinate care and treatment, my hope of them getting a billing system right is nil.
 
ianf0ster said:
The NHS has recently proved that it cant get a decent IT system designed, written and installed.
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My vague memory of this debacle, having spent 35 years in I.T. software development, is that one particular system was being designed for the NHS it was outsourced to EDS as far back as 2004. There was yet another system outsourced to another company called CDC. One of the problems I observed from a distance was that computer projects started with an end date, rather than sorting out exactly what was required, how many people were required and how long it would take.

A classic mistake was that employing more people to get the job done sooner, especially to meet a time line that was decided first was that it never worked. I vaguely remember bits of my project managing training describing why it didn't work. All a long time ago now. Sad getting old LOLOLOL. I'm told the alternative isn't so great either.
 
lucylocket61 said:
If a whole extra layer of staff are needed for billing, it's going to cost even more.

Given that the NHS can't yet coordinate care and treatment, my hope of them getting a billing system right is nil.
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rubbish, automated system should reduce costs. There us no technical reason why a cheap reliable system could not be created quickly. Every company in the has a billing system and the likes of Amazon have far more accounts than the nhs is ever likely to have.

Having worked in software development on projects for various governments for over twenty years I can guess why nhs projects always fail and it has nothing to do with cost or technical problems.
 
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