NHS or Private.

Oopsminty, What Tony Blair did was to attempt to bring waiting lists down by opening up healthcare, meaning that you could be offered your surgery in a private hospital with the NHS picking up the tab. My wife had one of her operations in New Hall Hospital, just outside Salisbury. She told me that whilst she had a private room, those admitted through the NHS scheme had a small ward where they were all put together.

It would be interesting to know if anyone has had any such offer, and, would you take it up?

It also seems to depend on where you live as to what treatment/s are available/not available on the NHS.

Quizqueen whats wrong with owning your own home and believing that all children are entitled to equality in education?

To all those 'principled' socialists who are against private hospitals, private schools etc. because it's not fair that others can't afford them .. I hope you don't live in your own privately owned house because that would be extremely ironic!

Quite a few family members work in the NHS

There are so many reasons why it's failing and it's not necessarily lack of money. They could throw trillions at it and it still wouldn't be fit for purpose as is.

We need to look to Europe for a better way to fund our health service.

So much has changed since the NHS was set up. Sophisticated treatment, expensive drugs. State of the art equipment, a larger population. The ability to keep people alive who would have died 70 years ago.

It's a sacred cow and any politician trying to change it will be in for a rough ride.

Tony Blair did start privatising parts of the NHS. So it's wrong to just point the finger at the Tories.

www.theguardian.com/society/2006/feb/16/health.politics

Also all this talk of Trump getting his hands on it.

I don't believe he'll be President for much longer somehow.

I can see no problem if you want to pay. Your money your choice and someone else moves up the NHS line
If one went out to buy a car for thousands of pounds car but said they couldn’t afford to have a private operation few people would say that wasn’t fair.

At least now we have a choice

Correction Elegran only some people have a choice .

PS due to Covid-19

The waiting time for certain privately funded operations is about the same as the NHS. I only know this as I’ve just enquired this week. As it’s the same surgeon I’ll save my pennies.

Our NHS is so important to the country and I used to think that the private sector was detrimental to it.
If I had waited for the NHS to sort out the BCC on my nose I would still be waiting and instead of a reasonably small dent in the tip I might have had to lose a much bigger chunk.
I did give the NHS first dibs but my GP told me I would have to wait a long time.

Thanks for the link Elegran. I can't understand why any politician would vote against protecting the NHS. It's so scary to rhink we could end up like the US. And sad.

At least now we have a choice. If Trump has his way, the NHS will be on the table in the US trade deal.

Johnson promised to "take back control" and "keep the NHS off the table", but over 300 of his MPs have voted against parliamentary scrutiny and NHS protection in the Trade Bill debate. It will soon be run for profit, and the proceeds will go into the pockets of US shareholders, and those Brits who would sell their granny's health for a share in the spoils. We will end up with a health service like the States - great if you have lots of money or if your work picks up the tab for insurance, not so great if you are retired on a small pension or unemployed.

It still has to go to the Lords. There is a petition asking them to please amend the Trade Bill to give parliament a say over trade deals and protect our NHS. weownit.org.uk/lords-NHS-trade-bill-petition

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that if I could afford private health care I would go for it. I believe in choices, and if I had the choice, rather that sit in a waiting list for many months, I would do so.
I've had wonderful help from the NHS and am very grateful for their care and help, but it's the waiting that is so hard to cope with.

I have always said that if I won the lottery my first purchase would be private health care for all the family. My last roles in the NHS involved close working with the private sector through the commissioning process as we worked through waiting list backlogs so I definitely see both sides of the argument spangler. In recent years I have had a few operations and procedures and have been very fortunate to have prompt and high quality care in the NHS. I do however have private insurance for dental care mainly because at one time I had a dreadful fear of having any dentistry. I feel the private dentist does give me the extra time and attention I need not to have the vapours in the surgery. However I would say the BUPA practice I intend has astronomical bills - may have to look round for another when I move house.

I paid for a major operation for cancer treatment privately, 6 years ago. The tests, scans and operation were all completed within 10 days and I was back at home.
I received an appointment for an initial NHS consultation for the problem within 4 weeks, but of course by that time I had had my op and was well on the way to recovery.

We don’t have private health insurance, we used the funds we had put aside to upgrade the car.

I am a strong supporter of the NHS and as a disabled woman, I have benefitted hugely from its treatment and care over many years.

The consultant who treated me privately works for 90% of his time as an NHS surgeon. I don’t consider that I queue jumped or abused NHS resources. I paid for urgent treatment and had it in a private hospital.

My partner has done likewise, with a chronic condition which has an NHS waiting list of years.

