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The NHS - Is it that bad?

  • Thread starter Thread starter graj0
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I can honestly say that the NHS has been great for me and my family.
When my DIL had twins the care was excellent. When one of the twins was poorly an ambulance was called, arrived within minutes. She had the most amazing care but sadly died. The TLC that was shown to the family by all disciplines was excellent. This was followed up with counselling for the parents. They could not have done more.
I have always had excellent care from my G.P. and local hospital, whether it is diabetes related or not.
 
I think it suffers from the problems that are prevalent in public sector organisations: terrible inefficiency, but generally fantastic and hard-working front line staff. It's the people you don't see - the managers and policy makers - who stop it being as wonderful as it could be.

In general I am a huge fan of the NHS and I would fight tooth and nail to keep it. At the same time, I don't like it when people say we shouldn't criticise it because it's free (at the point of use) or better than the US system. The NHS would be better if all the staff thought of patients as paying customers, and treated them accordingly with good 'customer service'.

I hope nobody who values the NHS votes Conservative in the election.
 
It's so reassuring when you hear stories like this @phoenix , thanks for sharing. Hope your Dad is better and home soon.
 
Well, today, here in Paradise, my OH and I had reason to visit the metropolis. We popped into the Bank to pick up some cash, and on our way out we were accosted by someone trying to raise money for a woman who has recently had significant spinal surgery and needs more. Sadly, this isn't the only time we have been invited to fundraising events for those who are unwell and don't have cash.

Of course, the lady concerned could have been working a scam, but the harsh reality is that it is likely to have been kosher, and this poor woman needs treatment, but can't pay for it.

I'm sure every single one of us knows or has known someone who has received a cancer or similarly serious diagnosis. In UK, our only questions should then be around when treatment will begin and what it will enatil. Imagine having to then balance that with clarifying the horrendous financial implications at a time when we can hardly think past, "This can't be true".

As I have said, time and time again, our NHS is significantly flawed, but, by virtue of its very presence, we don't know we're born.
 
The NHS is brilliant. Let's look at it (T1 perspective). We get paid for by the NHS a small mountain of kit, insulin at £90 a bottle, test strips at £1 each, lancets, meters, pump's costing thousands possibly and maybe even CGM costing many hundreds per month. We get to see a DSN pretty often, and usually available when we need something or we can drop in if they have a gap.

A lot of our care is a postcode lottery, but with the NHS these days it's set up so if we don't like our care we can change to a different hospital. We aren't bound. We can seek the care we want if we can be bothered. It won't come to us, we have to seek it.

You look at the US? Oh isn't it wonderful, they get so much stuff we don't. Yes it's great, they can pick and choose the hardware and medication, but then again they are paying for it much more heavily than we do and the number on devices like pumps is far LOWER than it in in this country. The same goes right across Europe, we have more equipment readily available to us than any other country with faster growth rates for newer and better equipment than anywhere on the planet.

Meanwhile other parts of the world they can't even get insulin at all. People have a slow agonising death with a T1's life expectancy of 6-8 years. And folk on here are whining about how bad we are off?!
 
An article from an American, comparing the American Healthcare to the NHS.

SORRY AMERICA, BUT NHS TREATMENT REALLY IS BETTER OVER ALL
The bottom line: I prefer the NHS to the American private system. It's a little more inconvenient in terms of appointment times, but due to the fact that it is free, has no paperwork, and the treatment on the day is super-fast, the NHS wins. That Rolls Royce is moving at a pretty decent clip.

And, of course, there is the small matter of the fact that the NHS covers everyone equally, whereas Americans get care based on their ability to pay, leaving tens of millions with only minimal access to care. (Obamacare is changing that, but it's leagues behind the NHS if you're comparing them by the standard of universal full-service coverage.)

Americans think they have the best healthcare in the world. Take it from me, a fellow American: They don't.


http://uk.businessinsider.com/an-american-uses-britain-nhs-2015-1?r=US
 
I know there are different political points of view, but I don't believe the Conservatives or Labour are looking to shut down the NHS and take away what it is and what it does. I massively appreciate just how good it is. As @Nyadach says, as a T1 it is possibly the most amazing service to have there. We don't have to pay to be kept alive.

As I've said in other threads, it is massively undervalued because no-one considers just what you get without having to pay. It's always a case of "Well the NHS didn't deliver x, y or Z for me", instead of "Wow, the NHS is there for when things go horribly wrong".

I just don't think many people realise (especially those with chronic conditions) just how much we get for so little. Having lived in both France and the Netherlands, I appreciate the quality of the health systems, but when I compare it with what I get for free in the UK, I have no complaints. I consider that my National Insurance is my contribution to the NHS and that I get great value for money.

And I would never, ever vote for the Labour party.
 
On the whole the NHS is brilliant. My only real gripes about it have been:-

I'm not sure we always train the right people to do the jobs. In my own experience, the attitudes of some doctors and nurses has been callous, not caring. Surely being 'kind' should be a pre-requisite of the job? When my mother went to her GP complaining about excruciating pains in her chest she was told it was impossible to have pains there as it was her breastbone! When she was finally diagnosed with multiple myeloma, they found that was where the biggest hole in her bones was located. When she was in hospital with this I asked if they could help her at meal times because she couldn't manage to feed herself. I was told she would never eat again as she was dying. I took food in and she lived another two and a half years. One wonderful male nurse promised me he would feed her himself and gave me a list of his shifts so that I could be there to do it when he wasn't.

