NHS What's to save?

Just a quick observation, having seen over the last year or so adverts in the press and on telly advising the need to act quickly in the event of someone showing signs of having a stroke, it comes as no surprise that once again the NHS is failing patients.

According to the Independent newspaper stroke victims have in many cases been denied vital treatment because of sloppy management of resources like MRI/CT scanners.

In the last few weeks it has been revealed

• That nurses in Margate were issued with aprons suggesting patients should not speak to them.
• That patients should be looked after by relatives, Royal College of Nursing I think.
• Patients being starved to death or left to dehydrate.
• East Kent health trust fifth worst in the country.

No doubt some of you think this is just blasphemy, but then you've probably never witnessed patients incapable of feeding themselves left with meals out of reach, or unwashed and I don't suppose you've had to point out to a nurse, then doctor that an elderly patient shouldn't, having been admitted due to a fall, risk death because they can't be asked, to see a patient get fluids or as later happened allowing the same patient to fall again because they would not provide safety equipment like a Zimmer frame.

As I mentioned earlier to criticise the health service, is like blasphemy to the vast majority of our godless society (of whom I'm one), however I concede that a significant number of health workers are not only competent but also genuinely caring people although for some it's a more a well paid occupation and who knows what superfluous directors and managers are motivated by, because it is self evident even before the cuts all was not well with our health service.

I'd like to see some system whereby citizens could sack the senior tiers of management of health authorities when they fail to deliver

Perhaps a petition signed by a couple of hundred worried citizens could be the criteria for sacking useless fat cats and might encourage health chiefs to act quickly rather than do nothing and continue to wallow in that state which afflicts many in the public sector the overwhelming feeling of self importance.

The NHS is wonderful except for–Blood Pressure

And choice, I’ll make no bones about it, the NHS is blimin marvellous except when it isn’t and unfortunately we have no choice, its an authoritarian take or leave it service.

No surprise then to read that millions are being wasted on misdiagnosis of blood pressure problems, apparently patients give false indications (white coat syndrome)  when present in the doctors surgery or hospital.

It has been suggested by NICE, the organisation that advises the NHS on such matters  that rather than rely on testing in the surgery, which is the case for most, that  in future, patients should be monitored for 24 hours using a special gizmo designed for the purpose.

Now it seems obvious to me, that patients blood pressure is raised attending surgery, given that medical centre’s appear to be run for the convenience of staff and medics, not consumers, most of us, will have had a hard time getting an appointment, either due to criteria such as “You’ll have to ring in the morning” (to find if lucky enough to get through the telephone lottery, that 5 minutes after office is open there are no appointments) or  “is it an  emergency” ( you tell me?) etc.

I’m sure many people, in middle age, are subjected to routine blood pressure tests in surgery’s and I just wonder if any of these readings are a true reflection, many tests are done using grubby machines (presumably for cost reasons), placed in waiting rooms, they have, rather optimistic advice, relax and wait 5 minutes, how you relax in a busy thoroughfare is never explained.

I have no illusions about the health service, all those, clichés in TV dramas of caring medics, might have a tenuous link with the truth (who doesn’t want to do a good job in their work), however it seems to me the rather saintly view doesn’t hold water, I used to think that G.P. stood for general practice/practitioner, now I’m not sure it isn’t gross profit.

I don’t think I’ve seen my doctor for some years, its too difficult, earlier in the year I had an ear infection, after two days I saw the out of hours one (job done in three minutes), it seems like a major trauma, to conform to whatever the criteria is for arranging an appointment, this is down to the command economy of the NHS, like most I’ve paid for a service, to which I’m disconnected, as there is no link between service provider and consumer. Everything controlled by well paid Muppets who can go private.

General Practitioners are well paid, and so they should be, although a witless Labour government, probably overdid it on pay and decreases in hours, which explains why if you have some pressing health problem, the chances are you’ll have to see an out of hours doctor, who has kindly flown in from Lithuania for the weekend.

There needs to be some balance between what patients expect and what doctors can deliver, at the moment health industry in the form of the NHS has us consumers by the dangly’s there ought to be some element of rewarding good service or discouraging bad, maybe patients could be required to give marks out of ten, the health authority could then reward.

