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NHS

(564 Posts)
Iam64 Wed 03-Jan-18 19:19:36

The situation we're in this week with the NHS, cancelled operations, frail and ill patients sitting in queues of ambulances outside A and E, etc etc.
The health secretary and PM are insisting they planned well for these pressures. Every doctor/nurse Ive heard interviewed is saying the situation is desperate and that the issue is lack of resources.
Local Authorities funds have been devastated so patients who could be discharged home if social care was available remain in hospital. People stay on trollies in A and E rather than being discharged because there isn't a Consultant available to confirm they ca go home.
Does anyone have a sensible suggestion about how this situation can be improved. I don't see how it can improve without more money, we need to train and support our medical staff.

durhamjen Sat 06-Jan-18 12:03:59

Apparently there were 200 people waiting for an ambulance at St Helier hospital in Surrey.
All those government ministers in the county, including Hunt, and they can't sort out their own NHS services. Not much chance for the rest of us.

Did you miss this, about Surrey?

Anniebach Sat 06-Jan-18 12:08:33

Because of bed blocking, many elderly are put into homes because their families to not see it their responsibility to care for them

whitewave Sat 06-Jan-18 12:11:33

What are you saying now annie?

Primrose65 Sat 06-Jan-18 12:11:47

Jen, it's almost as though you don't want the NHS to work under a Tory government. You're only interested in pointing out shortcomings and faults and laying the blame on one person.

I think it's interesting that when the people working in the NHS run things in the way they think it should be run, they are showing it's better for everyone. I think it's positive that this is happening and I'm pleased they are collecting evidence to prove it.

Anniebach Sat 06-Jan-18 12:20:19

Best read my post whitewave

Luckygirl Sat 06-Jan-18 12:30:34

OT services, provision of aids, provision of adaptations, district nurses - they all arrive from a different companies and the overlap, and waste of resources is crazy, leaving aside that some are motivated by profit. They all have silly names that are trying to convince us that they are jolly and caring - the names themselves just stick in my throat!

I remember with my Dad, he has lots of business cards and letters from all the different organisations and he was at a loss to know who had provided what - and so was I!

durhamjen Sat 06-Jan-18 13:42:56

I want a proper NHS, primrose.
The present government doesn't.
NHS stands for NATIONAL health service, not American style health service.
I prefer to believe those who are working in the NATIONAL health service, not just one area of Surrey.

weownit.org.uk/public-ownership/nhs

Lazigirl Sat 06-Jan-18 13:47:23

I read your post Annie and do not believe many elderly are bed blocking because their families do not see it their responsibility to care for them. My 92 yr old mother fell down the stairs and smashed her leg. She was a so called bed blocker (nasty term that) and had to go into a nursing home for some weeks. We are not young ourselves and physically unable to provide the care she needs. I am sure many are in the same position, and "family caring" often means "women", although there are probably a few male carers too. How many who are working can afford to give up jobs to care for relatives long term?

durhamjen Sat 06-Jan-18 14:02:49

16 jobs for Virgin Care in Surrey; Haslemere Hospital and Milford Hospital.

"We are looking to recruit a band 5 Occupational Therapist to join our rotational scheme within Virgincare Surrey. This is an ideal first rotation for a new graduate but we are also looking for more skilled band 5 clinicians who want to consolidate their clinical skills and start to develop specialist skills, undertake some project work, and enhance their team working and supervision/teaching techniques. The post will be based in South West Surrey within Farnham Hospitals and Camberley centre for Health. Rotations are for 6 months and include inpatient rehabilitation (stroke and older people), Community Rehabilitation and rapid response. "

Note it's even called Virgincare Surrey.
Checking CQC ratings for Surrey hospitals shows that very few have a rating. That means that most of them are private.
That might be what the people of Surrey want and can afford, but it doesn't make it a NATIONAL Health Service.

