What’s the point in the NHS?

[younknow]

I fell over at work today. My ankle was immediately black and blue and swollen, so I hobbled off to urgent care in a taxi.

I waited for four hours, I was x-rayed and told there were no breaks and a severe sprain. The doctor told me I’ve likely torn ligaments in my ankle and will be sore for three months.

I asked what sort of follow up would be given and she all but laughed at me, saying that I could get myself a support on Amazon if I wanted. I said I couldn’t even weight bear and she said I could also pick up crutches if needed. She then said I could refer to physio but “ChatGPT would give me a plan”. I asked if I’d be scanned to find out how badly damaged it is and she said there was no chance.

What is the point? Genuinely, what are we paying for when even things like this are being directed to Amazon and A.I?! I can’t believe it.

I remember 15 years ago my mum tore ligaments in her ankle and she was scanned the same day it happened, put in a boot and on crutches for six weeks, had a course of physio and consultations with an orthopaedic surgeon to discuss a plan if it didn’t improve.

What’s going on?!

The NHS is there to employ as many entitled lazy public sector workers as possible and occasionally treat people.
I had a chest infection not long back before i went away and the doctor said oh well you can buy antiobiotics over the counter abroad. I dont care i pay to run the NHS, give me free medicine

@RosesAndHellebores The OP had said America in the post I was quoting. Their system is brutal.

I agree with you that we need big change / perhaps a system like the rest of Europe but she needs to check her privilege (free at the point of care) because the LAST thing we want or need is a system like America.

@Badbadbunny lol honestly I lived in Canada a few years back and have lots of friends there. I hear constant complaints about he Canadian health service. Those who defend it all say well at least it's not like the US.

NHS employees are lazy and entitled but checks post you're cross about your perceived entitlements not been met in the way you think they should be!

Fantastic! Made me smile!

Personally I think the NHS is great. It sounds like the op had the medical assessment they needed, but didn't value it because the response of the clinician wasn't what she wanted.

Yep if poster had needed antibiotics they would have got them. Sounds like they wanted some just in case. The NHS is not there to replace travel insurance

Jeez. Whatever you, don't ever stop paying tax!! The nhs will collapse. I had no idea only one person funded it!!

Why can’t we have a healthcare system like the one in France, Germany, Denmark, Poland etc? There are more healthcare systems in the world besides the NHS and the US system, and many of them work very well.

The NHS is the world’s fifth-largest employer, and yet still doesn’t deliver consistent quality healthcare. It is just not fit for purpose anymore, and until more people accept that we will be stuck with a lumbering, wasteful and inadequate system. This is not to say that it doesn’t have excellent medical staff, though, over the years I have met many skilled and dedicated healthcare professionals.

They are for the infection so it doesn’t worsen. They are not for pain 🙄

Lot of people have Stockholm Syndrome when it comes to the NHS. And undoubtedly it’s usually very good with emergencies, and for the things where they have created defined pathways, such as diabetes.

For things that fall outside this, it can be awful. My son has Ehlers Dahnlos Shndrome, which causes his joints to sublux, as well as serious digestive issues and other things. When I ask what help is available to him there is never anything but a shrug. No there’s no cure, but physio and the right pain meds can make a big difference.

I am still waiting for a follow up appt ar the eye department of our local hospital for something that is likely degenerative (but treatable). Was told I needdd to be seen within 4 months. It’s now 9 months and I haven’t heard anything. When I phone there’s ’nothing available’. Sometimes an eye specialist phones people, admits they can’t diagnose or treat over the phone, but ticks them off as having been seen. That’s how waiting lists are massaged.

My daughter is a neonatal nurse, and you would honestly be shocked at how short-staffed they are. 5 nurses have left in the last year, and not one has been hired in that time. I cannot fathom how and why the government (especially a Labour government) aren’t prioritising more nursing staff on all wards. And maybe paying them a decent wage. Like they did for the train drivers!

By ‘urgent care’ I assume you mean either A&E or
some kind of walk in clinic. These are emergency services to treat the necessary immediately. They’re not for ongoing care, that’s for your GP. In these situations they ensure you haven’t broken a bone, address any cast or strapping needs if there are any, prescribe painkillers if needed and perhaps advice.

It’s not for them to provide supports or aids unless essential (like a cast for a break). These days you usually do have to buy your own not expect them free on the NHS. Indeed they can often hamper rather than assist healing.

You’re unlikely to need physio with ligament damage. It will be a matter of resting it and sitting with it up on a stool or something, painkillers and gentle movement. Follow up at the GP if you think you need more treatment or if it’s taking too long to heal. Sprains, or damage to tendons and ligaments can take 2-3 months sometimes to feel better.

Sorry. I know that’s not what you wanted to hear.

