What’s the point in the NHS?

The moral thing to do is look after people already using an overstretched service, not inviting more people to use and abuse it.

An MRI alone would be 1500. The physio and rehab treatment for torn ligaments would be the same regardless of whether you have a scan or
not.
The NHS as an entity is a truly wonderful thing. It has saved my life on more than one occasion. The problem is decades of very deliberate underfunding by consecutive governments. It is a political issue, not an NHS issue.

The examination suggested she may have torn her ligaments. That may require surgery and intensive physio.

The NHS is very useful. It keeps the population down.

Well said, @KindlySurfiingPlatypus .

It never ceases to amaze me the way some people will shoehorn a bit of asylum seeker bashing into threads, regardless of relevance.

Sorry to hear this. Be careful re private physio. I had it for a ligament injury and it was useless. So investigate carefully and try to find a decent one. By contrast NHS physio that I had for a fracture was good. I was lucky and didn't have to wait for it. Seven months is useless.

But it’s not though, is it? If you happen to not be well off you might be left to die. It works the same way it does if you can get BUPA healthcare via your work. You’re obviously not going to get that if you work for Tescos (for example).

Free at the point of service healthcare is something to be grateful for imo. Rather than a doctor not touching your case until they know they’ll be paid. Imagine?

I hate NHS bashing. The NHS service is by no means perfect but I think it’s amazing and we are very lucky to have it in this country.

I think for a sprained ankle they’ve examined you and offered advice. Just because you don’t like the answer and you think you should be scanned and booted up doesn’t mean that is the correct procedure. I’m sure if it doesn’t heal within a couple of weeks or it gets worse then you can go back and have it re-examined.

I’m in my 40’s and have benefitted from the NHS on multiple occasions - yes there are waiting lists etc but I am so unbelievably grateful for the service. After being diagnosed with hip osteoarthritis at an early age I’ve been referred to have a full hip replacement for FREE (bar paying income tax and NI). I love our NHS.

Yeah it’s so much better to be told to get the health aid you need on Amazon, and to get a treatment plan from ChatGPT!
Most people don't need crushes after a few days of a strained ankle, especially when young, so yes if OP prefer to have them, it's fair enough to get them herself.

As for treatment plan, it is basic for this ailments and certainly something that AI can do reliably.

So yes, totally appropriate.

What planet are you on?

The USA system relies on a fragmented, market-driven multi-payer model. It is the most expensive in the world, spending roughly 18% of its GDP ($4.9 trillion), with administrative costs soaring up to 25% due to complex insurance billing. It leaves millions uninsured or underinsured, making medical debt a leading cause of personal bankruptcy. The NHS has higher overall life expectancy and lower infant mortality than the U.S. The US system underperforms in population-level health outcomes (such as lower average life expectancy and higher maternal mortality) relative to its massive financial investment. According to international performance evaluations the US ranks last overall among high-income countries for health outcomes and access, while the UK scores considerably higher due to universal coverage and lower financial barriers.

You don't need physio for a torn ankle ligament. It might help...a bit, but you'll recover absolutely fine without it.

It might be a big deal for you, but from a healthcare perspective, it's a very minor injury that will heal by itself with time.

You've twisted your ankle, OP. When you do that, it hurts, and it swells up. You need to rest it.

Complaining that you've not been given further expensive NHS scans, and then looking at private healthcare options, is melodramatic and absurd.

But your condition isn’t life threatening. I’ve torn ligaments in my knee, during a dance lesson when I was a child. They drained the fluid off and then told me to go home and rest up. There was no follow up. I just had to wait for it to heal. I did receive (I think) 2 sessions of physio but they didn’t really help. This was in 1995.

Chat GPT sounds bad but it’s actually a very useful resource. You can find out what helped other people very quickly.

Also, hopefully you didn’t vote for the Tories whilst they were in power for 14 years because they are the reason NHS is now on its knees. Oh, they borrowed plenty and spent it on vanity projects instead of people…

Your sprain was low tier and didn’t need what you wanted. Those with a higher need get the things you wanted.

Sprains ARE ligament injuries @CandyCrushLevel14809 , and mine was severe.

This thread increasingly reads like some sort of advert for The American Way of doing things. No. You’ll have real trouble on your hands if you import the full American system of ‘healthcare’ here. We are close enough to it already.

You’ve got a sprained ankle. Google can tell you what to do with a sprained ankle. You don’t even need ChatGPT!

The US system is catastrophic for many ordinary people. You get people selling their houses to fund cancer treatment when their insurance refuses to pay. You get people in their 20s who can't afford insurance dying of asthma or diabetes.

Yes and there are issues with their system but it’s a hell of a lot better than our system
Yes, if you pay premium and a premium that will cost you massively more than some crushes and physio, which are optional anyway.

It's not unheard of paying 30% of your income to get basic healthcare insurance in the USA.

Has it occurred to you that it will take this long for you because it’s a small sprain and isn’t urgent? For those that NEED urgency the NHS will deliver, for those who require some assistance it takes longer if it’s not severe. You are one of those people, get over it. The NHS has excellent online resources for physio and rehab, they even have Pilates, back pain exercises and much more available online that would probably help you. You sprained your ankle, they gave you an x Ray and sent you away with perfectly good advice. Stop moaning.