Clapping the NHS at 8pm today

[Violetdaffodil]

I am an NHS worker

To all those of you who voted for the Tory party at the last election, a party that has for a long time tried to destroy the NHS and only realise our worth now that there is a serious pandemic afoot,

and to all of you who were clogging up the beaches, the Lake District, the parks in London etc without a care in the world last weekend

I don’t want to hear your hypocritical clapping out the window for the NHS workers tonight, so PLEASE DON’T

Well I won't be clapping because I don't have a balcony, and the small doorstep would be a social gathering as shared between several flats. This is the case across much of the cities so it may look like people haven't responded when really they can't anyway.

Very patronising and cringeworthy.

Oh, just seen you said windows...I guess we could but I can't really see it is to much purpose. It's a bit of a token gesture.

I'm in Edinburgh. If anyone here claps out of their tenement window I shall inform the council.

all those of you who voted for the Tory party at the last election, a party that has for a long time tried to destroy the NHS

You denounce a majority of the electorate and tell them to abstain from a meaningless gesture? But Labour voters can clap clap while not contemplating the ruinous consequences of the 13 years of Labour government circa 1997 to 2010 and the billions in PFI debt it bequeathed. Your partisan post is pathetic.

It's utterly pointless. Armchair activism at it's best. Unless you happen to live in a street where most of your neighbours are NHS workers and those people happen to be at home and not asleep at the time then how on earth are they going to know that Betty at number 6 stood on her doorstep and applauded at 8pm?

It achieves absolutely nothing but make the clapper feel better about themselves. It does not help the NHS.

If you want to help - volunteer, donate some food or PPE, lobby parliament to stop classing them as 'unskilled workers' and pay them a descent wage, stop voting for the f-in' Tories!

clapping ? cringing at the best of times for certain things and this is really the limit, i for one amnot going to stand on my front door step like a loon clapping.
full respect to the nhs but also all the emergency services and let's not forget the food chain workers either none of us would be eatting other wise.
a big shout out to 3 of my household working in a dark store warehouse and helping to fill online orders, thanks lads i'm proud of you

Don’t bring politics into it OP.

Seeing as you are though, Labour started privatisation. HTH

I have nothing but thanks that the nhs exist not just now but always. I'm a labour voter and an active part of my local labour party but I won't be clapping. I don't like attention and at 8 I'm going to be doing what I always do....have my headphones in and spend time with my cat once the kids are in bed.

I can't be doing with these communal shows of support, respect or whatever.
My daughter is a nurse. She knows I appreciate what she and her colleagues do. They don't need a lot of people standing at their doors and windows clapping

Interesting thread, I've seen so much about this on social media that I just assumed everyone thought it was a brilliant idea.

I won't be clapping but I do think we should invest more in the NHS, that NHS workers should get a pay rise and that bursaries should be reintroduced (and I supported all of this long before the current crisis) so on this thread I guess I am on the side of the angels!

Very patronising and cringeworthy

Agree. As a GP (though I also work in A&E so it's crazy at the mo), I'd settle for not constantly being belittled, slagged off and held personally responsible for the fact that the UK is short on GPs and resources. When people have a long wait in my A&E dept, they blame the government, not me as a doctor. When they can't get a GP appointment, they blame me.

Covid has been super tough in A&E, but hospitals are resourced in a way that GPs can only dream of. Meanwhile the practice where I work has been left with no help at all, even though it's actually probably seen a bigger increase in work per person than A&E, and that's before the crisis hits properly and we are left picking up everything the hospital won't have the capacity to do. And we're already 25% down on staff. And no proper protective equipment, so we're going down like flies (same problem in many hospitals, though luckily not the one I work in).

But I have already seen threads on MN slagging off GPs for not offering routine face to face appointments. The government has told us to do 100% by phone if possible, but of course, according to the public, it's us being lazy/over-paid/ignorant shysters. Totally sick of it. You can keep your applause.

I agree with the PP who said don’t clap. Just show your support by staying at home.

Stay at home.

Stay at home.

Please stay at home.

And yeah a pay deal that doesn’t leave NHS staff using food banks would be nice. And a return of bursaries.

I find it cringe-worthy and really more self-congratulatory than anything. A parent in the class whatsapp group has messaged about it at least 3 times.

im going for a run at about 7:30 and hopefull that the clapping near the end as I enter the home straight will get me a new pb.

Well said @Violetdaffodil and to add to that, can we ask for people to wash their hands properly and every time they need to?
It's not difficult.

My colleague said "oh i feel so bad, my husband just purchased a box of masks when there is shortage of masks for NHS workers"...
I said "oh did u donate the box then?"
She rolled her eyes... F fake

It's just cringe, please don't. I salute the supermarket staff who are paid less, have no protection and get daily abuse from arsey customers. NHS staff are a cross section of society too, there is a core of clinical staff who are not moving from their cosy niche "in the office" cos they've been cruising nicely for years..I have seen this and yes I'm NHS too..

I'm a key worker not NHS but probation.... we have absolutely no mention anywhere amongst all of this. Not that I am bothered because I do my job because I love it but some recognition for still going to work day in day out still managing the worst offenders in the community day in day out!! Still risking exposure to covid-19 as offenders who have symptoms still need supervision but hey ho. I suppose if someone clapped as I left work I would run for the hills 😂

@NotDisclosedToday

The clapping thing is silly and just for you OP, as a Tory voter, I won't clap. Oh and perhaps you would remind me who first introduced private companies and PFI to the NHS? Don't know? Let me jog your memory - it was Blair.

Just so you know, I have massive respect for those who work for the NHS but zero respect for people playing party politics at a time like this.

@RishiSunakFanClub

Brilliant post. I agree.

This post is absolutely pathetic. I work in an office for the NHS, we are all substance misuse workers. Some voted Tory some didn't. We are all as valuable as each other. I think the country should be pulling together right now and not acting like complete morons like the OP.
Not liking somebody because of who they voted for in an election is ridiculous, just because you have a different opinion and point of view doesn't make the other person, less of a person than you.
Some people who are labliur supporters feel Boris is doing a good job, some don't. It's got nothing to do with them as people.
I suggest people with your thinking get a grip and think of the important things in life right now and pull together as a nation because right now we cannot do anything about who is in power.

I’m really surprised at all the naysayers.

Why can’t people be gracious and except the gesture in the good spirit it is being offered.

I'll be clapping. I live very close to a hospital, I hope they hear it and know how grateful all of us are for their hard work and sacrifice. It will also be nice to "congregate" with my neighbours on our doorsteps. If any need anything, they can shout out.

No one in my constituency voted Tory or Labour. We are mostly poor, inner city dwellers, so few cars and no money to "stockpile". If I could do anything else, I would, but I can't, so I will do this to show my appreciation.

I wish you and all your co-workers strength and health in the months ahead OP.