When I next have to do a blood pressure test, I shall try to relax by thinking happy thoughts, as how things should be and ignore the conversation 3 metres away, as some naive patent tries to arrange with the receptionist, that appointment “next week” which the doctor convinced them was so necessary. Anyway I shall keep taking the tablets.

Guardian Story

The wonderful health service myth

Isn't the NHS wonderful? a question that many affirm, without thinking, along with that other cliché about our wonderful police service and lets be honest, yes they are, up to a point.

I'll put our wonderful police on the back boiler for this posting and leave them Kettled for another time.

However it comes as no surprise to me that the NHS are in the dock for poor treatment to elderly,  the NHS is an out of control behemoth, unfortunately we as providers of funds have no say in who or where, we get treated.

Instead of passing responsibility for managing health resources, to over-worked GP's couldn't the health service be re-engineered so that patients control funds, choosing which doctor or practice gets their money.

Imagine if you were taxed and your groceries were "free", and then imagine that in some areas the grocery provider was asda rather than Sainsburys

NHS West Kent to practice class discrimination?

This evenings BBC's South East Today programme assuming I heard correct has announced that West Kent NHS are planning to refuse medical treatment to smokers and the obese.

I know my more puritanical and sanctimonious readers will applaud such discrimination, on the basis, that smokers and the obese are self harmer's who don't deserve medical assistance despite having been taxed to er  ..

Whilst that might be true, both conditions are considered to be illness, however I believe that both are less likely to occur in the professional & middle classes (the sort who run West Kent NHS) and more likely to be more common in working classes.

West Kent Health, bods ought to consider just how far their prejudices will take them, why draw the line at smokers and fatties how about not treating the millions of weekend drunks who turn up in our hospitals each year, this I guess would save billions across the country, although we might get a little upset at the ensuing cull of our younger generations as they're left to bleed to death, still we will be able to comfort ourselves with the thought that despite being taxpayers they did bring upon themselves and lets face it the doctor always knows best doesn't he.

The NHS should not discriminate, of course they should advise on issues on lifestyles, but medicine rationed on prejudice is wrong, its the sort of thing you'd expect in some crazy fascist totalitarian state. Its difficult not to feel West Kent NHS are following some extreme right wing agenda.

And what about alcoholics?

Cameron’s Election Liability - Kent’s PR Health Watch snow job

As many of my readers will be aware from time to time, here at Bignews Margate we like to spotlight some of Kent Tories more er superfluous money wasting schemes, one such is KCC’s Health Watch which has hit all the buttons as far as Tory members and officers are concerned.

Most will agree its pointless, little known, incredibly expensive, overlaps professional run services, has no popular public backing and of course just like the recently debunked and now thankfully defunct Kent TV is rarely known of outside of KCC’s establishment.

By a snow job I mean of coarse, the way KCC press bods package info, here is a perfect example, I asked Kent council’s press wallahs first by phone and then emailed “I wonder if you could please either get me information or point me in the right direction as to how Kent council can a spend a budget of £300,000 pounds to process around 500 calls made to its Healthwatch help line. (excuse the typo I’m sure they knew what I meant).

Anyway a week rolled away and a few more reminders, then I got sent this bit of PR or maybe waffle, that didn’t answer the question how did they spend (or even waste the money) 300 grand on the Health Watch scheme.

KCC Cabinet Member for Public Health Alan Marsh said: "Kent Health Watch is our safety net and was set up to cost 1p per family per week and we have worked well within the allocated budget.
"I believe it is a small price to pay for the reassurance that any time of the day or night, every day of the year you can call and speak to a real person about any worries you have about health or social care.
"Kent Health Watch was set up after the c.difficile outbreak in Maidstone Hospital to stop tragic headlines like that appearing in our county again.
"Is there an equivalent to Kent Health Watch and are they open 24/7, 365 days of the year? There is no other scheme like it and that is why we've attracted national recognition. In its entirety, Kent Health Watch has been adopted by the shadow minister for health as the Conservative Party will roll out the scheme country-wide should they win the election.
"The battle to improve patient care for the people of Kent is what drives us and Kent Health Watch is a powerful weapon in our armoury. "

(Nice reference to Conservative party just what you like to see on publically funded press releases)

Kent Council spends millions of pounds on pointless PR, advertising and for little while longer “TV” lets hope David Cameron sorts out this ego massaging waste.

