NHS

[The_duke]

Last July my son broke his leg and and had to have a pin put in -- no sweat it hapens. Yesterday he had a bit of a lump on the surgical wound. No problem Plaster and Germoline. Today it was worse a bigger lump. So rang NHS direct -- waste of time after 25 mins talking to a phone jockey I was put thru to a nurse. Another waste of time -- take him to your GP was the answer. So at 2:45pm ring my GP .. Is an emergency (how the feck do I know was I at medical school for 7 years) Yes says I. OK says she ring back at 3:00 she says to make an emergency appointment. FFS 15 mins diifference and if it was an emergency !! oh well. Rang at 3:00 and this receptionist gives me the third degree -- anyway get an appointment and its an infection treatable by antibiotics..

But why the feck am I paying taxes -- discuss

[thetank]

Hope it heals up quick for him.

[Colchester Kev]

Last July my son broke his leg and and had to have a pin put in -- no sweat it hapens. Yesterday he had a bit of a lump on the surgical wound. No problem Plaster and Germoline. Today it was worse a bigger lump. So rang NHS direct -- waste of time after 25 mins talking to a phone jockey I was put thru to a nurse. Another waste of time -- take him to your GP was the answer. So at 2:45pm ring my GP .. Is an emergency (how the feck do I know was I at medical school for 7 years) Yes says I. OK says she ring back at 3:00 she says to make an emergency appointment. FFS 15 mins diifference and if it was an emergency !! oh well. Rang at 3:00 and this receptionist gives me the third degree -- anyway get an appointment and its an infection treatable by antibiotics..

But why the feck am I paying taxes -- discuss

imagine you were American, they pay taxes AND pay for healthcare ... the NHS is a much maligned organisation, but by christ where would be as a country without it.

[Graham C]

Quite agree Kev.  We (sad to admit it) need to pay more taxes to sort out the NHS.  We have one of the lowest rates of tax in Europe. Not to say that I want to pay more in tax of course.  I just think it's all distributed a bit incorrectly.

[The_duke]

I'm not talking about the amount of tax I pay for feck all -- i'm talking about service -- it was shiit. I know the NHS is special but your local GP service has gone to pot

[Graham C]

It's annoying, some of the stuff they come out with is just stupid, I guess it's down to the individual centres though, mine is pretty good, can't get an appointment for a few days, but they generally are good.

My Mum and Dad's on the other hand, not so good.

[Dingdell]

Until the health service treats the public like customers and not patients the service will never please us all. What we have is ok - I have had great treatment from my local hospital, but I was not dealt with us a customer and it was not as good an experience because of it.

[RED-DOG]

Until the health service treats the public like customers and not patients the service will never please us all. What we have is ok - I have had great treatment from my local hospital, but I was not dealt with us a customer and it was not as good an experience because of it.

"And how can we help madam today, ruptured spleen is it?"

[bhoywonder]

It's annoying, some of the stuff they come out with is just stupid, I guess it's down to the individual centres though, mine is pretty good, can't get an appointment for a few days, but they generally are good.

My Mum and Dad's on the other hand, not so good.

I agree

2 years ago i asked for a sick line for a week off work

i felt like a crock of shit with a flu like symptoms...and i work outside and couldnt face it..


Doctor said he cant do that as I would be a burden on society!!!!....I have never been unemployed,I pay my taxes and insurance....and i have never had a sick line form a doctors


7 years  to be a cheeky little pimple ridden shit..told him if it wasnt for the likes of me he wouldnt have that fat arse squeezed into his leather chair,that we taxpayers provide him....then i changed docs...


that felt good....rant over

[thetank]

whatever faker

[bhoywonder]

whatever faker

dang...caught

[Moskvich]

Problem is that it's not a business, so the customer is not always right - for example, lots of people think they need emergency appointments when actually they don't. If you let everyone get what they wanted when they wanted, it would be chaos and the real emergencies wouldn't get seen. I'm sure they're not really trying to give you a hard time, they just actually want to try and find out whether it justifies an emergency appointment that someone else might need more.

I know it's not perfect, but no healthcare system ever will be - in a sense i guess it fails everybody in the end... Until it secures immortality for all it's always going to be an easy target for criticism.

[taximan007]

I spent 7 weeks in Hospital in 2004, the STAFF were Fantastic, the SYSTEM was Shite!!!!!

Just spent 1 week here in Hospital, shared  room with Rats, Cockroaches and armies of Ants. Cost 1.1K

Give me the NHS ANYDAY

[Bainn]

To be honest, my GP, consultant and the attending staff have been fantastic. Since first symtoms of my condition over 7 years where my GP was straight onto it, to the continuing help and treatment I need, the NHS has been great.

The delay in my recent op was down to me selecting the best place to have surgery and not taking the date that coincided with DTD's initial launch date. I was even offered an earlier date by 'phone.

Appointments at a GP's practice are now given out differently due to efficiency, people would book days in advance then not show because they felt better or turn up saying they were fine, wasting time. And if it was an emergency, dial 999.

[madasahatstand]

Its well know that GP receptionists are a nightmare. They act like frontline troops, custodians of the GP surgeries and they are not always pleasant to deal with. I think they go to some kind of special boot camp as part of their induction training..lol

I do hope your sons infection is healing but his condition doesn't strike me as being life threatening so I would not have classed it as an emergency. If the GP thought it was your boy would have been seen straight away. I know infections are nasty and acute swelling like that can be alarming, but its not a medical emergency so sounds like he was seen almost immediately anyway. Its coming across to my like it was the receptionist who pissed you off. Why dont you complain as the NHS takes complaints very seriously? Complain to your local health board as GPs are private contractors and they need to keep certain standards.

My personal gripe (nothing to do with your boy) is the way society has pathologised every sniffle. We are a 'sick' society. We put pressure on the NHS but going with the slightest thing. Ive got a friend who has hay fever and shes at the docs regularly, taking up vital appointments that real sick people could have. People have forgotten the basics of a healthy life. Exercise, a good diet and a few smiles a day keeps the doctor away. Too many people have something missing in their lives and the doctor becomes a substitute for all those things.

The NHS here is the best system of healthcare anywhere. Its not perfect by any means but it does a very good job and the amount of lives it saves year on year is beyond my ken but id say its pretty impressive. The commercialisation of the NHS into a customer/ provider set up is really not a good idea (but its been happening for years). The government is year on year turning the NHS into bureaucratic jungle based on raising expectations of the public. There are already mechanisms through which people can complain and these complaints are taken seriously. Peoples expectations of the NHS grow all the time against a backdrop of low and reducing investment. In my area you wouldn't believe the complaints we get. The fecking poster on the wall wasn't hanging right.. FECK OFF!!!  You want us to use time checking fecking posters. Go chase yourself!! I mean I would never say that but this is an expectation of perfection and the NHS is not and never will be perfect.

Finally, my own experience attending the nhs with my mum was a mixture of good and bad. My mum was terminally ill and got a rapid service from her GP anytime there was anything wrong. At the hospital she would have to wait up to 10 hours for a bed and sat in a waiting room all day because of NHS systems and the pressure on beds. They bring people into hospital with the assumption that other people with be discharged. When this doesn't happen, there is a long wait. So the systems can stink but the staff (all but 2) were great and I didn't see many people that were not thankful for the care they were receiving.

That was a bit of a rant, but I work for the NHS and I think its a great public service. Where its not we should complain. Where it is we should also say something about that too. I wonder how many thankyou cards to staff there are against complanits? It might be quite intersting to see because actually the vast majority of people are very happy with what they get. You wont find many GP receptionists getting cards though......lol