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[STEMO]

In Scotland, not England, and in a hushed-up, secretive sort of way, but they have started. Of course, it will be categorically denied that these kind of measures will ever be implemented, but the fact that they have even been mentioned shows just how bad things are becoming. In my opinion, it's time for a change, something's got to give and it's good that people are realising this.

NHS chiefs in Scotland discuss having wealthy pay for treatment https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-63659754

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

Wealthy people in Scotland paying for their treatment wont scratch the surface of the problem.
To any objective thinking person, the NHS has been an impossibly expensive experiment that failed miserably.

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

My guess is most properly wealthy people go private anyway.

Could be the thin end of the wedge though. People on a moderate income could be next.

Either way the NHS is past it's sell by date and we need a new up to date system that works.  The government could throw ten times the amount of money it currently does at the NHS and it would still be hopelessly outdated.

[STEMO]

Wealthy people in Scotland paying for their treatment wont scratch the surface of the problem.
To any objective thinking person, the NHS has been an impossibly expensive experiment that failed miserably.

That was only the headline, much more being mooted.

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

Wee Jimmy Krankie is running out of other peoples money to spend (which will obviously be the Tories fault) and looks like she and whoever runs NHS Scotland is getting desperate.
And Opti is right.If they gave all the money in the world to the NHS, by next winter the usual suspects would be screaming that it needs more.

[scimmy_man]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

[Raeturbo]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

                May not help all that much but that’s an excellent idea. Could make the usual time wasters think twice too then👍

[YZ250]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

Hopefully that proposal is per visit, not per day.    Would have cost me a fortune for the best part of three months that I’ve just spent in hospital having my heart rebuilt from spare parts, after a blood infection tried to finish me off.
My evaluation of the NHS ……..
I couldn’t get past the gorilla’s on reception to get an appointment with my GP so they failed me miserably, so a massive fail for them. Several arranged Call Back’s from my GP didn’t happen, so a massive fail for him. I eventually collapsed and was rushed in to hospital. I spent thirty hours in A&E Triage sat in a chair, so although I did initially count it as a fail, they did at least put me on an antibiotics drip, which in turn possibly saved my life, so an eventual pass for them. I was then moved to another hospital with a cardio ward and underwent four blood transfusions before being moved to Harefield Hospital, where the operations took place. I have nothing but praise for Harefield Hospital, they were superb, and my treatment was second to none by all of the staff, from the Heart Surgeon right down to nursing staff, so a massive Pass for them. I owe whatever is left of my life to them.

My conclusion …… Getting to see our GP is nigh on impossible, as is getting past A&E, but once you are actually in hospital as a patient you see a different side to the system. The system served me well in the end and I’ll be eternally grateful for what they did for me. 

[STEMO]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

Hopefully that proposal is per visit, not per day.    Would have cost me a fortune for the best part of three months that I’ve just spent in hospital having my heart rebuilt from spare parts, after a blood infection tried to finish me off.
My evaluation of the NHS ……..
I couldn’t get past the gorilla’s on reception to get an appointment with my GP so they failed me miserably, so a massive fail for them. Several arranged Call Back’s from my GP didn’t happen, so a massive fail for him. I eventually collapsed and was rushed in to hospital. I spent thirty hours in A&E Triage sat in a chair, so although I did initially count it as a fail, they did at least put me on an antibiotics drip, which in turn possibly saved my life, so an eventual pass for them. I was then moved to another hospital with a cardio ward and underwent four blood transfusions before being moved to Harefield Hospital, where the operations took place. I have nothing but praise for Harefield Hospital, they were superb, and my treatment was second to none by all of the staff, from the Heart Surgeon right down to nursing staff, so a massive Pass for them. I owe whatever is left of my life to them.

My conclusion …… Getting to see our GP is nigh on impossible, as is getting past A&E, but once you are actually in hospital as a patient you see a different side to the system. The system served me well in the end and I’ll be eternally grateful for what they did for me. 

