Drama this is going to hurt

[Thomasina79]

I found the book brilliantly funny. I have worked in admin hospitals and primary care, so can relate re cut backs etc.

Anyone else enjoying this drama, if that’s the right word! True to life. Any doctors, nurses etc anyone?

@YouSetTheTone I agree. I work within maternity in the nhs and was horrified by the forceps scene, amongst other parts. I, and many of my colleagues, would be heartbroken if people thought we agreed with any of this or found it funny.
I hope people reading some of the comments online from nurses and midwives are reassured by that at least.

I was training as a student nurse at this time, and did see alot of this behaviour from consultants to junior doctors, it was horrible. I had a placement in maternity (although training as an adult RN) and the way women were treated and spoken about was so different to what I had witnessed on the general wards. If you dared to challenge or discuss it you were shut down and had a difficult placement.

When I qualified I worked on an early pregnancy and gynae ward and I loved it, some of the consultants were horrible, dismissive of the patients, speaking over them and just being 'god'. That unit got closed because why did women or those going through pregnancy loss need their own ward?? They were placed on general surgical wards, so definitely a step back in female care.

As a band 6 now I am in a position where I can raise issues more confidently but, there is now alot of low level bullying going on which is ignored when you report it. I have never witnessed anything so bad as Kay described and I know my colleagues would immediately intervene.

The NHS is now so stressful and still has a blame culture. Reporting incidents is a waste of time I now see it as a means to back up my decisions when things inevitably go wrong. If a patient harm is reported that's acted on. I don't want to worry people on that. It is the allowing of incidents of staff being physically and verbally abused to go without action.

Myself and my colleagues worry everyday about loosing our pin numbers. It is unsustainable, patients and relatives are rightly angry about waiting for treatment and ambulances but, it takes its toll on us staff being verbally abused on a daily basis. I am so tired and stressed after every shift. It's bad and is only going to get worse.

How a posh bloke can make women giving birth all about poor little him.

Good summary!

Having had elderly parents who all ending up dying in hospital I admit the care was hit and miss and some Doctors were just horrible and nasty ( some were not , but mostly we felt like an inconvenience even being there to be honest )
I am always polite and respectful and try to understand their work load / pressure , but their defensive attitude to every single person is a bit tiresome at times when we were trying to be reasonable and just wanted some answers and the best for our parents. They do have this superior attitude which isn't always pleasant.
I try to stay away from hospitals as much as humanly possible and dreading getting much older myself to be honest.
The system is clearly broken in many places.

I’m enjoying it (only on episode 1) but the main character seems to be the only person doing anything. I don’t see any of the background staff frantically rushing around like him.

That's because it's based on the books written by the main character. It's supposed to be all about him.

@iklboo

I’m enjoying it (only on episode 1) but the main character seems to be the only person doing anything. I don’t see any of the background staff frantically rushing around like him.

That's because it's based on the books written by the main character. It's supposed to be all about him.

And you don't see a problem with the bbc commissioning a comedy about a male maternity doctor, without consideration of the treatment of women in his care in the context of numerous scandals about the negligent care of women and babies in maternity resulting in deaths and serious life changing injury. Not to mention how maternity accounts for 40% of all negligence claims?

Women on this commissioned bbc comedy are instead reduced to bit parts which upset the male protagonist in various different ways whether deliberately or unintentionally. The same male protagonist doesn't really give a second thought to woman whilst he was on his mobile phone, and is something of the butt of a 'dark humoured joke' instead.

Really?

@iklboo

I’m enjoying it (only on episode 1) but the main character seems to be the only person doing anything. I don’t see any of the background staff frantically rushing around like him.

That's because it's based on the books written by the main character. It's supposed to be all about him.

I get that but whatI don’t understand is why he seems to be solely responsible for every single patient, delivery, caesarean in the unit.

Isn’t he supposed to be a junior doctor?
There are plenty of other staff in the scenes.
Why aren’t they shown running around like headless chickens?

Not only that but he is manic, disorganised, unpleasant and incompetent. Is that the point? That he’s a liability?
It’s all a bit weird.

Need to watch more episodes obviously!
Not getting it!

Read the book, and he came across as misogynistic, lacking in any form of empathy and self obessed....as a nurse and having worked in surgical wards, ICUs I've come across a lot of very similar people.

His total lack of repsect for his patient is disgraceful.

Thankfully, in the TV adaption, he seems to pay the price.

I saw on kicks.count IG page that they're encouraging people to contact the BBC regarding dangerous information about baby movement.

I won't be watching it, the whole thing sounds horrendous.

Met him and had a chat during one of his live gigs a few years ago, he seems to have the 'Doctors are holier than thou' attitude and has very little respect for nurses. His attitude is one that was rife years ago in the healthcare profession, whereas now D&N work together much more as a team towards patient/family centred care.

