NHS again

Very unfair of you, bags.
I was taken to A&E when I had an aortic dissection the Thursday before Easter 2013. I spent hours in A&E and eventually was found a bed on a ward at 9 p.m.
It wasn't until the following Tuesday that they discovered I had an aortic dissection. Until then I had doctors saying, "Oh, you're the one with back pain, aren't you?" in a very dismissive way.
If they'd sent me home, like one of them wanted to, I might have been dead the next day.
I spent the next week on a HDU in a different hospital. According to your reasoning, I would not have been an emergency, as I managed to last for over four days without a diagnosis. Were you so dismissive of vampire's friend who was told she had an aortic dissection, then sent home with Paracetamol?

I am fortunate to have very little experience of A&E, and what I have had was very good and did not involve long delays in Edinburgh, Blackpool and Vale of Leven Hospitals), so I apologise if my previous post seemed unfair. That was not my intention.

I think the long delays that some people are experiencing are perhaps a sign that A&E facilities are taking up the slack of a somewhat broken health service.

The man who had to wait twenty hours should have been able to get an appointment with his GP.

I think my understanding of "emergency" must be more immediate than perhaps it needs to be; I thought a medical emergency was something that needed immediate medical treatment. Apparently not.

It is right to look at the previous stage of all this - i.e. the GP. I have a very good practice and I can always get an appointment or a phone conversation with a doctor the same day.

I understand that lots of people have to wait days for an appointment and that is probably part of the problem for A&E units. At least one hospital in the midlands is employing GPs as a means of filtering out and giving treatment to those who do not need to be at A&E.

The whole pattern of how people use the NHS is changing and perhaps we need to look at that and think how things might be rearranged to deal with that.

Locally there is a drop-in GP centre at ASDA, presumably funded by the local commissioning group. My DD always goes there rather than the surgery. They book in, ask what the waiting time is, trot off and do their shopping and get back in time for their slot. They then take themselves back into the store to get their drugs if anything has been prescribed. Keeps them out of A&E and gets speedy treatment for something that is not an emergency.

If we did have a like button, I'd have pressed it on reading Mishaps post above.

I'm lucky as well, we have an excellent GP practice, can always be seen on the day if necessary, sometimes wait a week to see our named GP but for those of us with chronic health problems, rather than an urgent need, that's ok with me.

A&E does suffer from people who seem to believe it's there as a right but who could wait to see a GP. Any evening visit to our A&E is always complicated by the presence of people who shouldn't be there. By that, I mean drunks and their support group.

The problem with our GP practice is that if you wish to see a doctor soon, rather than that day as an emergency, you would probably have to wait for 3 weeks. Some things which are not that-day urgent you may want dealt with within a week which is not possible at the moment.

Thanks for starting this thread Mishap I think we are sometimes so busy picking out the failures in the NHS that we forget how wonderful it is. My mother is 92, has many medical conditions and takes a lot of life-saving medication. She has been treated in many hospitals and I am always impressed by the level of care she has been given. Yes there have been times when she has been kept waiting but for the main she has been treated well. The cost of her medication alone must be substantial. I am so grateful to all the medical staff who have cared for her. I always say thank you to them but being able to say a public thank you to all NHS staff is wonderful.

Seems to me vast differences across the country for accessing GP services could be a root problem; I'm lucky, can generally get appointment same day, or speak to a doctor. Ours is a small village practice part of a three practice group.
My very elderly parents, who live in a town 17 miles away, can't get an appointment unless phone at 8.30a.m. if line busy then have to keep phoning and hope appointments not gone- often told 3 week wait. Cannot book subsequent appointment once seen doctor, have to go down same rigmarole all over again.

Our doctors surgery is excellent, as I have said before. We know some have a poor service.

I think it is blindingly obvious there is a huge difference in the NHS and it begs the question why?

Are some practices simply run better?. Is it the location?

