Printout of cost to NHS

[1dontunderstand]

I don’t think IBU but here goes:

I think every patient should be given a printout of how much their care has cost the NHS.

Every GP visit
Every vaccine for them or their child
Every midwife/health visitor
Every blood test
Every ambulance or A & E visit

I don’t think people have any idea how much their health care costs

Mines cost them zero in the last 2 decades. Actually I lie a couple of COVID jabs. I use private GP services online or go abroad, and am fortunate to not have needed emergency care in that time. I'm not interested to know how much I do and don't cost them. I just want to know that I can use a service I am forced to pay for. That an ambulance will come if I call one, and not to have to buy medical care in Turkey because our system isn't fit for purpose.

A few of the local gps used to (precovid) total the monthly missed appointments and place them on the waiting room wall to let people see how much wasted appointments there were from people just not showing up. Don't know if it made any difference though. I'm a nurse and the blasé attitude from patients who didn't go to hospital or gp appointments and not make any attempt to cancel them, used to make me so mad.

When my gran was alive she'd tell me of her parents doing so much to avoid hospital because of the cost. Like pp were saying, if older people got this printout they might revert to the thinking they don't want to make a fuss. This is not a good idea.

I myself have cost the NHS a pretty penny over the years. I had a fracture last year, I have to have tests regularly and I'm on tablets for life. 16 years ago I almost died from pre-eclampsia, God knows how much that cost. But I pay it back through taxation, so I don't really need to know the breakdown.

I do think it's a mad idea,as it will discourage the wrong people. For not wanting to 'bother' medics.

These sort of figures DO exist... Or at least they did 15 years ago. I've seen breakdowns of figures... Literally...: The nurses te of 20 mins, consultants time lf 10 mins, cost of disposible instruments, cost of dressings... Etc etc... It's how they can say... A complex frackrr with surgery costs thr NHS x.

Well it doesn’t have to be personal - just the average cost of 10 mins with GP, ultrasound of leg, ambulance trip, vaccination, erc

good idea

Impossible to individualise but general costings could be done eg cost of one blood test , one gp visit, one district nurse visit etc, but as noted before this might be discouraging some ( who actually need the care), but there's plenty who just don't care and will abuse the system no matter what.

Might be worth doing an American comparison vs UK to remind us how valuable it is to have the nhs, the Torys are actively destroying it to siphon off services to private companies owned by themselves or their mates. Put that up in Gp surgeries, a+e departments, communal public areas might get a bit more appreciation for how fortunate we are and the public might fight/vote for it more.

I agree people should realise how much the nhs costs . It's not free , it costs alot of money and people should take responsibility for their own health .

I know a lot of illness's are unavoidable of course but a lot are from lifestyle choices too!

No thanks and I don’t want professionals knowing either. I have 2 poorly children. We didn’t choose this. 1 has had several admissions and extensive care, I’m battling for the other. I feel bad enough as it is and don’t want professionals thinking my dc have cost the NHS enough and pull back.

It’s a really dum idea and can only be thought up by somebody who hasn’t had the misfortune to be dependant on the NHS.

I am in the EU and just after I arrived I had to have an ambulance (second highest risk category) and then an MRI. Then I got the bill (the insurance covered it, but I got a copy anyway).

The ambulance ride was at night, no traffic, blue-lighted and about 8 minutes, paramedics spent time at my house first (no idea how much, I wasn't well).

Ambulance cost about €800.
The MRI was more than the ambulance.

I was gobsmacked. I seriously had no idea how much these things cost.

I agree with general costings, ou surgery regularly posts 'how many missed appointments' for the previous week. It won't be long before it's like visiting an NHS dentist - appointment charge, hard sell for private treatment and the bare minimum on the NHS.
I think people should be charged for missing 2/3 appointments in a row The' Free' aspect stop people taking responsibility.

I get what you’re saying, and that the older generation may avoid, not wanting to make a fuss. It would be good to do it selectively ie for those who have wasted resources.

