General Election

[Midnight_Fairy]

Extremely worrying

 

[sue_88]

Whereas my village has had a brand new state of the art health village opened including same day appointments (similar to a walk in service), GP practice, fully stocked pharmacy and maternity services. It's 10miles from the nearest A&E hospital, of where there was a new cardiac unit opened which is one of the best in the country. So I've seen money being spent where necessary.

In regards to patient transport, I was offered ambulances home after every single scan appointment and reduced movement ctgs. I had 9 different trips into the maternity department outside of my regular community visits. I was single and always on my own but I absolutely do not see that as a reason to be offering me a lift home (2 of which were at 10pm). I refused every time, and told them to stop attempting to waste money, I drove but there was no reason I wouldn't have been able to get a taxi and/or bus.

So I've definitely seen money being spent, and also wasted.

 

[lisa1980]

A&E is unfortunately the dumping ground for a lot of problems within the system. The out of hours GP system which used to be fairly accessible locally (not perfect by any means) is now run through the '111' system which has caused a fair few problems, not least because now the call handlers do not need to have any medical knowledge to allow them to triage but follow an online flow-chart with results that would often be hilarious if they weren't so depressing.

Lindseymw is completely correct - the changes and cuts make it impossible to be patient-focussed. That, imo, is the intended outcome.

 

[lau86]

Lau86, that has been my experience of mental health....however, I was employed under the non-nhs service.

Originally, the IAPT service was a consortium between the NHS and 5 mental health charities. It worked incredibly well as we had a lot of different services (Employment support, drug & alcohol etc) that we could refer to directly. We covered 4 ccgs and had 20+ therapists covering each area. Patients were waiting between 1 & 4 weeks from referral.

After Conservatives came in, they introduced AQP (Any Qualified Provider.) The service had to split up and put in a bid each to continue with IAPT separately. The funding wasn't viable for any of the services. Over night, we went from having 20+ staff in each ccg to 15 staff covering all 4 ccg.

We had a penalty to pay every time we didn't meet targets (no service ever managed to hit the targets.) A year later, funding was cut even further and higher penalties was introduced.

It was no longer patient focused as the service couldn't afford to be. Limits on how many sessions a patient could have came into force.

As we were no longer working with the NHS, we lost the direct referral route to Secondary Care...so anyone needing immediate mental health support had to go back to the GP and ask for referral (just what a person in crisis needs!)

AQP is where the NHS is going and it's not good way to go. Services will go under, the care required will not be given purely because the funding is not there.

As I said before, they have closed 2 hospitals (including Minor Injuries department), closed one walk in centre (none of the GP surgeries provide out of hours services) and in the midst of closing the last one.

A&E is now at breaking point as where people would normally go to the other places, they can't. It's all well and good saying "don't go to A&E unless it's an emergency" but if you require medical attention and there is literally no where else to attend...what are you supposed to do?

It's awful, I hate trying to explain to patients that there's literally nothing we can do except prescribe medication. Our hands are tied. There are soooo many things that need to be changed but until they start listening it's never gonna work. I don't understand... I listen to people who are trained to do a job. I would never try to tell a teacher or someone how to do their job. I have no clue!

 

[Tasha]

I think that's quite unusual though Sue. The hospital where my oldest was born is about to lose its maternity unit as well as its NICU, the hospital I'm under is the next closest NICU but they were give an orange light recently after inspection because only 26 of the beds are open (of a possible 42) because of staff shortages (lack of funding). So seriously ill babies are going to have to be transported out of the area putting their lives at risk. Mum's having problems will have to travel an extra forty minutes (on a good day but rush hour will be close to 90 minutes) to get help. Then there is the lack of children's wards, there are only inpatient ones at one in this part of London now that's for hundreds of thousands of children. My family works on a ward and they are regularly understaffed now (I'm talking they've gone for eight staff to now having three sometimes and some patients are one-on-one) to the point that this person was ill one shift (I mean a tummy bug) and had to stay as there was no way to leave because it'd be dangerous with so little staff but it puts very poorly patients in danger!

Multiple a&e's are closed now, those that are here are well understaffed. There are massive waiting lists for anything mental health related (hubby is on a long waiting list and my little boy was referred to CAMHS in Feb last year, we've had one appointment in all that time).