Chance to sort your choppers out, maybe?

News has arrived from Thanet's Labour party bunker, courtesy of Councillor Clive Hart, that the NHS Eastern and coastal PCT have announced extra funding for dental services in Thanet.

This of course will be a relief, to I imagine the lucky few, since the sums involved are relatively pitiful, Broadstairs will receive an extra £300,000 and Cliftonville £649, 000.

Myself being 50 plus, and obviously with an increasingly dodgy memory, recall back in the nineteen sixty's that NHS dentists, were pretty commonplace until Mrs. Thatcher's reign saw many disappear, a trend which has continued during much of the labour party's recent time in office.

Apparently the money is aimed at making sure, residents in the most need are helped, what I would like to know, is what ever happened to universal healthcare? Something Labour used to promote.

Clearly senior Labour politicians have had more important things to worry about than providing health care, like MPs who still believe that we should feed them, despite damn good salaries and in several cases second jobs.

Anyway to take your mind off dentistry, the photograph above is similar (but not the same) to the view, I had from the chair of my childhood dentist, which I would concentrate on, intently, whilst, I had tried to believe that dentist's usual bollix statement, "this won't hurt you" was true and of course it bloody well wasn't.

NHS My Brilliant Idea

NHS South East Coast have set up a regional innovation fund of £2 million, to allow frontline staff develop ideas.

As you might expect an interim Director of Innovation has been appointed, which I suppose is necessary as a further £5 million will be bunged into fund every year, for the next four.

One example given in the press release from the South East Coast NHS, is this, a Telemedicine Team, at the Queen Victoria Hospital in West Sussex, who have set up a system to share information and expertise, using “secure” internet channels, which is great news meaning that patients wont have to be transferred to other hospitals to enable another medic to take a gander.

The only thing that bothers me is reference to “telemedicine system” which sounds like some computer consultant has got involved and has taken freely available technology given it a bit of spin, used words like secure and system , to repackage as an expensive solution.

Just going off on a tangent, I reckon with a broadband connection, email, the telephone and or maybe Skype(free) for video conferencing you could set up your own telemedicine for near zero cost, all you need then, is to rustle up some medics.

Here’s my brilliant idea, get managers who are a) competent b) have a proper job c) can prioritise and distinguish what’s important and what’s not d) sack whoever thought up this scheme. Hopefully this would result in a saving of £20 million plus.

NHS Double Drugs Bill scam the er facts?

Noticing that apart from The News of the World, no other newspaper appears to have picked up the story that Department of Health is issuing guidelines to doctors to only prescribe medicines for a month at a time instead of two months, which has the effect of doubling prescription costs for patients, I thought I’d check their website.

For some reason on their press releases area I could not for find a reference to heartless b*st*rds, doubling the cost of medicines for patients or anything similar, so I gave a ring to their press office, to see if they could elucidate.

My question was something to the effect, could you tell me if its true that doctors are being told to only prescribe medicines for 28 days, I think their answer is evasive bull anyway see what you think (email text below) , perhaps News of the World got it wrong. They could have just said something like yes that is correct or no of course not we wouldn’t dare exploit patients (well only if they use car parks or want to make telephone calls or watch telly).

 

"Dear Tony

A Department of Health spokesperson said:“Wasted medicines cost the NHS over £100m per year – that is money that could be spent on patient care. It is therefore appropriate for GPs to only provide the required amount of drugs to each patient.

“While many clinicians routinely write prescriptions for 28 days, in cases where patients have stable long-term conditions, and can manage their stocks of medicines effectively, prescriptions for longer periods can be
written and made available.

“The Department of Health has commissioned research into medicines waste and the complex and varied reasons why people don’t take their medicines as intended, which will report later this year.”

 

Regards

Department of Health"

See earlier story

NICE and Mean Labour

I have been trying hard to think of any thing Labour has done in recent times to improve the lot of people in this country apart from MPs and I must say I'm having great difficulty, now I know that a few die-hard Labour dinosaurs, would point to things like the welfare state which I feel imprisons more than its helped, the minimum wage set at poverty levels, and NHS which consumes ever increasing amounts of money, although you still cannot find a dentist, and doctors have surgerys to suit themselves, the old and welfare dependant.

