Opinions please
I have always worked for one health service or another, and as a Socialist, I believe in the aims of the NHS.
http://www.nhs.uk
This is government run.
Elderly and disabled people do not have to pay for their treatments or choose between tablets and food (like Grant's Grandmother, who worked hard all her life). Single Mums don't have to worry about medical bills.
I've been asked a few questions about socialised medicine, by a few people, in the light of the new US president, and am going to put down a few points, about which I am happy to answer a few questions. The NHS isn't perfect, but it has its good points too, and it's aims are altruistic.
Treatment is based on clinical need, not who you are, or ability to pay/earn.
Emergency treatment is available to anyone, anywhere, AT ONCE. No questions, no one cares who you are or where you come from.
Urgent treatment takes a slightly different route. You can go to our ER (Accident and Emergency, A&E for short) and simply wait, you will be seen, but it could take a few hours. You are triaged by a senior nurse who will decide on the clinical need. Now, people bitch and whine at the reception desk about this, but I have yet to see a clinical nurse who got this seriously wrong, and she/he will ALWAYS err on the side of caution. People just don't like being kept waiting, and anxious people/those in pain are even worse about that, which is understandable.
Also, some people just don't push when in this category. I have seen 2 major categories here:
1)Older people who "don't like to bother anyone" and
2)Men who won't push because being in pain is something they are brought up to tolerate.
The other route is to go to your GP (General Practitioner, family doctor). You can always get in the same day, but depending on reception staff, may have to prod and push. Then, this is how it goes:
For children, there is a 5 week pathway, as in, from the referral being sent, to the child being seen by a specialist. This doesn't mean it always takes 5 weeks. It means, that is the longest it takes. What happens (and as a secretary, I deal with this daily, is that I receive the doctor's post, stamp it with the date, hand it to him/her, and they grade it. They tell us the time frame i.e. want to see NOW, next week, or a couple of weeks, or routine. Appointments are booked accordingly, and once in the system, the child will be seen at the intervals the Consultant specifies.
For adults, the pathway is the same, but 18 weeks is the target. Again, there are some specialties which are overwhelmed, such as Orthopaedics, which involves old ladies with broken hips, so there are a lot of emergency treatments here, which occupy the system, but they are working on that.
As in any system, human error plays its part. There are very occasional people who slip through the system's safety net, but they are naturally the ones that make that papers.
Doctors can certainly get things wrong, but bear in mind, the doctors and all health professionals here are paid by the Government, and the NHS is a NON PROFIT MAKING ORGANISATION. It is important to remember this, as this is why the senior doctors have no hold on what treatments are "allowed" and cannot filter according to rank and/or ability to pay, only on clinical need. It also means that pharmaceutical companies are free to develop the treatments they need to perform, and not what they are "allowed" to do.
Routine treatment is straightforward enough, it just happens when it says it will.
Follow up works the same way.
Prophylactic treatment is a big thing over here. As an asthmatic, I am seen regularly by a Consultant specialist and his specialist nursing team, for prevention and not cure. Regular lung functions tests take place, X-rays too, and I am advised and can ask at any time about the latest treatments and ask if they are appropriate, which again will be based on clinical need, and not ability to pay. If I express a preference for one treatment over another, as long as I can justify it, I can have that too.
As a diabetic, I am screened 3 monthly, eyes, feet, kidneys and the like. This means any potential problems are nipped in the bud.
Old/disabled people are cared for mostly in the community. The head of the NHS, our man in Parliament, secures 80% of the money for Community(Primary) Care, and 20% for secondary and tertiary. It is cheaper to keep an older/disabled person at home than in hospital (costs around 1/10th as much), and the patient receives FULL nursing and social back up. I know this from my Mum, I was supported well, until she became too confused to stay at home, whereupon she was immediately admitted to hospital for a couple of weeks whilst I looked for a suitable home for her, which I vetted very carefully (only the best for her).
If you have medical need, and don't just need keeping an eye on, you can get into an NHS home, which is free. If you need no real medical care (and again, this is carefully triaged) the patient will have to pay, and it is estimated on what the patient has, not what his family have.
There is a lot more to tell you, this is just a basic framework.
