AIBU to think everyone has an NHS horror story?

[corygal]

Because I have, and he died. Went from ok to dead in 3 days. Violently. In hospital. The details are so simple, and so distinctive, that I can't out them on yer interweb. But at the inquest the doctors lied. Then lied again in court, as it happens, so no one can talk about it even 5 yrs on as it's still doing the court rounds.

So what has happened to you and the people you know? I'm posting because the expression 'everyone makes mistakes, even dedicated NHS staff' on a current thread has made my teeth itch.

Heartened to hear positive stories though. And still proud we have the NHS.

I've seen infection control for clostridium dificile take the form of unchanged sheets (3 days) and a can of air freshener. This was a vulnerable already doubly incontinent patient and the family were not told of the infection (this was discovered by them much later at a case conference invlolving ward staff, social workers and family members). The care notes of the weekend concerned then mysteriously disappeared.

Maples I think we're talking at cross purposes.
Of course it needs to be fixed, it shouldn't happen here, nor anywhere.

But the types of things people are talking about can and do happen in hospital systems across the world and so I think the focus on the NHS here, is kind of a moot point.

Yes, it's the system we've got and it could do with improving in many areas (most things could) but I really doubt you'd get much better elsewhere!

I'm not defending it or what goes wrong, I'm simply saying it's no worse!

However, when I work tonight I will be delivering the same care to the most deprived and the most affluent and I think that is something as a society we should be rightly proud of

^

This! What a fantastic post.

My care for perinatal mental health issues and co ordination of that care with delivery team at hospital was outstanding. So different to what I would have received in my outcry of origin and free.

Country obv but more apt somehow when it comes to healthcare.

YABU I only have good experiences of the NHS and wouldn't go private for free.

I find this attitude so interesting. All this testifying to excellence. Like I want you to have had bad experiences or something. It's so strange, to me, as a response!

Imagine you're at a restaurant, and there are lots of diners around you, eating wonderful food. And then the waiter brings you a plate of shit. A human poo right there on the plate. You say, politely, quietly, "Excuse me, this is not what I ordered," and the waiter glares at you and says, Don't you know I've been on this shift for five hours? I give 110% to this job!". You look around to other diners and say, "Hello? They've given me a plate of poo. There's actual poo on this table." And the other diners look straight at you and say, "My meal is wonderful. I've never had a bad meal here." Someone taps you on the shoulder and says, "There are people in other countries who don't even have restaurants!" Another person nods and says, "In this restaurant, anyone can get served, isn't it marvellous?" You don't know what to do. You say, "Can I speak to the manager?" And the waiter roars, "You want to get us shut down!"

And the whole time, the shit is still there on the table, and in the far corner, you see that someone else is just being served one too.

What a peculiar analogy acumen

I think you'll find the op thread title suggests that everyone must have an NHS horror story, which is what's being debated here. Some people may have had "shit served on a plate" but not everybody will have, so actually your odd analogy I suppose serves it purpose; some may get the shit but most others don't.

I guess it makes me think of it because every thread about the NHS people do this thing about how great they've had it. This thread is its own thread, but it also exists in the context of AIBU, and MN, and is part of that wider conversation.

I think what people are saying is that this is a good restuarant with a bad waiter.

How many of the experiences people have brought up are about the NHS itself as an organisation and how many are bad HCPs?

See I seem to think it's the opposite. Most threads about the NHS I read, seem to be slating it, calling the HCPs all manner of names under there sun and the reality of it is, you're more likely to post about it if you've had a shit time of it, than somebody who has nothing to complain about.

I don't view threads in the context of others or or MN as a whole, I read a thread on comment on it for what it is.

Oh, how interesting! In conversation, I definitely understand what you're saying in the context of my own experiences, and try to learn from previous conversations and bring those lessons into this one. I don't start every conversation "from zero". I remember things from previous ones, so I pick up jargon and slang, use previously learnt ideas to analyse the new idea, and often slowly come to change my opinions through repeated exposure to ideas.

Am really really off to bed now, but Bamboo, you might find this thread interesting. Or, possibly you may not!

