Blair Broadcasting

[John Galt]

The BBC have been banging on all day about the amount of money that doctors can earn as a result of their new contracts http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4917454.stm . They claim that the wage increases for GP's are partly to blame for the current NHS crisis and in the same text they have Bliar defending his decision to offer the wage increases. Now, call me cynical, but doesn't this look like NL trying to shift the blame? A case of 'it's not our fault - blame all these greedy doctors'. There have also been reports of teachers complaining because their jobs are as 'essential and beneficial' but they earn nowhere near as much - I wonder if that's because your average teacher hasn't trained for donkey's years and can't save lives? IMHO NL are preparing us for communism by any other name - still it's only fair

[DimPrawn]

Have I ever mentioned we're all DOOMED?

[DaveB]

It's not about how good the doctors are at "curing" people it's about how good they are with the book keeping.

This is how it works.

There is a points system in place with each point "scored" being worth a set amount of money. POints are accrued by carrying out basic procedures and meeting targets in terms of patients treated.

For example, GP's carry out routine cholesterol level tests on patients with heart disease. If they test at least 95% of the eligable patient population they score 100 points.

If they then actively control the cholestoerol level of those patients they score another 100 points.

Similarly if they innoculate a certain percentage of their "at risk" group for influensa, they score more points.

And what do points make?


Anyway, the govt in it's wisdom decided that GP's weren't doing enough of this sort of thing and decided to "incentivise" them by bringing in the points system.

Most GP's were already doing these things. The only extra work they are now doing is to fill in the govt forms saying exactly how many patients they have treated for what and totting up the scores.

End result, no real increase in "productivity" but a whopping bill for all the "extra" work being done.

If I recall correctly the GMC actually tried to tell the govt the new contract wasn't needed but it was pushed through anyway.

[Lucifer Box]

Have I mentioned previously that stabbin' is too good for this load of monkeys?

No, but I really think you should.