NHS. Time to go?

[palatino winotype]

Why does my local hospital's cancer unit depend on charitable donations after the NHS was hosed down with all that taxpayer's money under the Brown terror?

No it's not the nasty Tories. It's been going on for years.

I would have thought that cancer treatment would be the absolute numero uno priority for state funding - way before overseas aid, benefit scroungers etc.

[DodgyAgent]

try live in a place with no 'NHS' such as the USA or Latin America.

You will tulip yourself when you get sick or pregnant or break a leg - because you will have very little idea if you are covered and by which network and what is the co-pay and what are the hospital fees and how many staff fees do you need to cover etc etc etc. Price of medication . It is awful.

...and the free stuff medicare/medicaid - get up early and join a long long queue to get seen, maybe.

The NHS really is worth saving or reforming NOT scrapping.

And there lies the problem. As soon as anyone tries to reform it the vested interests make out that ALL healthcare will be compromised and every sob story gets reeled out to support it. The waste corruption and sheer inefficiency of the NHS is ignored and allowed to grow unchallenged.

[d000hg]

I don't think we had this discussion DA... do you think the NHS should be privatised in the sense of private healthcare where you have to have health insurance (or pay through the nose), or do you reckon a privatised health system could still offer free health care?

[Paddy]

The NHS is over managed and inefficient but any alternative will be worse. Currently if you have a stroke or get cancer; you will be treated. If the same happens to you in the US it would probably bankrupt you even if you have insurance.

[Scrag Meister]

You are a moron. Here's why I think that. HTH, HAND.

I had a similar experience, NOT a heart attack, but came off my motorbike and broke both arms in 2005.

Conscious the whole time, except when they were pinning my arms, all done and dusted in 4-5 hours.
Obviously I had 2 more months off work, thanks goodness I was a perm at the time.

Personally I find morphine highly over-rated, still in a stinking load of pain with quite a dose in me, prob because I am not a little lad.

The NHS may be inefficient, but don't bin it, improve it.

And because of this experience I voted NO!

Long live the NHS.

[OwlHoot]

The NHS may still be there, but it looks as if TimberWolf has gone

Last Activity 17th August 2012 15:34

[Mich the Tester]

And there lies the problem. As soon as anyone tries to reform it the vested interests make out that ALL healthcare will be compromised and every sob story gets reeled out to support it. The waste corruption and sheer inefficiency of the NHS is ignored and allowed to grow unchallenged.

And there lies the problem. As soon as anyone actually reforms you get new vested interests that make out that ALL healthcare will be compromised, i.e. insurers. The waste corruption and sheer inefficiency of the insurance industry is ignored and allowed to grow unchallenged.

[Mich the Tester]

I had a similar experience, NOT a heart attack, but came off my motorbike and broke both arms in 2005.

Conscious the whole time, except when they were pinning my arms, all done and dusted in 4-5 hours.
Obviously I had 2 more months off work, thanks goodness I was a perm at the time.

Personally I find morphine highly over-rated, still in a stinking load of pain with quite a dose in me, prob because I am not a little lad.

The NHS may be inefficient, but don't bin it, improve it.

And because of this experience I voted NO!

Long live the NHS.

whs

I've seen the previously socialised Dutch healthcare system privatised and it's become more expensive, more bureaucratic and now swallows more tax money than ever before.

[Ignis Fatuus]

Well the Turks seem to do alright, and that graph shows they spend much less than us.

So why can't we abolish the NHS and adopt the Turkish system?

In terms of health, life expectancy at birth in Turkey is 74 years, six years lower than the OECD average of 80 years.

(source: OECD)

[tractor]

...

Another option is to go with him to the next appointment. Book an appointment over the phone with the hospital PALS team for an hour before the appointment. Email your PALS contact before you see them outlining all your concerns. Emphasise the cancelled operation. PM me if you like. I've. spent my life working / contracting in the NHS.

^This is good advice