A sad state of affairs....

[Fleegle]

...when you are penalised for having worked all your life.

To set the scene, I had a racing accident 2 weeks ago. Nothing serious or life threatening, but having seen a mate suffer an identical injury last year, was concerned about infection.

Over the last 2 weeks I have been to my GP's 5 times so the nurse can clean the wound and redress it. I have another 3 appointments to go to, but was left gobsmacked yesterday when the nurse said she was going to give me a prescription for dressings which I need to bring with me next time.

Is the NHS in such a state that I have to take dressings with me? Or is the practice taking the piss.

I wonder if the same thing would have happened to a single mother with a fleet of kids, or a yoof with his jeans hanging round his knees?

30 years of clean health and throwing money at the NHS. WTF.

[voyds9]

Yes it probably would, however, they would be entitled to free prescriptions so it wouldn't cost them. But they would probably kick up a stink about having to stop off at the pharmacy to collect it.

[Four Cofffee]

The NHS is run for the convenience of the accounants and the staff, not the patient. As soon as you realise that what they do all falls into place. Also, what choice do you have but to do as they instruct?

Imagine the car dealership asking you to pop into the motor factors and collect the parts for your vehicle servicing? How long would their business last?

My recent experiences with the NHS at every level, from community care, hospitals, out-of-hours, emergency care and complaints is that we have thrown vast sums of money into a very large, very black hole.

Using the car dealer analogy; their mechanics are too busy reading the customer service protocols to actually take any personal interest in fixing the car or getting you back on the road. You take your car in for service and never know when the work will start, the mechanics don't talk to the spares dept or to you, and while it is in for service no valeting is done and if you are not careful they use your diesel. They expect YOU to stand guard over the car, make sure the mechanics do their job and stamp the service book. When it comes to collecting the car they keep you hanging about becasue they can't find the keys or the service manager to authrise release. Overall you get a shiocking bill, the mechanics take time off to suit themselves and don't give a st about whether your car breaks down again as long as its off their forecourt.

[Puggit]

Four Cofffee said:

Using the car dealer analogy; their mechanics are too busy reading the customer service protocols to actually take any personal interest in fixing the car or getting you back on the road. You take your car in for service and never know when the work will start, the mechanics don't talk to the spares dept or to you, and while it is in for service no valeting is done and if you are not careful they use your diesel. They expect YOU to stand guard over the car, make sure the mechanics do their job and stamp the service book. When it comes to collecting the car they keep you hanging about becasue they can't find the keys or the service manager to authrise release. Overall you get a shiocking bill, the mechanics take time off to suit themselves and don't give a st about whether your car breaks down again as long as its off their forecourt.

I'm struggling to work out if this is a metaphor or a real dealership

[Fleegle]

Four Cofffee said:

My recent experiences with the NHS at every level, from community care, hospitals, out-of-hours, emergency care and complaints is that we have thrown vast sums of money into a very large, very black hole.

And that's the bit that pisses me off the most. 30 years of subscription, and I don't even get dressings free.

The next question is - are the dressings I need to help the NHS with, of less value than the cost of the prescription. My head is telling me yes.
Great - a double whammy fisting.

[mechsympathy]

The GP is a private business sub-contracting to the NHS, so they're getting the NHS to pay for the dressings. Most people who need lots of dressings don't pay for prescriptions and it probably hasn't occurred to the nurse that you do.

[hornetrider]

Four Cofffee said:

Using the car dealer analogy; their mechanics are too busy reading the customer service protocols to actually take any personal interest in fixing the car or getting you back on the road. You take your car in for service and never know when the work will start, the mechanics don't talk to the spares dept or to you, and while it is in for service no valeting is done and if you are not careful they use your diesel. They expect YOU to stand guard over the car, make sure the mechanics do their job and stamp the service book. When it comes to collecting the car they keep you hanging about becasue they can't find the keys or the service manager to authrise release. Overall you get a shiocking bill, the mechanics take time off to suit themselves and don't give a st about whether your car breaks down again as long as its off their forecourt.

