NHS shamed over callous treatment of elderly

[Ramrod]

Link
.................I know of plenty of examples of this and it's not just the elderly either

[Osem]

Doesn't surprise me tbh.

My elderly and very frail mum was in our local 'flagship' hospital a few weeks ago. Initially taken, by ambulance, to A&E in the morning, she was kept waiting for 5 hours and then finally got to see a doctor, well, a succession of doctors, all of whom asked the same questions, before finally being admitted later that evening. Whilst all this was going on and although she can't walk more than one or two steps, hospital staff kept asking for her wheelchair. Apparently our general hospital has a grave shortage of these basic items for some reason and I hate to think how she'd have fared had she been alone...

She was discharged the next morning pending further tests and we're currently awaiting the results.

[Ramrod]

My mother doesn't get fed or even given water when she's admitted. She's 76 and they will forget to give her anything for the 5 or 6 hours she's there for. These days I simply take a flask and sandwiches up myself......

[Ignitionnet]

The NHS is a truly bizarre thing in many ways, not least of which that it is most similar to how health care was provisioned in communist countries. That it is considered so sacrosanct by many is another point, nearly rivalled by how utterly unviable it is.

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

The NHS is a truly bizarre thing in many ways, not least of which that it is most similar to how health care was provisioned in communist countries. That it is considered so sacrosanct by many is another point, nearly rivalled by how utterly unviable it is.

How is it unviable? It's worked for 50 or so years?

[Ramrod]

http://my.telegraph.co.uk/groups/pol...-your-stories/

It's very rare that i have anything to do with the NHS so i can only base an opinion on media reports ,and to be perfectly frank i wouldn't care to have any treatment from the NHS based on media reports ,it scares the hell out of me thinking that one day i might have an accident or get sick and have to go into hospital .
I have no idea what the problem is or how to fix it ,but the most worrying thing of all is that no-one else seems to know either

[Ignitionnet]

Originally Posted by Damien

How is it unviable? It's worked for 50 or so years?

Clearly because it's 'worked' in the past it's fine now?

We're the only non-communist nation with a nationalised health service paid for out of general taxation for a reason Damien. If it were so good do you not think everyone else would be doing it rather than single payer insurance based schemes?

Despite the money pumped into it our patient outcomes are frankly abysmal. The NHS is too big, too inefficient, we should stop with the nostalgia and accept that the rest of the world may have a point in not following our example and copy theirs - more best practise as measured by patient outcomes versus funding levels, less 'beloved NHS'. People live too long and spend too much of their lives drawing from the system without contributing to it in taxation to try and pump NHS funding up yet further to compensate for inefficiency and frankly it's rude to tax payers to accept inefficient operation and burn their money on supplying them an expensive, sub-standard health service. If a government were to actually grasp the nettle and put the case across rather than simpering over the NHS and saying how wonderful it is for all its flaws perhaps we could progress.

Change the funding method to socialised insurance rather than general progressive taxation, it's a horrid burden, change the method of operation away from the current system where the service seems to manage many of the inefficiencies of scale while failing to realise the economies, incentivise people to take private healthcare through the tax system instead of punishing them for it.

None of this is rocket science but the 'beloved NHS' is instead going to get some weird half-way house with debatable results for either efficiency or patient outcomes.

And relax.

Originally Posted by Ignitionnet

Clearly because it's 'worked' in the past it's fine now?

We're the only non-communist nation with a nationalised health service paid for out of general taxation for a reason Damien. If it were so good do you not think everyone else would be doing it rather than single payer insurance based schemes?

Despite the money pumped into it our patient outcomes are frankly abysmal. The NHS is too big, too inefficient, we should stop with the nostalgia and accept that the rest of the world may have a point in not following our example and copy theirs - more best practise as measured by patient outcomes versus funding levels, less 'beloved NHS'. People live too long and spend too much of their lives drawing from the system without contributing to it in taxation to try and pump NHS funding up yet further to compensate for inefficiency and frankly it's rude to tax payers to accept inefficient operation and burn their money on supplying them an expensive, sub-standard health service. If a government were to actually grasp the nettle and put the case across rather than simpering over the NHS and saying how wonderful it is for all its flaws perhaps we could progress.

Change the funding method to socialised insurance rather than general progressive taxation, it's a horrid burden, change the method of operation away from the current system where the service seems to manage many of the inefficiencies of scale while failing to realise the economies, incentivise people to take private healthcare through the tax system instead of punishing them for it.

None of this is rocket science but the 'beloved NHS' is instead going to get some weird half-way house with debatable results for either efficiency or patient outcomes.

And relax.

Strangly ,i find myself agreeing with all of that .As i see it an institution like the NHS can only work on a much smaller scale ,as it was when it was first started .All we ever get now (and it will be exactly the same with the release of this new report )is throw more money at it ,hire more managers ,close more hospitals and build bigger ones .It is unsustainable

[peanut]

A huge problem is that basic care no longer exists from nurses. They are now trained to degree level and what used to be their job role is now beneath them.

I was married to an elderly care nurse, she went into nursing because she wanted to make a difference, probably just like most of them to start with. A few years in, they change, always moaning about money or something, they get the healthcare assistants to do the dirty jobs, that is caring and cleaning etc etc.

I've had more care from the tea lady than the nurses lately.

To many Chiefs not enough Indians?

Or rather where are the old fashioned matrons who made anyone's life hell if they didn't perform to her very high standards?

Originally Posted by Maggy J

To many Chiefs not enough Indians?

Or rather where are the old fashioned matrons who made anyone's life hell if they didn't perform to her very high standards?

I thought labour had brought them back ?

I know but I don't think that they are as terrifying as the originals who where phased out..I doubt that the modern Matrons can make a cleaner,consultant or a nurse quake in their boots.

It's impossible to go back in time.Maybe tearing it down and starting all over again is the only way to resolve the NHS issues.

[Ignitionnet]

This is really bad. People who have no business agreeing with me are doing so.

2012 is coming early.

Originally Posted by Maggy J

I know but I don't think that they are as terrifying as the originals who where phased out..I doubt that the modern Matrons can make a cleaner,consultant or a nurse quake in their boots.

It's impossible to go back in time.Maybe tearing it down and starting all over again is the only way to resolve the NHS issues.

to be honest Maggie i doubt that in todays world a "Hattie Jacques" type of matron would be allowed