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[shadowshape]

I have an old Friend who has struggled with her concept of me, since I went back to work as a mental health nurse. Like most of us, she has been depressed, and her experience of the service was plainly not a good one. I had to say to her last week 'look, nurses are not the enemy' - we are the service; human beings with failings, who certainly

Comments

[loopylurcher]

I feel that your profession is at the spearhead of lots of inequalities, cut backs and bad man management ideas. I have other friends who are CPNs and MSWs and the whole set up is underfunded, tied up in red tape (at least it is here) and only works because of the care and ingenuity of the staff.

Let's face it, like Dementia in old age, we are all scared of mental health issues and the general public only want to know when they actualy find themselves suffering from a problem. So it's not sexy and no one wants to spend money on it.

Bruce's mum was a Staff Nurse at one of the local hospitals in the 1960s and in those days the other staff were often very uncaring and seemed to perpetuat the service user's negative feelings about them. She found it so difficult to make a real difference in the face of organisational disinterest. And she never worked as a nurse again after her experiences there.

It's a pity that your friend has such a negative feeling about you and your husband in your professional roles. It also seems strange that she cannot divorce two people who have been constant supporters to her, from their roles within an organisation that she seems unable to cope with at present.

I must admit that one of the best trainings that I have ever been to as a Social Worker, was a Mental Health training that was done by users of the services. Now that seemed a much more positive way of changing what your friend found difficult to cope with.

Am I rambling? Whoops, sorry.

[shadowshape]

no, love, you're not rambling -
and thanks for everything you've said here;
its true that my husband's name is on the e-mails and announcements about ward closures, but they were'nt his idea; if only folk knew how hard he fights for patients and services behind the scenes...
But in the end, the Govt. win.
btw; if you want to reach me privately, April has my e-mail address
love and blessed be
xxx

[loopylurcher]

Thanks for info on e-mail address.

This government is disbanding everything that is value based and turning it into a corporate business. I hear today that the lattest NHS method of saving money is going to be making doctors reduntant. Well, what can I say?

Bruce wants to know why I don't go for a management job! My main suggestion back to him is that I don't have maths O level and lets face it, management in Social Services is all based on money and gatekeeping.