I thought he came across as a arrogant twat, in the few mins I was talking to him.

And if you think his book was bad, never look at the lyrics for 'Northern Birds' (one of his songs). AK makes Jimmy Carr look like Mother Theresa!!!

Sadly I did not find the book at all funny and actually quite repetitive.
I watched the first episode, it was even less funny than the book.

What's the difference between God & a doctor? God doesn't believe he's a doctor.

I get that but whatI don’t understand is why he seems to be solely responsible for every single patient, delivery, caesarean in the unit.

Because it's written from his viewpoint, about his experiences. So all about him. As PP have said, he seems to have a dim view of everybody else, so makes out he did everything.

@iklboo this!!!!!

@the80sweregreat I’m sorry for your loss. Sadly, not making excuses, but the attitude of many Drs is the product of the system. You become so hardened by the constant grind you become desensitised and lose humanity. I’m not saying it’s right, or excusable, but sadly quite common. Especially in juniors years, hopefully once you’ve done your registrar years and become a consultant, quite often you’ve grown up a bit, more than likely had a complaint, and realised the human cost attached to ‘bed 4’ etc. Honestly when I was a junior doctor on call, I remember really resenting being bleeped to speak to the family of someone who had just died. I just didn’t see the point because I had so many alive patients still waiting to be seen and fighting fires everywhere. I had no time to give them, and I was working back to back shifts (24 hours straight) because the locum didn’t turn up. I hadn’t slept or eaten in that long. Not an excuse, what I did was wrong, but I wasn’t capable of anymore.

I also have said very similar to “it’s just a bunch of cells” whilst working in a miscarriage clinic. Again all things I’m ashamed of now, I realise it was poor care, but at the time you’re so used to prioritising and triaging and not having enough time, unless someone is literally haemorrhaging to death or arresting you try to deal with them as quick as possible and move on.

I think it is better now. I left hospital medicine nearly 10 years ago.

@NinaDefoe because actually labour ward on call is like that - one registrar running the whole show, and one SHO (Shruti). The other Drs would be on the normal day to day duties. The on call would be responsible for all births requiring intervention, as well as gynae on call and usually a&e admissions, like is shown in the program. Some larger hospitals may have an extra SHO if you’re lucky, but usually not. So on calls are absolutely horrific, dealing with labour ward, gynae and a&e and as is shown, if there are 2 emergencies at the same time you’re pretty fucked unless the consultant is around.

Yes. I understand why some professionals are not always that great. I do get that , but occasionally I just wished they could show a glimmer of empathy.
I'm not one to start arguing or kick up a fuss , but I also understand why people do sometimes when they put up the defensive attitude from the get ho.
It's sad that everyone is under such stress though

@the80sweregreat absolutely, I’m not defending it, it’s terrible care and must be horrible to go through. There’s no “excuse” and I feel so ashamed I used to be like that too. I just think this program raises interesting discussion points as it’s the first medical drama to really show this side of things.

But @Scrunchies you are excusing it. You are saying that you did terrible things you are ashamed of but then you go on to say why and this is excusing them.

I am no saint and I have certainly done and said and thought things I am now not proud of but the responsibility for that is mine, even though there may have been reasons for them they are reasons and not excuses.

I too wonder why the BBC would commission a “comedy” about the appalling care of women when they’re at their most vulnerable. As I said on another thread if this was a “comedy” about animals being treated with contempt, and with no regard for their welfare, it would generate thousands of complaints.

And actually the BBC would never think about commissioning it. But women are ok as a target. It’s pure misogyny.

I disagree that the women are reduced to bit parts. There is a female consultant who is an important counter point to Adam, the Ward Sister has a pivotal role to play and some very good lines, and Shruti's story is essential to the whole thing. But this is a show about the staff, behind the scenes, not about the patients. And it is very clear throughout the whole thing that Adam is a pretty unpleasant person to be around - his behaviour is not presented as being acceptable, and several of his colleagues pull him up on it.

Fernsandlillies The women patients are there soley as props for his horrible behaviour.

@Averydifferentwoman no I’m not excusing it.

By your explanation - I’m giving reasons for why it can happen. What in my text makes it seem like excuses and not reasons?

Im just using your terminology. I actually don’t agree with your phrases as I think ‘reason’ is equally as justifying as excuses.

I own how I was, I tried to explain why I became the way I was, and I’m sorry for it. I don’t feel like that’s making excuses 🤷‍♀️

@Scrunchies I suppose because (forgive me but you did ask) your posts are all about you, and the terrible things you did but about how hard it all was.

You don’t mention the impact on patients and you don’t seem to be showing any particular remorse.