We get them where I live.
The cost is covered by our nhs equivalent as long as your insured on it (99.9% are)

At doctors or hospitals for outpatient appointments it’s €45 for consult. This is free by nhs thing if you turn up, or let them know you can’t attend. If you just miss appointment though you will be sent the bill. This is to try and stop time wasters.

I'm so sorry. My little boy died 3 years ago, not despite but largely due to, the terrible care he received from the nhs. I feel the same about being presented with a breakdown of the costs. I have worked for the nhs for over 20 years too, but things are really dire right now.

I live in a country where the costs of healthcare are upfront and visible, and I think YABU. What’s your aim ? To make people feel guilty about the costs ? Sounds pointless to do this unless the system is designed differently.

I’m due for a small gynae operation next week. The operation (hysteroscopy and polyp removal) itself will cost €800, plus the general anaesthetic will be €170. Each gynae rdv that I’ve had in the run-up to the op costs €70, as did the anaesthetist. I was given a prescription for support stockings (€59,76) and painkillers (€11,29) - the costs get printed on the prescription by the pharmacie. The vast majority of these costs are reimbursed by the government, my top-up health cover covers most of the rest, and I’ll have to pay for some of it (I’ve gone with a private clinic rather than public hospital, for convenience: if I’d gone public the waiting time would be increased but the costs would be less).

Each standard GP appt costs €25 here. All reimbursed in my case.

Way to make the chronically ill or disabled feel guilty. And give people yet another stick to beat us with.

Also. I've had shit care to the point of the hospital admitting medical negligence.

And I don't mean a mistake in an operation. I mean. Shit care and bullying and not acting to guidelines in how I was treated (as a human being and how my condition was treated).

Do I get a refund?

Wonderful service? My Dad was sat on a plastic chair in A&E for 16 hours before he was admitted. He was so poorly I cried looking at him.

Pointless. People who DNA appointments really annoy me, why not just ring and cancel? Even if we could tell them how much their DNA has cost in total, it wouldn’t make any difference. If they can’t be arsed to let us know they’re not coming, they won’t care about associated costs.
if you need a blood test, you need it, the patient knowing that cost is irrelevant. The same with any other aspect of healthcare, people DO appreciate it, IME, or most do. However, there are parts of the NHS that are simply not working well, or indeed at all at the moment. Knowing the cost wouldn’t help.

Pointless and expensive. Actually makes the issue it seeks to address worse. Will encourage people who are genuinely unwell not to seek help and/or guilt trip people who have done nothing wrong. A truly awful idea.

I think it's a horrible idea. People with serious / chronic illnesses are often not believed anyway especially if it's not absolutely obvious straight away what is wrong with them and now you suggest adding this which would just make them feel even more uncomfortable.

The NHS is currently denying me access to a consultant and preventative medication (waiting times). This risks disabling me. Shall I send them a bill? Or perhaps send them an itemised breakdown of the avoidable cost to society if I'm left unable to work because of COMPLETELY AVOIDABLE disability?

There's already a calculator which can tell you this information

When I get a text to remind me of my ds hospital appointments I get reminded how much a missed appointment costs.

That a simple reminder.

But I don't want or need a breakdown of how much his genetic condition costs the nhs. He didn't ask to be born with it. Nor did we know he would be.

I pay my NI.

He has to cope with it daily and also works so pays his own NI.

I have ‘missed’ my last three appointments as our trust felt it was a good idea to only send appointment details via letter. Why should I be charged for missed appointments when my trust can’t be bothered to post letters that arrive before the actual appointment? Missing three also meant I was discharged, so despite the secretary admitting that lots of patients don’t receive their letters in time they would still discharge me, so I had to go back to the GP, have relevant tests etc carried out again to tick that yes I did meet the criteria for a specialist referral to refer me again.

So we’ve had a pointless GP appointment, blood tests, ultrasound and physio appointment because our trust aren’t capable of using the postal system.

I can't see it changing behaviour in the way you desire tbh. It will make altruistic people think twice about getting treatment, those with low self esteem too. The people who don't think in those terms won't suddenly start.

And the people who are treated poorly will just become furious.