Tosh.

OP - where do you live? Your local PCT may simply have no money. It be one of them postcode lotteries, I think you'll find.

[Fer]

I had the same thing a while ago. Went to the doctors due to a hole in my elbow, and they said they should have given me a prescription for the dressings, but they "borrowed" it from another patient to dress my wound.

[aclivity]

Four Cofffee said:

My recent experiences with the NHS at every level, from community care, hospitals, out-of-hours, emergency care and complaints is that we have thrown vast sums of money into a very large, very black hole.

My recent experience of the NHS is almost the exact opposite, every level of care has been carried out by motivated and really caring people, doing the best they possibly can (often in difficult circumstances) to get the treatment completed and not just getting the patient out of their care.

The difference may be that the experience I have is with children's medical care (Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool, pediatric after care in Wigan PCT). Perhaps doctors and nurses who choose to work with children are better motivated?

Or perhaps I'm one of the people at the bottom of the black hole with money being thrown at me.

[ccgoose]

tail end of last year injured my shoulder pretty bad, 3 times i went to a & e (couldn't mvoe my arm for 3 weeks) to get it scanned and checked. Only when i got to see a friend of my dad's did he realised the severity of the situation and the fact i'd barely slept since i'd done it (even i thought i looked rough!!) needless to say shortly after seeing him it was clear what i'd done and he sorted me out.

If i'd not seen him i would probably still be struggling around now!! It's not what you know.....

[AndrewW-G]

aclivity said:

Four Cofffee said:

My recent experiences with the NHS at every level, from community care, hospitals, out-of-hours, emergency care and complaints is that we have thrown vast sums of money into a very large, very black hole.

My recent experience of the NHS is almost the exact opposite, every level of care has been carried out by motivated and really caring people, doing the best they possibly can (often in difficult circumstances) to get the treatment completed and not just getting the patient out of their care.

The difference may be that the experience I have is with children's medical care (Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool, pediatric after care in Wigan PCT). Perhaps doctors and nurses who choose to work with children are better motivated?

Or perhaps I'm one of the people at the bottom of the black hole with money being thrown at me.

Think it's somewhere in between, bean counters dont care, management are trying to fix it but hampered by government setting "targets" & coming up with new initiatives rather than allowing them to concentrate on the basics and the doctors and nurses must care as who'd go through all that hooha and hassle for relatively low pay (comparing nurse's salary and condtions to a PC and Doctor to crooked humourless tts solicitor)

The post identifying that most prescriptions are used by people who get them free is spot on, I'm diabetic and get any and ALL my prescriptions free, yet other's with equaly serious conditions dont e.g. people with Asthma

[Tony*T3]

Move to Wales....?

[Mr E]

Fleegle said:

but was left gobsmacked yesterday when the nurse said she was going to give me a prescription for dressings which I need to bring with me next time.

Everytime I've damaged myself badly enough to require dressings changed professionally, I've had to get them on prescription...

[Lucie W]

I had to have dressings on my foot every 2 days for about 6 weeks recently. I found the service to be excellent. They used the most expensive stuff they had, some dressings containing flecks of silver, which aids healing. I couldn't be bothered to keep driving to the doctors all the time, so the nurse gave me a bag with probably £40 worth of dressings etc so that I could do it myself for a while. Luck of the draw.

[bogwoppit]

Not to be contrary, but how do dressings differ from other sorts of prescription? I don't get free antibiotics, super painkillers etc because I can afford their modest cost. When my life is hanging in the balance after a big accident however, I can be sure the necessary tens of thousands will be spent on me without needing to come up with the cash first. Prescriptions are for small and regular things.

And it hasn't been pointed out yet but it should be obvious: if the dressings cost less than £7.20 or whatever it has gone up to, you don't have to use the prescription... In fact I choose to pay for everything on prescription because my health insurance pays for it. No need to thank me

[TryingHard]

When my son was born 18 months ago he had an umbilical hernia. A couple of times we visited the out of hours GP (we couldn't push the hernia in and were told to always report it) who sent us straight to the local hospital. No problem and would rather get it checked out.