As for the debate about the elderly and whether or not the 'known' longer life expectancy has increased the pressure on the NHS I had a look at our local newspaper today at the death notices, as you do. There were 25 deaths, the youngest were 2 people who died in their 60's (65 & 66), the oldest was 101. The average age was 85.65.

It is the case that with our life expectancy increasing it stands to reason the NHS and Social Services will have more cases to deal with. The NHS and Social Services have always been in a position where they areare continually trying to get a round peg in the proverbial square hole.

Here is the A&E consultant's letter but will anyone listen?

www.brightonandhovenews.org/2015/01/07/brighton-ae-doctor-tells-prime-minister-you-lied-about-nhs/36995

Jeremy Hunt does not seem to be around very much in the A&E discussions. Could it be because he took his own children to A&E a while ago, rather than to their GP, thus making the situation worse?

I seem to remember it was on a weekend, when his GP's surgery was closed. What was he supposed to do, durhamjen?

Ring 111 like the rest of us.

Is 111 any better than NHS Direct?

I think that when it comes to A&E anything that needs quicker attention than you can get from a GP would have to count as an emergency. Also, if you have good reason to think that the GP is going to send you to A&E anyway, then going to the GP first is actually increasing the load on the NHS.

The first time my arrhythmia kicked off, I stayed at home and sat it out for 10 hours rather than dial 999, unaware of the damage I was doing to my heart. The second time I did the same, but it hadn't stopped after 14 hours, so I called NHS Direct first, then the surgery, who wanted to know why I couldn't go to them. Two minutes after I hung up the GP called back to say he was sending an ambulance.

Mishap the grievances I have against the NHS are nothing to do with waiting times.

Durhamjen

'Jeremy Hunt doesn't seem to be around very much in A&E discussions'.

I'm sorry but that comment is ridiculous. Perhaps you simply do not take an interest in anything that does not suit your tunnel visioned view of the government/NHS. If you are seriously interested in knowing what he says, whether or not it suits your opinions, watch for yourself the debates that take place in Parliament or on the 24 hour news channels. There is no excuse they are on catch up. I suggest you start with the Labour Urgent Question on A&E 18th December where 10 Labour MP's turned up to back Andy Burnham. You know all about though as it has been mentioned before.

What the hell would you do if you had a child/grandchild needing a medical assessment and your GP was not available or you had a genuine concern for his/her health? He might be a politician but he is a father first and fair play to him I say if his child comes before any concern of what the likes of his enemies think and is concerned for his child's immediate welfare and takes appropriate steps to secure reassurance. I would, wouldn't you?

You have made the reference to Jeremy Hunt taking his child to A&E before and I do not apologise when I say that using a childs health and welfare as a political weapon is not fair game. Then again Miliband has been outed as saying he wants to 'weaponise the NHS' so I guess it's par for the course these days.

There was the case of the left wing Jack Monroe tweeting about David Cameron using his son Ivan to 'score points'. What a -+'"(=#.g@2.

I'm sorry but whether it be David Cameron mentioning his son Ivan or Gordon Brown mentioning his dear daughter Jennifer , or Jeremy Hunt taking his child to A&E I wish people would simply accept they are parents first and politicians second and have every right to do/say/act appropriately in accordance what ever way they feel, the same as the rest of us.

How does one politician taking a child to A&E and that infomation becoming public make any situation in the NHS worse?

Ridiculous comment, dj.

Firstly, having lived abroad and visited OZ and NZ and needed medical treatment (below the insurance level). I'm so relieved that we have the NHS, for all its problems. For example, in NZ late last year my DH realised that he hadn't brought enough of one of his drugs so DD made an appointment for him. Appointment costs and medication cost over £100. For me 4 years ago in OZ, £80 for an appointment and prescription - medical advice at the time was we all needed a whooping cough booster as the school had an infection going on and my youngest grandson was very small and too young for his jab! Neither of these episodes were covered by insurance and we do have a reciprocal policy with both NZ and OZ for emergencies.
I can't begin to think how many people would be unable to manage if we had to have private insurance here to cover the most basic costs.
Secondly, I give my full support to the consultant who composed the letter - why is any government so negative about ensuring the health of its citizens when we are one of the richest countries in the world, I really do not know. It seems our politicians are unable to get a grip on the most important aspects of life but what to do about it??