Am happy to answer any questions, or listen to any criticism, as even the best of systems have flaws, and we can always learn.
http://www.nhs.uk
This is government run.
Elderly and disabled people do not have to pay for their treatments or choose between tablets and food (like Grant's Grandmother, who worked hard all her life). Single Mums don't have to worry about medical bills.
I've been asked a few questions about socialised medicine, by a few people, in the light of the new US president, and am going to put down a few points, about which I am happy to answer a few questions. The NHS isn't perfect, but it has its good points too, and it's aims are altruistic.
Treatment is based on clinical need, not who you are, or ability to pay/earn.
Emergency treatment is available to anyone, anywhere, AT ONCE. No questions, no one cares who you are or where you come from.
Urgent treatment takes a slightly different route. You can go to our ER (Accident and Emergency, A&E for short) and simply wait, you will be seen, but it could take a few hours. You are triaged by a senior nurse who will decide on the clinical need. Now, people bitch and whine at the reception desk about this, but I have yet to see a clinical nurse who got this seriously wrong, and she/he will ALWAYS err on the side of caution. People just don't like being kept waiting, and anxious people/those in pain are even worse about that, which is understandable.
Also, some people just don't push when in this category. I have seen 2 major categories here:
1)Older people who "don't like to bother anyone" and
2)Men who won't push because being in pain is something they are brought up to tolerate.
The other route is to go to your GP (General Practitioner, family doctor). You can always get in the same day, but depending on reception staff, may have to prod and push. Then, this is how it goes:
For children, there is a 5 week pathway, as in, from the referral being sent, to the child being seen by a specialist. This doesn't mean it always takes 5 weeks. It means, that is the longest it takes. What happens (and as a secretary, I deal with this daily, is that I receive the doctor's post, stamp it with the date, hand it to him/her, and they grade it. They tell us the time frame i.e. want to see NOW, next week, or a couple of weeks, or routine. Appointments are booked accordingly, and once in the system, the child will be seen at the intervals the Consultant specifies.
For adults, the pathway is the same, but 18 weeks is the target. Again, there are some specialties which are overwhelmed, such as Orthopaedics, which involves old ladies with broken hips, so there are a lot of emergency treatments here, which occupy the system, but they are working on that.
As in any system, human error plays its part. There are very occasional people who slip through the system's safety net, but they are naturally the ones that make that papers.
Doctors can certainly get things wrong, but bear in mind, the doctors and all health professionals here are paid by the Government, and the NHS is a NON PROFIT MAKING ORGANISATION. It is important to remember this, as this is why the senior doctors have no hold on what treatments are "allowed" and cannot filter according to rank and/or ability to pay, only on clinical need. It also means that pharmaceutical companies are free to develop the treatments they need to perform, and not what they are "allowed" to do.
Routine treatment is straightforward enough, it just happens when it says it will.
Follow up works the same way.
Prophylactic treatment is a big thing over here. As an asthmatic, I am seen regularly by a Consultant specialist and his specialist nursing team, for prevention and not cure. Regular lung functions tests take place, X-rays too, and I am advised and can ask at any time about the latest treatments and ask if they are appropriate, which again will be based on clinical need, and not ability to pay. If I express a preference for one treatment over another, as long as I can justify it, I can have that too.
As a diabetic, I am screened 3 monthly, eyes, feet, kidneys and the like. This means any potential problems are nipped in the bud.
Old/disabled people are cared for mostly in the community. The head of the NHS, our man in Parliament, secures 80% of the money for Community(Primary) Care, and 20% for secondary and tertiary. It is cheaper to keep an older/disabled person at home than in hospital (costs around 1/10th as much), and the patient receives FULL nursing and social back up. I know this from my Mum, I was supported well, until she became too confused to stay at home, whereupon she was immediately admitted to hospital for a couple of weeks whilst I looked for a suitable home for her, which I vetted very carefully (only the best for her).
If you have medical need, and don't just need keeping an eye on, you can get into an NHS home, which is free. If you need no real medical care (and again, this is carefully triaged) the patient will have to pay, and it is estimated on what the patient has, not what his family have.
There is a lot more to tell you, this is just a basic framework.
Am happy to answer any questions, or listen to any criticism, as even the best of systems have flaws, and we can always learn.