To have really noticed a decline in nhs

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Before I rant, I know it’s not the fault of drs nurses and other staff that work for nhs. They do a wonderful job under pretty stressful conditions I would imagine.

In the last year I have noticed a real decline in the quality of service offered by nhs. Up until then I had just thought it was “daily mail” type moaning by others. In last 6 months I’ve noticed:

-my miscarriage handled badly, told I needed an Erpc due to gestation BUT that there were limited slots so wait it out and hope I don’t bleed lots. If I did bleed lots rush to A and e.

-an ambulance failing to turn up for a child having breathing problems (was croup but extremely scary!) they were very apologetic but said not enough staff

-I might as well not bother with my gp. You have to call at 8am, get grilled by a receptionist and she will decide if the appointment is urgent enough for same day (in my case a lump) was told not “acute” and can I wait 4 weeks for a “regular gp appointment” if you call st 8:01 or later it’s unlikely you will get an appointment.

-a family member receiving absolutely awful advice on 111 “take paracetamol and rest” unfortunately he later required 2 operations to fix a serious health condition

-a friend having a terrible birth experience due to lack of staff and support (in particular post natal) she ended up discharging herself

There are many more. All I’ve heard are horror stories from friends lately.

I am seriously getting worried for the nhs! I’ve never seen it this bad. It’s only going to get worse surely before it just won’t function anymore.

What do people think will happen? How on earth can it be fixed?

The NHS needs more staff,GPS are leaving in droves and nurses and drs retiring as soon as practical,lots of staff going part time and those of us left doing lots of overtime to help fill the cracks.The amount of agency staff has not significantly decreased.
Something really needs to be done to attract staff to training and retain them there.Whatever happens it will get worse before it gets better because even if you made working in the NHS attractive it takes a long time to train new staff.

I'm chronically ill and have several painful conditions that often land me in A&E (under Dr's instructions, part of treatment plan when I reach a certain stage) or on a ward. The differences I've noticed over the years are:

• Poor matrons having all their time being taken up with nonsense. Meetings, hand shaking, procedure. They no longer have the time to have a presence on the ward;
• Med students and young junior doctors having a huge attitude and sense of grandeur and therefore failing to listen properly. They also make judgements before they know the full picture. This inevitably leads to repeat visits as they haven't sorted you out properly the first time through their own ignorance. FYI, I don't say "young" in a patronising way, I'm only 29 myself.
• People using A&E as a GP surgery. Every time I'm forced to go, I'm obviously in a huge state of distress. It astounds and disgusts me how many people are there for, what they always admit, is a minor issue but they couldn't get a GP appointment. They're always the ones who have the cheek to complain about waiting times at reception.
• NHS 111 is sometimes more of a hindrance than it is a help. They're terribly OTT and have often offered me an ambulance and I've had to stop them in their tracks and say I can get a taxi myself.

I wonder what will happen when it collapses and gets privatised? Will A&E be charging as you check in? Will more employers start offering private health care? Will low earners and the unemployed be given subsidised care?

I’ve started going to a private GP and paying for blood tests and physiotherapy. 4 weeks to get a GP appointment around here and 8 weeks waiting for physio. I don’t blame the staff who are generally very good.

Large portions of it are already privatised, it goes under the radar because the services are still NHS branded.

The NHS is good in an emergency situation. But in my experience, in all other situations, it is a byzantine Stalinist horror show. I cannot wait for there to be at least some element of self funding. A continental system of paying for GP visits, for example, would be transformative.

Until then my advice would be to get private health insurance. I don't have it yet as I'm gambling that I'm fit enough. But as soon as the cancer years loom (50s and 60s) I will be privatised up to my eyeballs.

You would think that The NHS is a constant shambles if you was to listen to the press. It has ALWAYS been this way! For as long as I've been alive it's always been close to breaking point according to some.

Doctors, Nurses or management have always said they are understaffed, underfunded and overworked. All this gets ramped up even more by Lefties when The evil Tories are in power. I'm sick of hearing about it all to be honest. It's like a constant rolling news item that has been running since forever.

My personal experience of The NHS has for the most part been a good one.

It is definitely worse ime

The NHS is good in an emergency situation. But in my experience, in all other situations, it is a byzantine Stalinist horror show. I cannot wait for there to be at least some element of self funding. A continental system of paying for GP visits, for example, would be transformative.

I agree

I've never rated it very highly tbh. They should go back to basics and stop offering all these extras. They need to study what is going on in other countries where you can actually get a doctors appointment on the day you want one and not in three or four weeks time. The NHS is simply not fit for purpose. IMHO.