Circle in talks to exit private contract to run Hinchingbrooke hospital
gu.com/p/44m4e

Another brilliant consequence of privatise at any cost. This Jersey-based bag of commercial and political flops can't make enough money out of the NHS so want to do a runner. Thanks, Dave!

Sigh.

ayse I have found the same; although DH and I have both received emergency care for minor issues in Australia because the NHS has a reciprocal arrangement, anything else is very expensive. I was due a routine blood test when I was there, I had to find a clinic and pay about £80 just for a fbc; when I phoned to ask for the results the doctor was extremely rude.
We take the NHS very much for granted.

That one politician is the one who criticises us for doing just that, bags.
In case you had not realised, Jeremy Hunt is in charge of the NHS.
If he wants us to use 111, he should do so himself.

Crun, this government set up 111 and handed it over to private healthcare. It was then run by people with no health experience, and much of it, especially in the West Country, was then abandoned by Circle as they realised they could not make a profit out of it.

Everyone who has any contact with it knows that 111 is worse than NHS direct, because it is understaffed and under-resourced. However, that does not get over the problem that Jeremy Hunt and David Cameron tell us we should use our GP first or 111 if it is out of hours. Jeremy Hunt thinks that does not apply to him.

I used 111 and it probably saved my life in 2013. Why could Jeremy Hunt not do that for his children? If he had phoned 111 and they had told him to go to A&E, he would have told us so. He did not.

It certainly is a major concern but there are points in the report that are worth noting.

I. They say they have had a 10% funding cut.

2. Labour put Hinchingbrooke Hospital out for tender, the coalition continued the process, which was a long way down the track and had to be legally continued.

3. The hospital spokesman says they cannot cope with the increase in the volume of patients. As is the issue from all hospital accounts.

4. They are like all hospitals struggling to get joined up working with Social Services to free up beds.

5. They like the NHS/government proposals for this to happen but say it is not happening quick enough for it to be assessed.

I am not defending I am making reasonable points.

I think the Simon Stevens plan they are talking of is the Integrating Personal Commission which to me looks well worth doing, it does however start in April and therefore it is justified for the hospital to say it might be too late for them.

The comment re Andy Burnham , shall I call it being slightly more subdued than normal, is correct. That's because Andy Burnham started the privatisation of Hinchingbrooke and has been challenged about his hypocrisy over this many times. The last time I recal seeing a good interview with Burnham over thisl was I think on Daily Politics.

When Burnham put Hinchingbrooke out to tender there was only one NHS Hospital/NHS Area in the running, the others were all private bidders. The NHS hospital,, would have been 'The Preferred Bidder'. I think from memory it might have been Peterborough?? BUT and here is the crux of why the present government are getting accused of privatising Hinchingbrooke, the NHS bidder PULLED OUT leaving the present government with only one choice, to accept under the terms of the bidding process a private provider.

POGS, if I had a child or grandchild needing medical attention I would not go to A&E. I would ring 111, because it works in Durham.
If it does not work in Surrey, that's probably because it was handed over to Virgincare by Jeremy Hunt, something else you can find out on catchup.

Another link for you to sigh about, Mishap.

nhap.org/circle-withdrawal-hinchingbrooke-hospital-shows-folly-nhs-privatisation/

"It seems our politicians are unable to get a grip on the most important aspects of life but what to do about it??"

It's because the voters who elect them would rather spend on private wealth than public wealth. People forget that healthcare, schools, policing, sanitation, refuse collection, roads, libraries, etc. are all wealth that our ancestors didn't have, because they measure their wealth by whether their cars and houses are bigger than their friends'.