Something that I was going to touch on a while back but I forgot about, and please in this case I'm not attempting to be facetious, was highlighted by author Terry Pratchet, in Sundays News Of The World, he gives a rather serious example of what's wrong, please click here or alternatively turn to page 6 in yesterday's edition.

That said it seems that the health service under Labour are more than happy to give us prescriptions for drugs for recreational purposes like Viagra on the NHS, in preference to treatment for more serious disorders. So what could be more important, well frankly not a lot, except maybe brain function, since we are engaged in more cerebral matters, most of the time, even if its just think of er having fun. So where is this leading, well the government set up, some "independent" quango type organisation, called NICE to advise on what is and isn't effective treatment, and despite its proven benefits NICE, decided to not recommend Aricept for patients with early Alzheimer's.

Still no need to panic if your Scottish, don't forget the Labour party "Scotland first" policy, so you'll be able to get a prescription for Aricept, if you need it, without even having to pay charges at the chemists, as Terry Pratchet mentions in his article "There is a two-tier NHS, in fact —the Scottish one and the English one"

NICE stands for National Institute for Clinical Excellence of course to give a clearer indication of their purpose, the last word in title needs to be swopped for Excuses rather than excellence.

It comes as no surprise to me that a health service run by a flawed Labour Government, would see recreational drugs like Viagra, on prescription rather than treat an illness such as Alzheimer's which attacks the core of who and what we are. Fortunately for me at this point in time I know who I am and what Labour are, and unlike some of Labour smug leadership I realise that some of the UK's citizens are more equal than others.

The NHS has always promised more than it could offer, of course old dears and the like will always see the positive, in those that work in caring professions and their right, but the simple truth is that our health service is not as good many think and who hasn't had either first hand experience or is aware NHS GP's offering a long wait to see an NHS specialist or that same NHS consultant next week, for a bung, sorry private appointment and this will continue to be the case if you need Aricept since the NHS are spiteful enough to disapprove of patients spending their own money on life enhancing medication.

Why is that Labour can be so nice in Scotland and frankly so mean if you happen to be in England? Still that's a question, you might ask Steve Ladyman, or maybe why can't the health service in England spend £2.50 a day to help delay the onset of Alzheimer's. And if you feel uncomfortable about confronting members of Parliament, or think it rude, just think how much their trousering from the Taxpayer and don't imagine they'll hesitate for a second to ask for your vote when the time comes.

You may think that I'm being unkind to Labour, just chew this over 400,000 people currently suffer from Alzheimer's and assuming that, all could benefit from Aricept, the total cost might be £400,000,000.00, which is a big number, until you remember that the Government had 67 times as much when it found £27,000,000,000.00 in petty cash to save a handful of directors backsides at Northern Rock.

PS The web version of the NOTW appears to wrongly attribute the photograph, at the top of the article

Rising cost of contacting your Doctor

If one thing that has changed under Labour, its the attitude of many health care workers, towards patients. Its not long ago, that a call to a doctors, or any part of our national health service might be answered with arrogance and even hostility, fortunately those days seem to have passed and patients are treated more like paying customers, which most of us are.

Doctors surgeries now seem to accept that patients, ring surgeries, not because they want a chin wag, or that they wish to discuss their medical history with a receptionist, but that they have an issue sufficiently troubling to face the professional scrutiny of their GP. These days generally the only bar to getting an appointment is contacting your surgery early in the day, and here's the downside, for some reason Doctors Surgeries are acquiring new phone numbers that have 0844 as a prefix.

For many of us ringing 0844 costs more than normal, if for instance you pay inclusive local calls, then you will pay 5p per minute (inc VAT) with BT, and for many of us who use our mobile the cost is significantly higher in my case 15p per minute, for most of us a trivial cost, however many on lower incomes this is less trivial particularly on prepay phones. In defence doctors would no doubt suggest that the money they earn with these new numbers, help offset the cost of telephone systems, all well and good, but why not charge for seating in waiting rooms, or install a meter in the doctors room, with say a 5 minute consultation @ £5.00 and £1.00 a minute thereafter maybe a tariff for extras like a couple of quid for each additional medical problem or trivial complaint like a cold or asking for a repeat prescription.

A quick trawl through the NHS website, would suggest that a majority of Thanet surgeries have resisted the temptation to charge patients to contact them, which is what most expect the health service to be, free (after we've been Taxed to pay for it).