I was in triage at the maternity unit last weekend and someone asked for transport home they were told no, so I think your experience is unusual (or at least would be here), my neighbour had to fight for his transport home (or rather his SW/career did as he wouldn't of) because he can't go out any more, his chest is very bad now and in winter it is touch and go if he makes it through, he can't make it up and down the stairs without assistance (we live in a third floor flat, they would like to move but no council homes smaller for them) and so transport is the only option. A wheelchair bound lady was refused transport when I was at a difference hospital once because she hadn't prebooked it but no taxi driver would assist her in and out of the car.

It's great services are improving where you are but it is certainly not what the majority are reporting and certainly not what I hear from friends and family who work in the NHS.

 

[lau86]

Whereas my village has had a brand new state of the art health village opened including same day appointments (similar to a walk in service), GP practice, fully stocked pharmacy and maternity services. It's 10miles from the nearest A&E hospital, of where there was a new cardiac unit opened which is one of the best in the country. So I've seen money being spent where necessary.

In regards to patient transport, I was offered ambulances home after every single scan appointment and reduced movement ctgs. I had 9 different trips into the maternity department outside of my regular community visits. I was single and always on my own but I absolutely do not see that as a reason to be offering me a lift home (2 of which were at 10pm). I refused every time, and told them to stop attempting to waste money, I drove but there was no reason I wouldn't have been able to get a taxi and/or bus.

So I've definitely seen money being spent, and also wasted.

Why do they need a 'health village'? I've seen lots of these buildings popping up. What's wrong with the old buildings? As a patient I was with one of these surgeries when I lived in liverpool, it was awful. I didn't go very often but I didn't see the same doctor twice, not very good for continuity of care. The ambulances thing I agree with you, maybe that's a policy they have for single people?
As a patient, I've only felt things are pretty frugal tbh. When I had my second son they wanted to chuck me out an hour after he was born.

Eta I'm going to stop now! I'm not sure I'm helping!

 

[lindseymw]

Tasha, you have just reminded me.

On top of the closures I mentioned, they also closed the Maternity & SCBU where my two were born on the grounds it wasn't needed. I was transferred (via ambulance) to that hospital BOTH times due to there being no spare beds in the hospital I was due to give birth at.

Whilst there, there was 5 other mothers that were transferred on top of the mothers that live locally.

Sue, you are extremely lucky to get all that Health Village but it's certainly not the norm across the country.

 

[sue_88]

The health village was an amalgamation of dîfferent services in the area and the same day service was a new addition to stop people heading to A&E which is 10m away. I have used it once and I had an appontment within the hour (a Saturday).

Where I gave birth to my LO has closed and the nearest maternity unit with NICU is 1hr 20, but there are 3 MLUs in between.

It's hard to form a balance opinion either way when personal experiences are so different. My sister is a nurse so I'm close to the action too and she has nothing but praise, but then she's in the £52m cardiac unit so perhaps again her view is maybe skewed.

 

[lindseymw]

See my Sister is a nurse along with a friend.

My sister works on a seriously short staffed ward (it has been reported by staff many time due to dangerously low levels.) On a typical dat, there is one staff nurse plus one bank Health Assistant (with no ward experience.) The ward in question is mainly elderly. Again, all down to cuts brought in by the Tories.

The friend was a Ward Sister at the hospital that was closed. She has had to take a job that was further away and less pay due to the closure.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

Our maternity unit closed I'm not 45mins away from the nearest maternity ward. Not major for mw as not having any more buthan the service was needed here in a rural community.

Why don't conservatives back wind farms? Frakling (sp?) Scares me. The end of the end. Why have people not considered future generations

 

[icklemonster]

I agree the NHS needs more funding (as most points mention in recent threads centre on spending cuts opposed to privatisation). The problem is we have an increasing elderly population who no longer pay NI to feed into the system and the situation is just going to get worse. In my eyes the only way to balance the books is to raise NI. The only way to ensure amazing public services is high taxes - which obviously wouldn't prove popular with the electorate. For years we overspent on public services and in turn our expectations on our universal healthcare system rose and we enjoyed great success rates in international medicine. If you enjoy a quality of life you can't afford you end up paying the price at some point though I think this is a more pressing issue than privatisation.