I have had 4 minor heart procedures done on the NHS. No complaints at all, except that I keep the condition under control now with a dose of a magnesium supplement when I feel I need it. No NHS HCP has ever told me about this, I went to a naturopath to find out. I wish the NHS would consider the effects of diet/supplements/complementary medicines instead of the two normal choices of drugs or surgery. It would have saved the NHS thousands if they had done this with me.

Having said all that I was recently referred for counselling through my GP's surgery and was given 8 sessions at a cheap 'voluntary contribution' rate. My GP has been very supportive here. I think things are changing, but slowly.
 
My only gripe with the NHS is being confronted by a consultant wearing a bow tie.
The only people who should dress like that for work are clowns.
My hatred of NHS dickybows stems from the the simple fact that every single wearer of one has been a totally arrogant **** and usually the people most likely to be dismissive and wrong.
 
tim2000s said:
I consider that my National Insurance is my contribution to the NHS and that I get great value for money.
Click to expand...
Your employer also makes an NI contribution on your behalf, based on your earnings, but as you say we get very good value for money.
I have experienced the best possible treatment and care for myself, and sadly some absolutely appalling treatment for my 85 year old mother. I witnessed things that I hope I never see again, the way that my mother and her fellow patients were just not cared for. Thankfully we're in a position to partially forget the bad bits because my mother is still alive.
 
Not had a problem with my GP she always gets things done when need be.The only gripe I have is with hospitals cancelling out patients appointments. I had an appointments cancelled three times one was only 11/2 hours before I was due there so by the time I saw the consultant it was nearly three months after the first appointment they gave me No problem with the treatment though
 
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If any of you have ever had cancer you would never complain about the NHS. I was diagnosed via a routine mammogram (free for over 50's) on 19th December. I had my tumour removed on 18th January after wonderful care and consideration from nurses, radiologists and surgeons. After a period of recovery I was given eye wateringly expensive chemotherapy once every 3 weeks for 6 sessions in a brilliant chemo unit surrounded by wonderful specialist nurses, G.P., and one to one appointments with my caring oncologist consultant before each session. No delays, no cancelled appointments, no waiting, no problems. The district nurse came the day before each session to take my blood, and then again the day after each session to give me an injection. She never missed. This was followed by 18 Herceptin infusions, one every 3 weeks, costing about £2000 a session just for the drug, never mind the cost of administering it, blood tests, machinery, heart scans, regular check ups etc. I also had 3 consecutive weeks of expensive radiotherapy which was organised like a dream. I still have twice yearly review appointments with the consultant surgeon and the consultant oncologist plus annual mammograms, and will continue to do so for 5 years following my diagnosis. The NHS saved my life and made me healthy again. And all for free..
 
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Whilst I'm no great lover of bow ties, unless in a formal situation, I have always concluded it's the wearer's election that still allows them to wear a tie, where a standard tie would be frowned upon by virtue of it's flappy ends.

I usually try not to make judgements based on attire, as they could always be making similar value judgements on our own.

Critique and tolerances would ideally be a two-way street.
 
It was a bit tongue in cheek .....
 

It can be a cause of frustration Annie when appointments are cancelled, but emergency's do crop up and sometimes it is out of their hands, plus at this time of year there's staff shortages due to illness so they run clinics on a reduced capacity, I had my Ophthalmology appointment cancelled in December and it was put back to the beginning of January.
 
I think that was the attitude when my mum was in hospital last year. I really felt that there was no need to go off to Digitas in Switzerland, West Middx will do the job. There was one lady who couldn't really move anything below her neck. They used to put her tray of food on her lap and just leave it there. My father tried to complain once and was basically shouted down, my sister received the same treatment from the nursing staff when she to ask questions about lack of care. Mixed bag isn't it? I'm very happy with the treatments I've received but when I reach 80 (if?), I might have to reconsider my views.
 
Yes it is. I am still so grateful to that one very kind nurse. At the time my Mum had 8 infections that they had identified and all her major organs were affected. One day he saw me feeding a trifle to her and she had nearly finished it. She didn't fancy anything else. He found her 2 more trifles.
 

I hope your granddaughter and dad are feeling better again Robinredbreast! When I came to this country 7 years ago I thought the NHS was fantastic. It is in fact depending on where you live in the UK unfortunately not. I am from up North, Cumbria, and we have a battle on our hands currently to keep our local hospital open. If it closed our next A&E is at least 1hr away on treacherous single carriage roads and I am terrified of having a heart attack or a stroke as I am pretty sure I would die on the way to the hospital. It's all about money and politics in this case. I could tell you all endless stories about long waiting times and travelling massive distances to see specialists but you can imagine it probably yourselves.

I'd rather pay a percentage of my wage to get a proper health system (like we do have for example in Germany) and get the care I need when I need it of doctors who know what they're doing.

If I had the choice and wasn't married with a house and job in this country I'd be on my way back home the next day just due to the health care which is in my part of the country certainly not like it should be and I am sometimes really scared.
 
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