The ultimate NHS indignity: Body of hospital patient left to die in corridor is ignored for hours...

Truly is a tragic story. No healthcare system is perfect, what's more worrying is the fact that the NHS is facing the possibility of major cut backs in staff and funding which could likely lead to more of these horror stories some time in the future.

The NHS is one of our nation's greatest assets and it needs to be protected from cuts and privatisation.

reply to post by zookey


From personal experience and I have had my fair share with the NHS, good nurses are few and far between. I will never knock the surgeons and the oncologists who have looked after me, but some of the nurses have been downright rude and uncaring. I have been left in rooms for hours without people checking in on me, thats after having major brain surgery under general anesthetic.

I still love the NHS, I would not be here without them, I certainly would never have afforded the 2 brain surgeries, 2 rounds of chemo and 6 weeks radiotherapy. Not to mention the access to MRI machines whenever I need, counselling services and the daily medication.

Still there does need to be changes, changes in the attitudes more than anything.

It must be the level of training over here in the uk,there seem to be a lot of incompetent people employed on the nhs.I don't blame the people that work for the nhs because they do the best they can but the system and how they are trained needs to be revised.I had a problem whilst in the us and had to visit a health centre and i was amazed at how proffesional and competent they were compared to back in the uk.If i ever had anything serious wrong with me i'd prefer to use my life savings and pay for the right service rather than leave my life in the hands of the nhs.

Originally posted by woodwardjnr
reply to post by zookey

 

From personal experience and I have had my fair share with the NHS, good nurses are few and far between. I will never knock the surgeons and the oncologists who have looked after me, but some of the nurses have been downright rude and uncaring. I have been left in rooms for hours without people checking in on me, thats after having major brain surgery under general anesthetic.

I still love the NHS, I would not be here without them, I certainly would never have afforded the 2 brain surgeries, 2 rounds of chemo and 6 weeks radiotherapy. Not to mention the access to MRI machines whenever I need, counselling services and the daily medication.

Still there does need to be changes, changes in the attitudes more than anything.

Absolutely, every healthy country needs a good healthcare system for everybody but I am baffled how other European countries can run a GREAT healthcare system yet the British cannot.

The same can be said for the trains and so on.

Scandinavia is very socailist, great services. UK, well they claim to be but arn't really, poor services.
People in Scandinavia are proud to pay their high taxes, they get it all back in their lifetime.
People in the UK whinge, moan gurn about taxes (which are less than Scandinavia), moan about getting bugger all in their lifetime.

Seems to be a pattern.

reply to post by zookey


Our healthcare system is much better than alot of the European nations. The Scandinavian countries always have been the most egalitarian and best performing when it comes to public services so it's no that they are looked at as a model for success and are looked up to by many people. Also bare in mind that many of the countries with the very best healthcare systems also have substantially higher taxes.

I'd rather have a system which treats everyone with a decent level of care, than a system which treats only the wealthiest with the best level of care.

Originally posted by lifeissacred
reply to post by zookey

 

Our healthcare system is much better than alot of the European nations. The Scandinavian countries always have been the most egalitarian and best performing when it comes to public services so it's no that they are looked at as a model for success and are looked up to by many people. Also bare in mind that many of the countries with the very best healthcare systems also have substantially higher taxes.

Yes I pay those higher taxes. I have no problem paying those higher taxes as I know I get it back in other ways. So why it every Brit I talked to complains that all the best Cancer treatments are going to other European countries and they are not getting them. Every Brit I talk to moans about paying taxes, which are less than what I pay.

I have experienced British healthcare, I have experienced Scandinavia healthcare. I know which one I would choose anyday (Hint: It's not the NHS).

For gods sakes, the NHS is still promoting MERCURY in vaccinations and dentistry! WTF??? Is that the best healthcare? Hell no way. Banned in Scandinavia.

It is like chalk and cheese, Scandinavia knows that a healthy nation is a productive nation that is also why Sweden had a state run alchocol stores, Systembolaget. Because they know it affects the entire nation's productivity.

They do the right thing, invest in services for the people so they can go out and be productive (not overworked productive, but smart healthy productive).

Just pointing out an observation I have had first hand.

Canadian hospitals are far better than this it seems, even if the patient has no insurance, though there may be exceptions, those exception are not the norm.

One evening I arrived early for work as a porter. So I got a cup of tea and went to the staff smoke room. Which was at the rear entrance to the car park. A patients smoking room was next to it and access to these rooms, was via a small corridor with a door at each end. On entering the corridor I almost slipped as a patient had been sick. I thought every one leaves and enters from the car park (staff) plus if any one wants a smoke they will have to come here. So I went to the cleaning dept and informed them. They said as its body fluids then they couldnt do anything about it. A nurse would have to clean it. So I returned to the smoking room and told the nurses there what the cleaning dept had said. I then asked if any one would like to help me clean it up. Every one of them turned away and ignored me. I said you are nurses and health and safety comes first in your profession? Yet every one of you, are going to tramp this sickness all over the hospital and wards? I cleaned it myself. This was staff coming on shift and going off. I didnt stay at the job and I now hate having to go into hospital. This wasnt a management problem. It was a basic thing. Nurses tramping sickness all over the hospital.

Originally posted by illuminnaughty
One eveing I arrived early for work as a porter. So I got a cup of tea and went to the staff smoke room. Which was at the rear entrace to the car park. A patients smoking room was next to it and access to these rooms, was via a small corridor with a door at each end. On entering the corridor I almost slipped as a patient had been sick. I thought every one leaves and enters from the car park (staff) plus if any one wants a smoke they will have to come here. So I went to the cleaning dept and informed them. They said as its body fluids then they couldnt do anything about it. A nurse would have to clean it. So I returned to the smoking room and told the nurses there what the cleaning dept had said. I then asked if any one would like too help me clean it up. Every one of them turned away and ignored me. I said you are nurses and health and safety comes first in your profession? Yet every one of you, are going to tramp this sickness all over the hospital and wards? I cleaned it myself. This was staff coming on shift and going off. I didnt stay at the job and I now hate having to go into hospital. This wasnt a management problem. It was a basic thing. Nurses tramping sickness all over the hospital.

edit on 8-6-2011 by illuminnaughty because: (no reason given)

Whistle blow them to the local paper.

My god, look at Norway for clean hostpitals, they also have the lowest incidents of MSRA due to their work style.

Solution to killer superbug found in Norway

reply to post by zookey


Yes we are a notorious nation of moaners I 100% agree. You can blame the Thatcherite mentality for that, for making the 'competitive society' where everyone is selfish and afraid of each other.

I never said we have 'the best' system, I said we have a decent system, much better than what many people are faced with, I'd love to have healthcare like the Scandinavians do but I'm not going to bad mouth the NHS like the vitriolic tabloid drones, because I see the good in it and it's a symbol of a society that cares about the people and doesn't look at healthcare as a consumer product.

Be grateful that this one incident was enough to spark outrage and will probably ruin the hospital's reputation. Here in the States, that sort of thing happens every single day.