I don't doubt that doctors practices are run on business lines, but most businesses consider answering the phone as part of their operating costs like, heat, light, staff, etc.

Still I notice that Eastern and Coastal Kent Primary Health Care Trust are having a "roadshow" event about local services in Broadstairs at the Pavilion between 9am & noon April 30th at which you can ask questions, my question would be is there any danger of having a public meeting at a time which suits not just the elderly, welfare dependent and those unemployed, but those earning a living and paying taxes to fund the health service.

East Kent Hospitals Trust, does it need fixing?

Well if you look at this weeks adscene you will probably not be surprised that yet another non-commercial organisation is doing what the public sector do best, that's right, flushing your money down the drain, with an advertising wrap asking you to be part of the local hospital.

Looking beyond the simple waste, its worth thinking about the motives, behind what is a move to change the structure of the local Trust by changing to a NHS Foundation Trust.

Apparently this will allow less interference, from government in what they do, not surprisingly there is no clearly defined example given in this advert, as to exactly how their being held back or we're being deprived.

Call me a cynic, I note the address is Canterbury based, and what I just wonder is whether, this is a backdoor attempt by the medical establishment, to claw back some of the improvements, in medical provision like A&E that we've had here in Thanet over last few years. I'm sure many will recall the time, when emergency health treatment, was only available at your local hospital in CANTERBURY!

As I say, no strong case is made in this advert, which your paying for, as to whats broken, so why fix it!

I would make a guess that this little campaign, will cost about £6,000 in advertising for this across East Kent , that might be better spent on cleaning etc.

Lets just hope East Kent Hospitals trust aren't just having our pants down on this one. Anyway I said I was givin this a rest for a day or two and having spoken to someone at the trust maybe their motives are well founded.

Patrica Hewitt Health Secretary Visionary or Quack?


Bit strong your thinking, what possible could provoke such a question? Recently the Health Secretary explicitly endorsed the controversial policy of some Health trusts of refusing treatment to the Obese and Smokers.

Consider this, 20% of the adult population have a Body Mass Index of 30 or more this means that in excess of 10 million could be refused treatment to improve their health.

The chairman of the National Obesity Forum Dr Colin Waine is quoted as saying "There is absolutely no evidence that people should be refused treatment if they have a body mass index of 40 or below" adding "Turning down hip or knee replacements for those people has no scientific basis whatsoever"

It seems to me the Patrica Hewitt's is looking for some smoke screen to cover cuts to our health service (admittedly not as lack of money but good old fashioned Labour incompetence and greedy health managers), even if there were some scientific basis to this attack on overweight people, why stop at fat people and smokers, what about drug takers, people with sexually transmitted diseases.

Having been overweight most of my life, I have as you can imagine, had abusive comments, sometimes funny, mostly, there mildly offensive and occasionally loathsome but Patrica Hewitt's idea that I'm not entitled Health Care has to be the most insulting yet.

I consider that as a fifth of the country are clinically obese, in addition to being a health problem it might also be considered a Life Style choice, and since different life styles impinge on health, like politicians talking crap all day, its time to accept access to universal health care as a right, which before Hewitt was a minister, used to be a labour policy.

If this Hewitt woman is serious, could she arrange with Gordon Brown to refund my contributions of the last thirty years, and likewise with the other 10 million to be excluded.

Sunday times story

Blogger in extreme diet breakthrough.

Since my recent health scare, a few days ago, I have embarked on an experiment.

Chicken has become my staple diet, morning, noon and night, I have since, getting out of hospital, eaten little else, but it seems to be working as I have lost 10 pounds in just over a week. Just to give you, an idea of the desperate state I am in this is what I ate tonight.

CHICKEN WITH SPROUTS *

The recipe 2 slices of bacon cut into thin strips, one skinless chicken breast, 250 grams of mushrooms chopped up, fry this in a wok (5 ml cooking oil) until cooked and then add bread sauce mix with milk added in to the wok allow five minutes to bubble away and serve with microwaved Brussels sprouts (leftover from Christmas).


* Copyright Tony Flaig 2006
** any resulting death or injury from following the above recipe, is not my fault if you are stupid enough to attempt this

*** Yes it does taste as good as it looks