I agree, guilt shouldn't come into it. Ì think my guilt comes from being poor and now having no financial worries. Silly I know. We have earned our money honestly and I realise we have been very lucky, but I suppose I just have never got used to it; old habits die hard.

Your money buys you privilege: first class travel, private education, private healthcare. It may not buy you happiness but it buys you comfort. Unfortunately most people have to wait for the NHS queue, travel economy, go to state schools. But as others have said you can have good or bad experiences in either, for health it's the quickness that appeals mostly!

I don't understand why "guilt" should come into it. Your money is just that; it's yours, to do with as you wish. You can spend it on private education, fast cars, foreign holidays, betting on the horses or private medical treatment; the choice is yours. And for every bed that you're not taking up in the NHS, you're leaving one free for someone else who can't afford to pay. Win win.

I can’t understand why anyone should feel guilty for buying themselves out of pain or discomfort . If I had the money my poorly mouth would’ve been sorted months ago, my DH would have had his operation too and I wouldn’t feel in the slightest bit guilty .

Likewise if I had money I would retire and end the mental torture I put myself through 5 days a week .

Gillybob money doesn't guarantee happiness but it sure helps.

I can't speak for others but my NHS treatment has always been as good as my, albeit limited, experience of private. I have no hesitation in paying for private if it cuts the waiting time and if I can afford it.. If waiting time is the same I would opt for NHS.
I can't afford totally private healthcare but if I could I would have it as there is generally only a short waiting time and it lessens the burden in the NHS.

I think the NHS is wonderful. I would hate to see us going the same way as the US.

I think people are entitled to spend their money as they wish. Using private health care does not mean one doesn't support the NHS.
I think there are good and bad services whether or not you have private care or use the NHS.

If i had had money i wouldn't have endured so many months of debilitating pain before being allowed an MRI scan on my back and the resulting spinal injection for a nerve block.

If i had money or a health plan i would defo use it, good health is so important, plus it would free up a space for someone else on the NHS waiting lists.

I am sometimes puzzled when I see complaints about waiting times and deteriorating health, and can't understand why people don't pay for private treatment, especially if it is a life-threatening situation. It would never occur to me to consider it as "queue jumping". If I didn't have the money to have life saving treatment, I would even consider taking out a loan for private treatment (if my circumstances permitted that) rather than hope the NHS would come through.

I am currently putting money aside to pay for private treatment for something that is "no longer available on the NHS" (says my GP); it absolutely cannot be left untreated. So there are those situations too.

I have used private health care on two occasions - for a hip replacement about 6 years ago. I chose to do this as I was to conduct an important concert a few months hence and wanted to be able to walk. The care at the private hospital was horrible - the sister was positively rude to me; the pain relief was abysmal (I have two conditions which mean there are things I cannot take); when I reacted badly to one of the drugs, it took them hours to deal with it; I went into AF and finished up on the NHS coronary care unit - and guess what?.....the hip still pains me badly now. Heaven knows what they did, but it did not work. The only gain was that my hip no longer locks in place.

The second occasion was when the NHS had misdiagnosed me. I was treated for one foot fracture, but they missed another, with the result that I now walk with a stick outdoors. The private consultant made the proper diagnosis, but it was too late to do anything about it except fuse all the bones in my foot, which I refused as it has a high failure rate.

So - yes I would use private where there was a good reason to avoid waiting, or the NHS had failed me - but it is all a bit academic now as I could not afford private any more - most of our savings vanished like water down a drain in paying for OH's care. That is quite another political hot potato.

J52

Not necessarily, my Aunt had a digestive tract problem. Not life threatening, but uncomfortable. She chose to have an operation to rectify the situation, privately.
It was in two parts, part one went well and when it was healed, the second operation was performed. Again in the private hospital. After a couple of days she was sent home. Within 48 hours she was rushed to the NHS hospital with complications, unfortunately she died. There could have been a negligence case, but no one wanted the emotional upset.
That was 7 years ago, last year her daughter was rushed to the local NHS hospital because she had septicaemia due to the same ( but unknown to her) problem. Emergency operation and different procedure. She’s fit and well now.
I’m not saying one is definitely better than the other, but when the chips are down the NHS comes through! And we need to protect it!

We do need to protect the NHS and I am surprised that the private hospital you mentioned wasn't investigated, or maybe it was.

You might remember the scandal at Stafford NHS Trust. www.nhs.uk/news/medical-practice/mid-staffs-inquiry-calls-care-failings-a-disaster/ That was certainly investigated and recommendations made.