Jesus! Lucky to be here by the sound of things. It must be quite scary for people who have had a heart attack and are at risk of another, or people at risk of a stroke, knowing that if you take ill there's very little chance you'll get the help you need quickly.
Very pleased you're ok 

[STEMO]

The receptionists at my gp's will give you an appointment, provided you win the eight o'clock phone call lottery. If you don't get through by five past, all the appointments are gone.
I kept pressing call back on my phone last time and got through on the 48th attempt. Winner, winner, chicken dinner 

[YZ250]

The receptionists at my gp's will give you an appointment, provided you win the eight o'clock phone call lottery. If you don't get through by five past, all the appointments are gone.
I kept pressing call back on my phone last time and got through on the 48th attempt. Winner, winner, chicken dinner 

The irony is, I have to have a blood test every week now and I now know that they keep back emergency appointments for such things. I’ll never know if I could have been saved all of this hassle if they’d have just seen me for a face to face appointment. 

[Varche]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

Hopefully that proposal is per visit, not per day.    Would have cost me a fortune for the best part of three months that I’ve just spent in hospital having my heart rebuilt from spare parts, after a blood infection tried to finish me off.
My evaluation of the NHS ……..
I couldn’t get past the gorilla’s on reception to get an appointment with my GP so they failed me miserably, so a massive fail for them. Several arranged Call Back’s from my GP didn’t happen, so a massive fail for him. I eventually collapsed and was rushed in to hospital. I spent thirty hours in A&E Triage sat in a chair, so although I did initially count it as a fail, they did at least put me on an antibiotics drip, which in turn possibly saved my life, so an eventual pass for them. I was then moved to another hospital with a cardio ward and underwent four blood transfusions before being moved to Harefield Hospital, where the operations took place. I have nothing but praise for Harefield Hospital, they were superb, and my treatment was second to none by all of the staff, from the Heart Surgeon right down to nursing staff, so a massive Pass for them. I owe whatever is left of my life to them.

My conclusion …… Getting to see our GP is nigh on impossible, as is getting past A&E, but once you are actually in hospital as a patient you see a different side to the system. The system served me well in the end and I’ll be eternally grateful for what they did for me. 

That in a nutshell is the experience of numerous family and friends in the uk.

I have to say my elderly dads gp practice is very good. I went to see him recently when he had a chestinfection and then Covid. I was shocked at the step change and wrote a letter outlining the cncern and maybe they ought to put him back on beta blockers. Dropped that off on Sunday night. Monday got phone call. Could doctor call round on Tuesday after surgery. He agreed with me over beta blockers. Also prescribed 2 weeks Fortisips and got a blood trst done to check for thyroid function. My 96 yr old dad is back to normal walking two x 2 km a day etc.

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

My local GP "service". Non existent as far as I can tell. I believe  the Doctors are still working from home and have a chat over the phone with a small number of patients each day.
Nearest hospital. Fickin appalling. Nothing good to say, apart from a small number of staff run themselves ragged trying to cover for all the shirkers. At least it isnt making the national news at the moment, so maybe it has improved a bit in the last couple of years.
Second nearest hospital. On the rare occasions you can get an appointment, the care and treatment isnt as bad as the first one, but as a Consultant there told us before Covid hit - "the appointment system is broken. It just doesnt work.
Hence a treatment plan which requires an appointment of some kind every three months, works out in reality as no appointment of any kind for 18 months.
It just doesnt work. Needs starting again from scratch, with A&E as a priority (which doesnt include drunks and people with a cracked toenail) and other care moving towards much more private type of system.
Whatever it ends up as, the staff need to be made to work in a culture where they know the patients are a much more important priority than whatever they think their priority is on a given day.
If you think Im being harsh, you dont live near Colchester.

[Sir Tigger KC]

It will all be fine! 

Jeremy Hunt has appointed Patricia Hewett to advise the government on efficiency in the NHS.   

Who?    Patricia Hewett was Tony Blair's Health Secretary and she renegotiated the GP's contracts so they got a huge pay rise and she removed the obligation to provide a 24/7 service. So people could no longer get a home visit from their local GP for little Johnnies runny nose and so they ended up in A&E instead! 

So what can possibly go wrong? 

