Bariatric ambulances

[mutznutz]

Whilst it's a shocking sign of the times that ambulance bosses are having to spend a fortune on wider ambulances and bigger, stronger stretchers to ferry obese people to hospital...what about the paramedics?

If the obesity rate continues to rise as fast as it is, then surely ambulance crews are going to have to eventually become stronger or risk putting patient's lives at risk by being unable to carry the stretcher or doing themselves an injury?

Where does this leave all the more slightly built trained professionals?

www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12287880

If the NHS cant find the money to supply ill children with the amount of pads they need because they are disabled though no fault of their own where the fuck are they finding millions(?) required to change an ambulance fleet to cope with people who are so fat though being lazy and greedy that they cant move themselves.

It should be simpler new2cm but there's always a feeder willing to keep feeding them if they're that weight surely?

Also (according to the link) people are putting on much more than just a couple of stones compared to 10 years or so ago.

mutznutz, my mum is fine thanks - she basically made a full recovery, but has less movement in her shoulder than she used to.

Like I said, she's not even that large, but large enough that it was an issue in an emergency situation.

i saw a documentary last yr about a 40 stone bedbound woman - her "home help"/personal carers brought her food every day, and she was known by all the local takeaways - the phone by her bed all she had to do was dial - the delivery chaps would bring it to her bedroom where she had the money waiting

she was living on junk/snacks and takeaways

yes this was in the UK

its shocking but its on the rise

No!!!!!!!

I hadn't thought of that - that's one real dedicated customer service from the local takeways. Although, if that individual spends lots of money, it would make sense for the local takeaways to take advantage.

Brings a new meaning to killing your customer.

I really had not thought of that, but then again, I don't have take-aways.

WorzselMummage, as the parent of a disabled child who is forever being told to wait for this and that due to NHS cutbacks I understand where you are coming from sort of ...... but I don't believe you can take this attitude with the obese, because why should we draw the line there?

Why should the NHS help people who choose to take up smoking? Or who choose to take up dangerous sports? Or what about those who attempt suicide?

You can't just pick on one group of society and say they are less worthy of help and treatment than any others, just because you don't understand how they ended up in that situation.

She's leaving herself wide open to be robbed though surely?

How do they afford to eat so much? I always wonder that, especially if there's a lot of takeaways.

Some takeaways are extremely cheap depending on where you live. One of the chicken shops around here sells a bargain bucket with...

8 pieces of chicken
4 portions of fries
Large BBQ beans/coleslaw
8 spicy wings
2ltr bottle of coke

All for less than £10

i suspect that the average weight of an ambulance patient is higher than the overall average weight, as they will often be people who have had heart attacks or other things linked to obesity. not always, but enough to skew the average.

I just don't understand how they can afford to eat enought to get that fat even with cheap takeaways. I can't even afford a takeaway a week let alone the 4-5 some of them have in a day. It is a wonderful benefit system we have that allows it though I suppose and to have carers to help them get fatter and fatter.
I don't totally agree with the whole food addiction thing though....where was that 30 odd years ago....always had drug addicts and always had alcoholics not always had foodaholics but then people moved more years ago so who knows.

The role of "friends and family" is unbelievable - how can they continue to provide all the masses of food these people eat to keep at these really high weights?

I have a friend who suffered a heart attack last year and is pretending not to smoke - one of our colleagues regularly provides him with cigarettes to avoid the monitoring his family have put in place, I just feel so cross about this.

I remember reading about a Woman in my area who weighed 56 stone and eventually convinced the NHS to give her a gastric band. Whilst she was in hospital her DH was bringing her in takeaways and junk food Unsurprisingly she died not long after.

I have to agree with BlueCollie just how do they afford all the takeaways? My DH and I both work in quite good jobs and can't even afford a takeaway a WEEK let alone daily

whilst I have every sympathy for people with real issues, there is no need for someone to get to that size and stay there. I know a bloke at work (admittedly he's young - 32) who has just gone from 28 stone to 13 stone in a year. No surgery, no hypnosis etc etc, he went to the gym every morning and worked out like a loon, and gave up beer and cakes (his mum's a baker so he had a fair few)

Sorry, got my facts wrong before, she only weighed 45 stone Thanks Daily Mail for correcting me

In the 80's a lot of fast food chains cam over here from America and brought their processed meat, bread, trans fats and high sugar content food.
Sugar is addictive, as is caffine, over the last 30 yrs products that contain these ingredients have become less expensive and more accessable, they are also portrayed as being convienent and save time for busy or lazy people.
People work longer hours now, or demand more 'me time' which in turn leads to people not wanting to make fresh wholesome homemade meals.
Why would you spend 45 mins making a cottage pie when you could just phone someone up, get it delivered in the knowledge that your fussy children will eat the food because you didn't make it, those 45mins you get back to watch a soap, have a relaxing bath, or get on with other more 'important' things.

re: the money issues - how do they afford all the take aways.........

speaking about the grossly obese people i have seen in documentaries - i would imagine they are on several different benefits, and apart from living costs like heating etc, they probably have little as "outgoings" except food - they dont drive cars or use public transport, they dont pride themselves in lots of new clothes (in bed all day), don't bother with regular hairdos,or make up etc, they dont/cant go on holidays, nights out, they have no real hobbies outside the home that cost money, like a sport, weekly club, or equipment for a hobby........

when you look at it, you can see that once they are in that state, food is their whole life , so its a viscious circle

I spend all day thinking about food, what i want to eat, what i should eat, what i probably will eat, will it make me feel happy? Maybe i should have nothing for dinner if i have that for lunch.

I have more cookery books in my house than waterstones, i cook a lot, fresh food 95% of the time, i like good food.
I have never willingly ate a processed shop bought pie, don't like fatty meat etc.

I have always had a bad relationship with food.
I was actually looked at by SS as a child because i was underweight.
I used to steal and hide food.
I never used to eat, go days and days.

Now im morbidly obese have a number of physical problems that cause me immense pain.
I have been seeing physio and doing regular exercising 3-4 times a week, since december i have lost 1st6lbs.
I am eating less, but i still think about food the same way.
It is constantly on my mind.

Thats a good point ashamedandconfused food becomes the only comfort/joy so they eat more.

It's easy to judge the very overweight and imagine we would never be like that.

But, about 50% of our population are now overweight according to the BMI. And that includes a fair few nurses whose lifting ability might be compromised by their size and healthiness.

It's easy to judge, but clearly lots of us are bigger than we used to be.

A lot of it really is down to bad childhood feeding and lack of exercise though.

This link says A quarter of children are already overweight or obese when they start school at the age of four, a report has revealed

And by the time they leave primary school at the age of 11, more than one in three will be too fat and at serious risk of long-term health problems

www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/family/kids/growing-obesity-crisis-among-uk-kids-1.1021115

Yet, how often do we see people asking if anyone knows where they can buy "Chunky fit" uniforms for their children...and how often (at the first mention that the child may be a tad overweight) do we see people screaming It's puppy fat, you'll give your child an eating disorder if you mention they need to rethink their diet

A viscious circle sometimes.

I'm not sure where it's most acute Betelguese but it seems to be a very wide spread problem.