Wtf is going on with the nhs, is this the new normal?

[letdownchristmas]

I was in A+E with a relative yesterday with a suspected pulmonary embolism (has a history of this ) although luckily turned out to be all clear. We got there by ambulance at 3pm yesterday and was on a trolley in the corridor until 9pm. There were 15 people in the corridor on trollies with ambulance crews waiting to be handed over. All I could think was how the fuck are there any ambulance crews left on the road when they are all waiting in here to hand patients over. I was told that that this is a fairly normal day now. On the electronic board I could see that there was a 42 hour wait for an inpatient bed and only 56% of people met the four hour target. A 7 hour wait to be seen for walk ins. It honestly frightened me as to how the nhs is going to survive another winter.

I live in what is a third world country, the kind of country that people like to compare the NHS to. Anyway about an hour ago I realised I’d forgotten my flu jab this year and as I’m returning to the UK for my sisters funeral on Saturday I decided just now to go and have the jab done. I don’t need an appt. Nothing. I just go to the local government health centre which at this time of day won’t have many people waiting and I’ll be given my jab. And it’s absolutely free. Whilst I’m there I could have maternity care, see a dentist, one of half a dozen or so drs, have an xray, have certain labs done, be seen at the BP etc clinic, take my grandchildren to the paediatrician. And no appt needed. And if the Drs there felt I needed more specialised care I’d be sent up to the local Polyclinic that covers more specialities or if it can wait I’d be given an appt for a couple of weeks later. And then if they decided I needed a higher level of care I’d be sent to one of the hospitals.

We’re so lucky.

The NHS is using the private sector more and more to try and reduce waiting lists.
All well and good BUT it means that many private patients now have to wait far longer, as the NHS pay more for an op than an insurance company does and both pay far less than a self funded patient will.

The Private sector hasn't got unlimited capacity, so as more move to this way of getting treatment, lists will grow, companies will then seek to recruit more staff from the NHS, making the NHS situation even worse, remember too, the private sector rarely has the means to treat complications, so these patients end up in the run down NHS.

It really is a mess and solely down to the Tories failure to fund public services, prep for demographic changes and to some extent, on us for voting for Brexit (no more EU staff working in NHS)

PHI also doesn't cover any connection to a previous condition and once you get into your 50s, premiums are very expensive nor, as the pp stated, do you get AE cover, so you'll still wait in an ambulance/corridor for days on end.

The Kings Fund report last year was very interesting. It compares UK healthcare to 19 other countries and overall the NHS didn't fare well (unsurprisingly).

www.kingsfund.org.uk/insight-and-analysis/blogs/comparing-nhs-to-health-care-systems-other-countries#:~:text=1.-,NHS%20spending%20performs%20well%20on%20some%20efficiency%20measures,health%20spending)%20than%20comparable%20countries.

The UK has less nurses and Drs than lots of other countries. Whether private or NHS a lack of staff still means people have to wait.
I can get to see a GP the same day, but in my area of the country we have less GP vacancies than average.

So I went earlier today to have my flu vaccination but I forgot that during Ramadan things like vaccines are done after Iftar. The clinic was busy though. Then this evening I went back half an hour after Iftar and the clinic was already in full swing and I was one of about 12 patients. When I checked in I was asked by the receptionist what my problem was and the computer then generated what area of the clinic I should go to and what Dr I’d see. Fifteen minutes later I left having been triaged, seen by the Dr and given my vaccine by a nurse. The clinic will be open to midnight due to Ramadan hours and outside of opening hours people attend the nearest hospital where there is a 24 hour a day health centre on site.

The GPs are just not seeing patients, so people going to A & E
before Covid I could just turn up and wait to see a dr

Yes and GP is no longer for general health issues or checking something as much as it used to be it's more like emergency/serious only.
I asked to have my chest listened to and some advice on my asthma whilst struggling on 3 months of whooping cough.
I did an e-consult and just got the message back well if you can breathe ok you don't need to be seen.
Took that to mean unless you are at death's door forget it!
The receptionist said well we have one urgent or emergency appointment spare per day and I didn't want to use that, as it could be someone who really needs it urgently.
So then an issue that maybe could have been caught ends up with pneumonia in A&E etc.

Going back to the dark ages

I think problem is that most of the doctors /other GP staff working from home now. I was lucky to get appointments for our family but only telephone appointments.
I got telephone appointment for the lump inside my body. They asked me to send photos, well, I can't take x ray or MRI at home unfortunately.

Why not? you ve had a 4p cut in NI and should have gone without a costa and bought an MRI scanner instead..... entitled or what!!!

TBF the only NHS front line staff i know who occasionally work from home is to do admin, such as writing up notes or online training.

The demand for NHS services is just sky rocketing, we are all getting older and less healthy, increasingly, people in their 50s needing care at home!!!