[Andy B]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

Hopefully that proposal is per visit, not per day.    Would have cost me a fortune for the best part of three months that I’ve just spent in hospital having my heart rebuilt from spare parts, after a blood infection tried to finish me off.
My evaluation of the NHS ……..
I couldn’t get past the gorilla’s on reception to get an appointment with my GP so they failed me miserably, so a massive fail for them. Several arranged Call Back’s from my GP didn’t happen, so a massive fail for him. I eventually collapsed and was rushed in to hospital. I spent thirty hours in A&E Triage sat in a chair, so although I did initially count it as a fail, they did at least put me on an antibiotics drip, which in turn possibly saved my life, so an eventual pass for them. I was then moved to another hospital with a cardio ward and underwent four blood transfusions before being moved to Harefield Hospital, where the operations took place. I have nothing but praise for Harefield Hospital, they were superb, and my treatment was second to none by all of the staff, from the Heart Surgeon right down to nursing staff, so a massive Pass for them. I owe whatever is left of my life to them.

My conclusion …… Getting to see our GP is nigh on impossible, as is getting past A&E, but once you are actually in hospital as a patient you see a different side to the system. The system served me well in the end and I’ll be eternally grateful for what they did for me. 

Bloody Hell Allan!

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

Hopefully that proposal is per visit, not per day.    Would have cost me a fortune for the best part of three months that I’ve just spent in hospital having my heart rebuilt from spare parts, after a blood infection tried to finish me off.
My evaluation of the NHS ……..
I couldn’t get past the gorilla’s on reception to get an appointment with my GP so they failed me miserably, so a massive fail for them. Several arranged Call Back’s from my GP didn’t happen, so a massive fail for him. I eventually collapsed and was rushed in to hospital. I spent thirty hours in A&E Triage sat in a chair, so although I did initially count it as a fail, they did at least put me on an antibiotics drip, which in turn possibly saved my life, so an eventual pass for them. I was then moved to another hospital with a cardio ward and underwent four blood transfusions before being moved to Harefield Hospital, where the operations took place. I have nothing but praise for Harefield Hospital, they were superb, and my treatment was second to none by all of the staff, from the Heart Surgeon right down to nursing staff, so a massive Pass for them. I owe whatever is left of my life to them.

My conclusion …… Getting to see our GP is nigh on impossible, as is getting past A&E, but once you are actually in hospital as a patient you see a different side to the system. The system served me well in the end and I’ll be eternally grateful for what they did for me. 

Glad to hear you are feeling more chipper now.

I suggest you refrain from having vigorous sex more than 3 times a day.

[Field Marshal Dr. Opti]

The receptionists at my gp's will give you an appointment, provided you win the eight o'clock phone call lottery. If you don't get through by five past, all the appointments are gone.
I kept pressing call back on my phone last time and got through on the 48th attempt. Winner, winner, chicken dinner 

Yes. It's hopeless.

I rarely see the quack......probably once every 5 years or so.

The one receptionist is well known for being 'gobby' after a gin or three, so when she asks what the problem is I always tell her I will only discuss that with the doctor.

[Andy B]

I very recently got a bursitis on my elbow. Sent a photo of it to 'ask my GP' ..... over a fortnight later I got a phone appointment! 

[YZ250]

I very recently got a bursitis on my elbow. Sent a photo of it to 'ask my GP' ..... over a fortnight later I got a phone appointment! 

After I was discharged from hospital I received a phone call from my GP requesting me to attend an appointment that HE had made on my behalf. He wanted updating on what had happened to me as he’d received a letter from the hospital. I was polite to him but criticised the reception staff and said I blame them for preventing me to see the GP. His response was “I thought we’d got past all of that with reception but it sounds like I need to have another word with them”.

My symptoms incidentally were like having flu to begin with. A fever, sweating buckets but shivering and zero appetite. I genuinely thought I had severe covid so decided to ride it out. The truth was, a swelling around my spleen was putting pressure in other places, suppressing my appetite, so my weight dropped dramatically. Then bacteria in my blood caused blood clots, which decided to settle on two of my heart valves. I was struggling to walk as I couldn’t maintain my balance, until I finally collapsed.
The point being, if a GP would have seen me face to face, he would have instantly noticed that I looked shite and sent me to hospital. Instead, it dragged on until I needed heart valve replacements and a hole in the heart closing up. I was opened up and operated on so many times that I suggested that they fit a zip on my chest. 
A warning to all, covid has clouded our thoughts when we feel unwell, so don’t dismiss illness as having covid or flu like I did. Shout, and if nobody listens shout louder until you do get an appointment, because I may be recovering physically, but psychologically I’m not. I still get upset when I recall the journey to the operating theatre, wondering if what I was looking at would be the last thing I’d ever see. 

