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

I know that my daughters heart surgery costs the NHS thousands and thousands. Am I supposed to feel bad about it?

I understand that people don't appreciate the cost of treatment, but this wouldn't help and would be wildly expensive to implement

I have not received wonderful service. More than a year of being dismissed and patronised by hospital consultant, to eventually being diagnosed with advanced cancer; a huge data breach of my medical details; uncaring and negligent nursing staff on the wards; giving me the wrong scans; giving me the completely incorrect cancer treatment; turning up for hospital appointments, wait hours, only for them to cancel them; cancelling operations when I’ve been in the ward all day prepped, no food or drink; complete made up-fiction on my medical notes, saying I was told this and that when I wasn’t. I’ll soon be out of their hair soon enough, I’m sure. I have been devastated by how I was treated in the NHS and I now have PTSD because of it.

Maybe you should campaign against the many layers if unnecessary bureaucracy and managers?

And the fact that every little thing is tendered out? I've seen government contracts advertised to supply pens to the NHS.

Maybe call out the many, many, companies that take the actual piss with the prices that they charge the NHS, that's probably ONE of their biggest issues.

I agree OP, people don't have a clue. Think of how much people moan about the cost of seeing a dentist, when that pales in comparison to some common treatments and appointments. When I worked in a pharmacy it used to make me laugh when people would moan about paying for their prescriptions, some would say bloody hell thats a high charge I'd rather just pay for the medication....erm yeah sure if you want to pay 10x as much and then the costs involved in writing and processing the prescription.

Many people do misuse NHS services, and a big part of that is because it's free at point of use. Probably won't be for long though.

Yes because its public money (although pens are usually just bought through NHSSC). Due to transparency laws which all government departments must follow they need to follow regulations for open and fair competition. If you're seeing it advertised then it must be above threshold and subject to these. Are you suggesting this is unnecessary, and if so where do you draw the line? Everything should be done as government did PPE (by using an exemption on the basis or urgency and exceptional circumstances)? Trusts just buy whatever from whoever without tendering it out? Just pop to Smiths to buy thousands of pens- which would also be much more expensive?

Also complaining on one hand that suppliers charge loads to the NHS yet think the tendering process is pointless. Make it make sense.

I don’t know how but here in France, knowing what medical care costs and being aware that the government / tax payers are reimbursing the costs doesn’t seem to be used as a stick to beat people with. It’s just accepted that you need the treatment that has been prescribed, this is how the financial side will be dealt with. I have a friend who’s receiving gene therapy for cancer, her ‘molecules’ cost €€€€ every time, and she sees this on the prescription every time she collects her meds.

Maybe a system that’s upfront about it takes the guilt / emotion out of it ?

This of the admin! In the USA you do get this including what your insurance has paid and what you owe (typically 10%) admin cost 40% of health costs I was told, crazy!

Assuming that is the level of service they have received.

Whilst the idea of a printout is too extreme, I agree people should be made aware of all the costs involved by using the NHS. I don’t know what the answer is though.

I'd say a lot more people know the value of treatment they receive given how many people are being forced to pay privately because they are unable to access the 'wonderful' NHS.

This has made me so angry.

I'm chronically ill and I have disabilities and I'm autistic with ADHD.

I've had such awful care i had a complaint not even upheld they rolled over at the first meeting and admitted that my care on one occasion absolutely fell below a clinically acceptable standard.

Not just by one person but multiples people.

I've been left with PTSD which I have to pay for private counselling - because the nhs waiting list is so long.

I deliberately didn't take a compensation claim because I believe in the nhs and I didn't want and don't want to take money from care.

What the fuck op? What would DH is achieve?

*this

People who receive a good service usually already appreciate it. People who receive a bad one are unlikely to be happy to find out that the doctors still got paid a good deal of money for it.

*on more than one occasion

Theoretically i would love to know what i cost the NHS, but I'm a little geeky.

Do people not receive those automated texts that say not attending an appointment costs the NHS approximately £160? They are standard where I am.

Doctors don't make a lot of money compared to most countries though, their wages are less because of the NHS ie we have one system generally and so no market forces to drive it up. They would be much better off financially if the NHS was dismantled, perhaps its time.

@medicatedgift it doesn't come out of the budget for services, if you're having to fork out private care due to the effects of it you should make a claim. Don't be guilted into being out of pocket for it. This is one of the issues with the NHS, people know its on its arse so are hesitant to pull them up for stuff like this.

You know how poor my care was? Another doctor complained about how I was treated on my behalf without me doing anything. When I complained I found that out.

What wonderful service did I receive op?

I don't mean on my behalf. I mean. He had already complained. About how I was treated. It was covered up by nursing staff who stood by and let it happen.

What the fuck great service did I get? How much would you charge for that?

Please can I have a refund for the seven years of my life when I felt absolutely dreadful and my GP wouldn’t help. A refund for all the private blood tests which showed central hypothyroidism which my GP wouldn’t accept, a refund for the medication I have to buy online because my GP will only test TSH and not FT4 or FT3.

In my GP surgery they do advertise the cost of a missed appointment. Providing more detail at the patient level though would incur far too much admin.

I think it might make some people feel depressed

I’ve only really used NHS for births and vaccinations etc and I’d be at the lower end but it’d feel full on if not

What would it achieve?

I know DD has probably had easily 100k worth by about age 3, it is what it is.

I'd be extremely worried that sort of data would be used as a hideous reason to reduce what's spent on people with disabilities/chronic diseases.