And what infuriates me is nurses sitting at desks at keyboards. Computers get more attention in the NHS than patients.

@Viviennemary unfortunately not the fault of the nurses themselves though.

I have a couple of longterm conditions so I’ve had lots of experience with the NHS over the last 18 years. Waiting lists are increasing, funding is not being increased sufficiently, care is more rushed and less effective, fewer people are receiving early preventative care.

Unfortunately, tea, it often is. Nursing is a vocation not a degree.
I know some lovely caring wonderful nurses. I've met and been treated by some time serving, gadget fixated shockers.

I think it varies. I'm pregnant after a horrendous birth experience 3 years ago, I also have ptsd due to a previous traumatic event and my father is dying. My ante-natal care so far as been great. Saw a consultant on friday who basically agreed to what I wanted without any question, is willing to alter their usual elective section/post natal process to ensure it doesn't effect my mental health and has made it clear they want me to feel safe and supported throughout.

My father's cancer care has been wonderful. Thanks to an on the ball GP he got an early referral and his small cell lung cancer was picked up quickly. That bought him 2 and a half years with my son that we were weren't expecting. Unfortunately it's come back and isn't responding to the chemo so now it's just palliative care assuming he gets strong enough to be discharged from hospital, however he's falling asleep all the time, can't get out of bed and doesn't want to eat so that's seeming increasingly unlikely.

They need to manage patient expectations better tbh that would reduce the complaints

You have a terminal illness, with the best will in the world this is the medications we offer and fund by all means privately fund them but even with them you have 6 months at best

No we won't fund your lifestyle choices. If you keep eating pies and not walking then your type 2 diabetes gets worse that's on you. Your leg ulcers are your responsibility

Your relative is brain dead really sorry but we need to switch them off.

Yes my phrasing is blunt and flippant but the NHS cannot indefinitely afford much of the treatments it offers and a lot of them can be managed by the patients. Physio is another one. I have a chronic condition I claim PIP so I use my PIP to pay for physio. I get seen quicker and whenever I need it not have to wait months for 2 treatments.

If the public helps itself it would take the pressure off.

A continental system of paying for GP visits, for example, would be transformative.

And what about those on a low income who then couldn't afford to see a GP? Doesn't that defeat the very purpose of the NHS to provide health care to all? Whilst I don't have answers to the NHS crisis I don't think charging people to access medical help is a solution.

Dinosaur, obviously we'll never meet but I've lost my mum to cancer recently and I hope all is going calmly and as comfortably as possible. Best wishes from a stranger.

The NHS is being kept artificially alive by politicians of all flavours as no.party wants to be "abolitionist of the NHS".

It's almost the reverse of starving the service so the private sector can "save" it. Structurally the private sector NEEDS the NHS as is to be profiteable.

The best thing that can happen is we model a system like they have in the Netherlands where all walks of life are actually CARED for. Insurances for low earners are paid for by the state and large subsidies are given responsibly.

With every "YAY WE STOPPED OUR LOCAL A+E CLOSURE" I just read "YAY UNSAFE CARE CONTINUES FOR LOCAL COMMUNITY"

The NHS is in crisis and what does the government go and do cut all funding for all the student nurses so who are working full time hours to their bones to help support the nhs for zero wage and getting into debt for the privilege and not even reasonable wage to begin with. Come several years we are going to have a reduced amount of nurses qualifying.

There's too many people coming over and using it, it's not difficult to understand why it's failing

Bollocks. Just bollocks.

Our local a & e was under pressure this Christmas zero seats people standing in the waiting room. My auntie had a heart attack lived in a block of flats and rung an ambulance. The operator asked if my parents one who has terminal cancer and can’t walk far and my dm who walks with a stick could help my auntie down and get her in the car. My dm said no they couldn’t they lived in a block of flats and my auntie was struggling as she was having a heart attack.

However my df was attended to hospital with pneumonia and they were fast attacking and brilliant he could have easily died had they not reacted quickly and efficiently.

it's underfunded to the tune of roughly 5bn of course it's declining

It was only a matter of time until someone blamed those "coming over and using it". Daily Mail reader are we?

Good grief, the “starve it and discredit it” strategy is working a treat on some of you.

How about instead of privatising it and throwing away this country’s greatest achievement for the sake of ideologues like Daniel Hannan (who entirely coincidentally have interests in private healthcare), how about we all pay a little bit more in tax and fund the damn thing properly?