This is not a new thing. Over 30 years ago I twisted my ankle standing on a pint glass in a nightclub (that had been left to roll around on the dance floor). I couldn’t weight bear or even have a bed cover touching it and it was black and blue. My mum took me to A&E where the nurse was incredibly dismissive, didn’t X-ray it, just put a tubi-grip on it, told me it was just sprained and sent me on my way. No crutches, aftercare or advice beyond icing and elevating it. It was months before I could walk properly and I had trouble with that ankle for many many years afterwards. A work colleague hurt his ankle the same day, drove a minibus back from Wales, went to the same A&E, had it xrayed and was found to be broken and ended up in a cast. 🤷🏻

Unfortunately people do no realise the NHS is one of the worst public health services in Europe. They keep on saying it’s better than the US as we don’t pay for everything but actually for the taxes many pay in this country it is appalling. It is ok on life of death emergency, the rest is really really poor. There is a reason why polish, rumenian, french, Italians, Spanish people go back to the their countries to see doctors and every single wealthy person goes private

Only in the NHS. The comparison you should have used was current private health care costs. Which in the north west are:

Consultant £250-300 for first appointment of 20 - 30 minutes, often less for follow on sessions.

Xray of pelvis £75

MRI of knee £250

Ultrasound of abdomen £250

CAT scan of hip joint £250

DEXA scan £180

Hip replacement £15000 if completely straightforward.

Add on another £50 for anywhere not north.

The NHS is a God and no one is allowed to criticise it.

It works if you suffer major trauma in an accident and need putting back together.

It works for some planned operations.

It does not work for nuisance (but not life endangering) conditions where the waiting lists are dire.

It also has a terrible record for cancer including waiting times and outcomes.

It's not the front line staff, it's the layers of management, mistakes, 'lessons always learned' but no one being sacked, overly generous pensions and leave compared with the private sector, and outdated or inefficient IT systems.

I got directed towards AI by the peri natal mental health time, although I was told I could ask to be re referred if I felt I was nearing crisis but not at the point of crisis because they aren’t a crisis service

asked what crisis was and was told ‘a danger to self and others’

so according to the peri natal mental health time there is AI (which actually is disastrous for mental health) or you’re almost ready to take a life

But that's only because heath care in the US is a rip-off on an industrial scale! Yes, the care can be great in the US but it's ultimately all about making money off of patients rather than providing the best care. In contrast, I needed an ultrasound and specialist consultation in France a couple of years ago while on holiday and paid €70 all in, and that was the completely private fee for someone who was not insured. It doesn't have to be thousands.
As for the NHS, I needed major surgery recently and received top notch, world-class care - but that was once I finally got referred to the right specialists. It took me ages of getting fobbed off and being very pushy before I managed to get past the gatekeepers. What I dislike about the NHS is the tendency to push things down the priorities list until they get so bad that they need specialist treatment. Until then is all about putting up with the discomfort until it can't be ignored anymore. Not sure that's a great approach to be honest.

I thought I'd sprained my ankle so went to the local walk in centre. They did xx ray it but we have a virtual fracture clinic which it completely pointless. I was originally told I'd broken a metatarsal, then 3 metatarsals and then a nameless bone in my foot.

I had to complain and send stroppy emails before I could actually be seen face to face it and it turned out they'd x rayed my ankle and not my foot and I'd broken the cuboid, navicular and heel bone. This was after they'd x rayed my ankle again in error.

3 years later I still have pain in my foot and yet no one can tell me what's wrong despite having MRIs, X rays, and a PET CT scan and getting another appointment with the consultant has been a nightmare and I was told that it was down to me to keep calling as they don't have a waiting list! Ridiculous

@PinkSparklyPussyCat you are best seeing a physio. Your gp surgery will have one. The tests make it clear that they can't see anything wrong. So whatever is going on is soft tissue.

@StandFirm France spends about 25% more per person on healthcare than the UK. Increase the NHS budget by 25% before making direct comparisons

You'd be surprised, often you get better information from the NHS than you do a private provider.

Anyway if you needed help they would provide it (probably with a wait). My mum broke her arm earlier in the year and had a follow-up and about 4 physio sessions. But it was a break. With other injuries it's usually a question of patience and yes, you can absolutely get sensible advice from the internet, you don't even need to use AI!

Very true. I realise they have some attention seekers but listening to people and doing their job (eg not sending someone home to use an app to make an appointment when they are standing in front of you) costs no money.

Sorry, but it wasn’t different 15 yrs ago (except for the AI part) I had the same thing happen, was x-rayed, told it was a severe sprain and torn ligaments and sent on my way with not even a couple of paracetamol. It took over a year to heal fully and was swollen to the point I couldn’t get shoes for quite some time. I wasn’t offered physio or crutches either. I would suggest your mum was either lucky to get a scan, or they suspected it could have been something more severe so scanned to check.

My daughter had a brain tumour and was operated on the next day. That is the point.

My DD sprained her ankle and was given crutches but didn’t need physio. She was also diagnosed with MS after an A&E visit and MRI and lumbar puncture. Shes now on monthly injections and has an MRI and blood tests every six months.
I recently went in with a twisted ovarian cyst and had a CT scan that night, an internal scan the next day and whatever drugs. Then I had a second internal scan with a specialist a month later and just had an MRI this week. All at no cost at point of use. That’s what the NHS is for.
I’m watching the US version of Shameless and the 15 year old just had her father cut off her toes with garden shears after an accident as she could afford the cost of getting it done in a hospital.
Thank god for the NHS.