[Raeturbo]

Glad you’re ok. Right take that as a warning and from now on try to enjoy yourself as much as you can, try not to worry, it will not change the future👍

[YZ250]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

Hopefully that proposal is per visit, not per day.    Would have cost me a fortune for the best part of three months that I’ve just spent in hospital having my heart rebuilt from spare parts, after a blood infection tried to finish me off.?…………….

Glad to hear you are feeling more chipper now.

I suggest you refrain from having vigorous sex more than 3 times a day .

Behave, I’m 60 years of age now so it’s strictly Sunday mornings only.    So as not to over exert myself we do it to the rhythm of the church bells. Plays havoc when there’s a wedding on.   

[Andy B]

I very recently got a bursitis on my elbow. Sent a photo of it to 'ask my GP' ..... over a fortnight later I got a phone appointment! 

After I was discharged from hospital I received a phone call from my GP requesting me to attend an appointment that HE had made on my behalf. He wanted updating on what had happened to me as he’d received a letter from the hospital. I was polite to him but criticised the reception staff and said I blame them for preventing me to see the GP. His response was “I thought we’d got past all of that with reception but it sounds like I need to have another word with them”.

My symptoms incidentally were like having flu to begin with. A fever, sweating buckets but shivering and zero appetite. I genuinely thought I had severe covid so decided to ride it out. The truth was, a swelling around my spleen was putting pressure in other places, suppressing my appetite, so my weight dropped dramatically. Then bacteria in my blood caused blood clots, which decided to settle on two of my heart valves. I was struggling to walk as I couldn’t maintain my balance, until I finally collapsed.
The point being, if a GP would have seen me face to face, he would have instantly noticed that I looked shite and sent me to hospital. Instead, it dragged on until I needed heart valve replacements and a hole in the heart closing up. I was opened up and operated on so many times that I suggested that they fit a zip on my chest. 
A warning to all, covid has clouded our thoughts when we feel unwell, so don’t dismiss illness as having covid or flu like I did. Shout, and if nobody listens shout louder until you do get an appointment, because I may be recovering physically, but psychologically I’m not. I still get upset when I recall the journey to the operating theatre, wondering if what I was looking at would be the last thing I’d ever see.

Bloody hell .... you really have been through the mill

[Andy B]

...... Plays havoc when there’s a wedding on.   

[ronnyd]

charge everyone £10 per visit
and non residents full price.

Hopefully that proposal is per visit, not per day.    Would have cost me a fortune for the best part of three months that I’ve just spent in hospital having my heart rebuilt from spare parts, after a blood infection tried to finish me off.?…………….

Glad to hear you are feeling more chipper now.

I suggest you refrain from having vigorous sex more than 3 times a day .

Behave, I’m 60 years of age now so it’s strictly Sunday mornings only.    So as not to over exert myself we do it to the rhythm of the church bells. Plays havoc when there’s a wedding on.   

Or when the cycling club goes past. 

[Sir Tigger KC]

https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/health/2022/11/19/i-thought-it-was-a-typo-fathers-shock-after-son-given-three-year-wait-for-hospital-appointment/

[STEMO]

https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/health/2022/11/19/i-thought-it-was-a-typo-fathers-shock-after-son-given-three-year-wait-for-hospital-appointment/

A two a half year wait would see most people on here off 

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

Meanwhile - certain areas are taking part in a pilot scheme where GP.s can prescribe people free gas and electric !
Thats not going to be abused much is it ? 

[STEMO]

Meanwhile - certain areas are taking part in a pilot scheme where GP.s can prescribe people free gas and electric !
Thats not going to be abused much is it ? 

And who's going to pay for that, I wonder? Surely it can't be be coming out of the NHS budget.

[Migv6 le Frog Fan]

It could do, and then they will all be squealing that its run out of money again because the heartless Tories are trying to run it into the ground. 
https://www.itv.com/news/westcountry/2022-11-23/more-nhs-patients-get-heating-bills-paid-for-on-prescription-after-trial