I like the good restaurant with a bad waiter analogy. But it's a bit more complicated than that. You can have a branch of that restaurant where the manager has decided to save money by not employing enough waitresses or chefs or washers up - and therefore customers have to wait hours to be served, or get food poisoning. That's pretty much what happened in Mid-Staffs where the bosses cut nursing staff in order to balance the books and get foundation trust status.

... I think one important reform would be to make the chief executive of every hospital or GP commissioning group personally responsible for patient safety. At the moment it's a generic board-level responsibility. Which means no one individual feels their neck is on the block if someone dies because of shit care. What keeps the bosses awake at night is the fear of not balancing the books or not pleasing their political and bureaucratic masters. They need to be made to fear hurting people first and foremost, budgets should come second.

Thanks Acumens will take a look

Maybe rather than good restaurant, bad waiter it's bad staff member. If it's the waiter you get rude service but if it's the manager then every part of service is affected.

I like your thinking, personal responsibility would help.

In answer to the OP, I don't really have a horror story.

The only thing I can think of is that when my M suffered a brain anuerysm the paras weren't going to take her to the hosp as they couldn't find anything wrong (she just seemed "drunk" iyswim, no temp etc etc) but I insisted they did. I don't know if those few minutes could have saved her or not really, I don't think so. And I don't know if it's a simple error to make - they didn't know her so they didn't realise how very, very wrong her behaviour was.

My mum died suddenly from an error with the medication she was taken. Her Gp told the inquest that she had instructed her in a certain way but I don' t believe she did. The only two people in the consulting room were my mum and the GP and my mum is dead and can't speak for herself.

I don't have a horror story of the NHS. The few times in my life I have dealt with them, they have been fantastic.

It's not perfect, but in regards to the OP, YABU

Two sort of horror stories turned to good.

When my DM went into labour I was transverse lie. Previously I had been breech and they tried to turn me without success. They tried to turn me again where I stayed briefly and they then left my DM in labour for hours. Then they tried the ventouse which didn't work - apart from leaving a great circular lovebite on each of my arsecheeks - and after a few more hours when I was still transverse lie they whipped her down for an EMCS which has left me, 44 years later, with a scar across my side which matches my DM's scar down her belly. I was stuck and in distress for so long that neither my DM or me can believe that I didn't end up with cerebral palsy or worse. I was so very lucky to escape such a long and traumatic birth without injury.

And DS. He had a brain tumour. Our GP recognised the symptoms straight away and referred him to the paediatric unit at the hospital. However the registrar we saw was utterly useless. Migraine or being unhappy at school he said. Give him nurofen, come back in 4 months. Twice I rang that doctor as DS got worse and both times he told me I was over reacting. We go back 3 months later after trying to get a quicker appointment as DS was so ill and we see a different doctor. She was brilliant and is now a paediatric oncologist. DS is given a brain scan and diagnosed with a brain tumour. DS is whipped into hospital and the most amazing treatment regime begins with the most dedicated doctors leading his care. I cannot criticise his treatment for a moment, it was just the diagnosis that took a while. The Paeds Professor did visit us on the ward and told us that the registrar had been given 'words of advice' and that the whole academic cohort had received further training.

I can't complain, they saved DS's life and still give him excellent follow up care even now but he could have done without those months where we were dismissed for being paranoid. He suffered when he shouldn't have done.

Nice one Dr O! Hope you learned from that and listen to your patients and their parents these days!

My granny twisted her knee and couldn't walk very well. They admitted her to hospital for tests to make sure it was nothing more sinister. While in hospital the nurses had to help her to walk when she needed the toilet etc. One day a nurse told her she wasn't so bad and left her to walk to the toilet alone. She fell and broke her hip. Thay operated straight away but her body couldn't cope with the anasthetic and she died 3 days later. Up until then she was fit and healthy

Hello 1944girl that sounds horrible, must have been very frightening. My DM went on to have my DB naturally but I'm not sure I'd have been as brave as you and her to go throught it again!

That's terrible Vicky I hope she was dealt with but I suspect not. When DS was in hospital for 5 weeks I saw some wonderful, dedicated and truly caring nurses but also one or two who really didn't give a shit and treated patients as an inconvenience. The other nurses were well aware and picked up the slack so to speak but they shouldn't have had to.

Imagine life without the NHS??.then you will appreciate it.