Arrive about 9pm, having not had time for food etc. and the nurse directs us to a private room. Asks my wife if she would like something to eat (crappy sandwiches but food is food). As I played such a fking unimportant role in the birth of my son I wasn't offered anything to eat: "We only give food to the mothers". What the fk, the canteen is fking closed and we will have to sit here until 4am until somebody sees us and I can't even fking get a shrivelled up fking sandwich to eat because I only supplied the fking sperm...and to top it of they cut the inroom TV off at 10pm....great!!

[Fleegle]

The cost doesn't concern me. £7.20 is a couple or three pints. It won't be missed.

What concerns me is that after contributing 30 years worth of taxes, I am being asked to contribute even further. As stated earlier, I have always enjoyed good health, and have not been a burden to the NHS.

Can the same be said for the malingerers with 'bad backs', stress, or the other faux illnesses that seem to be widespread in this country of lazy swampdonkeys? I have contributed and shall continue to do so, but I can't see the NHS getting the same value from these people.

Maybe if they were forced to pay for their prescriptions, their illnesses would disappear as fast as they arrived. The NHS would then have less pressure and would maybe able to afford to give me something back!

[Puggit]

TryingHard said:

When my son was born 18 months ago he had an umbilical hernia. A couple of times we visited the out of hours GP (we couldn't push the hernia in and were told to always report it) who sent us straight to the local hospital. No problem and would rather get it checked out.

Arrive about 9pm, having not had time for food etc. and the nurse directs us to a private room. Asks my wife if she would like something to eat (crappy sandwiches but food is food). As I played such a fking unimportant role in the birth of my son I wasn't offered anything to eat: "We only give food to the mothers". What the fk, the canteen is fking closed and we will have to sit here until 4am until somebody sees us and I can't even fking get a shrivelled up fking sandwich to eat because I only supplied the fking sperm...and to top it of they cut the inroom TV off at 10pm....great!!

Mothers are fed because they should be breast feeding.

TV is cut off because it's free to children, and they should be asleep then!

[Gring]

Wife popped into hospital one morning a couple of weeks ago for nothing major at all, she was surprised that after her appointment the nurse said to her 'If I were you, I would use this as an excuse to take the rest of the day off.' My wife replied, 'Unlike you I dont look for excuses to skive, I have a job to do!'
This really sums up the NHS. Most of the time whilst we were waiting for her appointment, the receptionists were just huddled around chatting about their weekend. Alot of NHS staff would have a very rude awakening if they were to change jobs and work in the real world.

[Four Cofffee]

hornetrider said:

Four Cofffee said:

Using the car dealer analogy; their mechanics are too busy reading the customer service protocols to actually take any personal interest in fixing the car or getting you back on the road. You take your car in for service and never know when the work will start, the mechanics don't talk to the spares dept or to you, and while it is in for service no valeting is done and if you are not careful they use your diesel. They expect YOU to stand guard over the car, make sure the mechanics do their job and stamp the service book. When it comes to collecting the car they keep you hanging about becasue they can't find the keys or the service manager to authrise release. Overall you get a shiocking bill, the mechanics take time off to suit themselves and don't give a st about whether your car breaks down again as long as its off their forecourt.

Tosh.

OP - where do you live? Your local PCT may simply have no money. It be one of them postcode lotteries, I think you'll find.

Its one of those 'couldn't give a stuff' lotteries. They have lots of money to trial discharge nurses who frankly are inept and unintersted (quote 'we never discharge on a Friday' and then a call 3.30pm Friday afternoon to collect Mum and hope she really is well over the BH weekend). Staff who put everything off until the oncoming shift (Mum went 16 days without a shower despite us asking daily and eventually complaining to the ward manager to get action). I heard one older nurse tell a keen and caring student nurse 'don't get sucked into doing stuff for patients, that isn't our job'.

I think anybody who thinks the NHS works obviously hasn't had to use it seriously.

Edited by Four Cofffee on Wednesday 2nd September 11:43