Lazigirl Sat 06-Jan-18 14:11:04

The irony is dj that most of the professionals working for these private companies were probably trained by the good old NHS.

durhamjen Sat 06-Jan-18 14:19:25

Exactly, Lazigirl.
This is very opportune. I have just received this email in my inbox.

pbs.twimg.com/media/DSzmQW0WAAEKyMy.jpg:large

durhamjen Sat 06-Jan-18 14:23:07

Chris Grayling, MP for Epsom and Ewell, Surrey, with Epsom and St Helier Hospital Trust in his constituency.
Fortunately the other half is in the constituency of Tom Brake, LibDem MP, who is trying, hopelessly, to get an extra £400,000 for his hospital.
I believe St Helier was the one where Hunt ran away from reporters last year.

durhamjen Sat 06-Jan-18 14:36:32

Lazigirl, my mum, who had been anurse all her working life, used to tell us that she looked after her mum until she died.
When her mum died, my mum was 27. My brother was two years old, just, and I was three months, so that was her job at the time. In fact the house they lived in was the one where my grandmother had given my mum and dad all her money to pay the deposit after my brother was born, so my grandmother owned more of the house than they did.
When my parents died, they were 87 and 83, and none of us could look after them. Our houses weren't suitable.
They looked after each other in a ground floor flat until my mother had to go into a nursing home after she fell.

It's very trite to say that we should be looking after our elderly. Not so easy these days.

OurKid1 Sat 06-Jan-18 15:40:49

It's all very well to say that people should look after the elderly ... but as others have said above, there are many times when circumstances just do not allow that. Both my parents had dementia and needed 24 hour nursing care, which we were not able to provide as we are not nurses. We did not 'put' either of them into Nursing Homes. There was no choice for their own safety and well-being. While they were there, I saw no residents who could safely have been cared for by relatives. I did, however, see many relatives visiting their loved ones and caring as much as they could, while medically trained staff provided what they are trained to do - health care.

durhamjen Sat 06-Jan-18 22:23:56

www.theguardian.com/healthcare-network/2018/jan/05/government-confront-pressures-nhs

durhamjen Sun 07-Jan-18 10:22:36

This is from a doctor in Brighton before Christmas.

evolvepolitics.com/an-nhs-doctors-heartbreaking-facebook-post-is-going-viral-and-everyone-in-britain-needs-to-read-it/

durhamjen Sun 07-Jan-18 10:30:53

Response to May on Marr. Some people not very happy.

twitter.com/hashtag/nhscrisis?f=tweets&vertical=news&src=hash

durhamjen Sun 07-Jan-18 13:03:27

Channelfour factcheck on Tory NHS selective number crunching.

www.channel4.com/news/factcheck/the-number-of-people-waiting-over-four-hours-in-ae

Morgana Sun 07-Jan-18 22:20:42

Very irate at the lies. She is becoming a fantasist - she'll be waving her hands around next and talking about fake news. T.M we do not believe you!!

durhamjen Sun 07-Jan-18 22:33:19

The last time May said she was in it for the long haul she called an elction the next week, didn't she?

durhamjen Sun 07-Jan-18 22:39:08

Just been said on the BBC newspaper review that May doesn't have human reactions!

durhamjen Sun 07-Jan-18 22:56:19

Good article here by Zoe Williams.
Here's the fantasy, Morgana.

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jan/07/nhs-falling-apart-theresa-may-evasions-crisis

durhamjen Sun 07-Jan-18 23:18:39

Morgana, I wonder if May realised what she said, that 55,000 cancelled appointments were part of the plan?
If so, she's even more incompetent than anyone realised.

Newquay Sun 07-Jan-18 23:21:28

I always think when there's a problem like this (understatement there!) you should always begin by talking to the folks "at the coal face" be it medics, police, prison officers etc.
They are the ones who know what is not working and how it could be improved.
No doubt that more cash is needed but. . . . We cannot keep on treating more and more folks who arrive here and have not contributed to the system-they should have insurance and have to pay surely! We have a NATIONAL health service not an INTERNATIONAL health service.
I would also think re-introducing proper licensing laws would reduce the number of drunks we have who need treatment and the breweries/pubs etc who benefit from this trade should contribute to the after effects too. The drunks themselves should be charged too-as in the "olden days" when they were fined for being "drunk and disorderly/incapable"

trisher Mon 08-Jan-18 09:33:43

I would imagine that the people whose operations have been cancelled are now quite cross wiith Mrs May for not letting them know they were part of her plan.
As far as bed-blocking goes I think one of the problems is that people leaving hospital sometimes need special adaptations or facilities in their homes and have to wait until these are done. A lot of old people leave hospital and want to stay as independent as they can be.