 

[Rhio92]

What will happen if/when the human rights act is abolished??? Getting rid of it just doesn't make any sense!

 

[sue_88]

It don't think there's anything wrong with abolishing an Act that lets foreign criminals and terrorists live amoungst us as they have a 'right to family life', and being so controlled by Europe that our Supreme Court stands for nothing.

It will be replaced with a different bill (British Bill of Rights) but criminals will be kicked out and have limited appeal efforts, judgements made by British judges will not be allowed to be overruled by Europe.

 

[lindseymw]

Icklemonster, my experience of privatisation is not that there will be an increase in funding or an increase in care.

Before privatision is fully considered, I'd rather they look at the huge waste of money they spend.

Midnight, they have proposed a number of windfarms around here but there is a large amount opposition from residents. I'm not sure why, I quite like them.

They built some off shore not that long ago. My only gripe with it was they were built and imported from France. There is a steelworks with the capabilities to make them one mile away from the site they were built. That to me is completely wrong.

 

[Quartz]

It don't think there's anything wrong with abolishing an Act that lets foreign criminals and terrorists live amoungst us as they have a 'right to family life', and being so controlled by Europe that our Supreme Court stands for nothing.

It will be replaced with a different bill (British Bill of Rights) but criminals will be kicked out and have limited appeal efforts, judgements made by British judges will not be allowed to be overruled by Europe.

The European Court of Human Rights is different to the European Court of Justice and is a separate entity that works alongside the EU. Designed specfically to ensure that the atrocitites of war etc do not happen.

It has certain inalienable rights that everyone should be entitled to not matter what and I dont think anyone can argue with them (right to life, not be tortured etc.

The often quoted right to family life is in european law stated as below

Article 8 – Right to respect for private and family life
1. Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence.

2. There shall be no interference by a public authority with the exercise of this right except such as is in accordance with the law and is necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security, public safety or the economic well-being of the country, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.

And I dont see anything wrong with that. Its designed to be open ended and certainly terrorists can be excluded. Exactly how is getting rid of it a good thing.

 

[Natsku]

Getting rid of the Human Rights Act is definitely a terrible idea!

Wow sounds like the NHS cuts have been really bad, that's terrible We just elected a right wing coalition government a little while ago and I'm predicting similar things here

 

[Pearls18]

Why do they want to scrap Human Rights? I'm sure there is a reason other than being "Tory tossers" lol, I've not really heard that being discussed much. I'm doing my dissertation on human rights so this could be an interesting angle for me!

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

Does seem pretty odd. I'm still astonished.

 

[icklemonster]

Icklemonster, my experience of privatisation is not that there will be an increase in funding or an increase in care.

Before privatision is fully considered, I'd rather they look at the huge waste of money they spend.

Midnight, they have proposed a number of windfarms around here but there is a large amount opposition from residents. I'm not sure why, I quite like them.

They built some off shore not that long ago. My only gripe with it was they were built and imported from France. There is a steelworks with the capabilities to make them one mile away from the site they were built. That to me is completely wrong.

Sorry hun, I'm not sure which of my posts you are responding to? My last post was centred on raising National Insurance to cover the NHS costs. This would in turn be able to halt most of the privatisation, which appears to only coming about because the NHS is underfunded.
As I said on my penultimate post I know there are examples of privatisation being poor for certain aspects of healthcare (I mentioned infant mortality in the US). In some countries they make a mix of public and private care (albeit free and universal) work very well though and they are rated higher than the UK in terms of survival rates etc. I don't think it is entirely black and white, and I imagine a lot comes down to how it is implemented and for what areas. It sounds like implementation in certain areas in the UK has been a mess. I'm certainly not a fan of total privatisation but I don't see a problem in a small percent for certain areas such as offering private hospital care to long waiting lists or using private providers where there isn't a big enough local need for a hospital to run a whole unit. It all still comes back to if there was enough funding in the first place from higher taxes there wouldn't be such long waiting lists, that you become counter productive by spending more money referring people privately.
I'm interested to hear where you think they are still wasting money? Clearly that needs to stop if so!

 

[emyandpotato]

What does everyone think of these? I know it's Buzzfeed but taken from manifesto so still credible. https://www.buzzfeed.com/tomchivers/manifesto-destiny