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I Don't Know Anything About Economics(2)
16 Answers
If we agree that the NHS and social care services aren't what they might be, how are improvements to be funded?
If we want better services shouldn't we be prepared to pay for them?
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Huge sums of extra money won't make much difference for years until we can build more capacity and more importantly recruit lots more doctors and nurses.
But it's an inefficient monster that needs better organisation. Many of us have examples of waste and administrative incompetence and A not updating B.
I can only praise the NHS for the first class treat,ent I have had over previous 8 years, but I do see a lot of waste.
Cost of drugs is carry also. I was having an injection that cost £4,500 per shot and another that cost £1,000 a pop. I had this treatment twice a week for about 20 weeks in duration.
I see lots of lower grade nurses trying to look busy, while at same time there is a shortage of better qualified nurses.
Whenever I have drugs via IV (every 4 weeks) that takes 30 minutes including saline flush, all the tubes go into the bin. The amount of plastic waste each week must be huge.
The Labour government should, right from the start, have explained exactly what a mess the Tories left the country in, and then said exactly how they were going to put it right. Rather than put their cards on the table, the Socialists have done this and that, without saying exactly why. A bit - no, a lot - more explanation would have made the proposed increases a bit easier to bear.
Sadly a properly mixed health economy is probably the best way forward but no party can even suggest it. Let the NHS do kids, trauma, and support the academic side of healthcare development with the university research systems. Let everything else be funded by affordable insurance that allows people to use a wider ranging private sector.
Could fit with the benefit system with a payment being made on claimants behalf.
Many improvements don't need to be funded. They can be accomplished at virtually nil cost and will actually save money.
I have this very day accompanied an elderly neighbour to hospital for a pre-operation assessment.
Upon arriving at the reception desk she was told to report to (with four people behind the ramp with not much activity coming from any of them) she was told to report to another, smaller reception desk on the other side of the room.
“But there’s nobody there” I pointed out.
“No, don’t worry, somebody will be with you.”
Then, one of the four receptionists from desk one dawdled over to desk two to take her particulars.
Firstly, she had to complete a four page form listing much of her medical history, including surgical procedures, current drugs prescribed, etc. All of her recent problems were dealt with at the very same hospital and are on record there. After about twenty minutes she was called in to see a nurse. The nurse explained she would be taking her blood pressure and doing an ECG.
“But I had an ECG last Friday” (she is also undergoing treatment for a separate ailment).
“Where?”
“Two doors along on this corridor”
“Ah. Different department!”
“But I only have one heart. Can’t you use those results.”
“No.”
The nurse then proceeded to ask he virtually all the questions she had already answered by filling in the form.
Halfway through:
“I’ve already answered all these questions.”
“But I must double check”
After taking her blood pressure and doing the ECG she was told to return to the waiting area. The same four people were still behind the reception desk, with little activity between them and no patients to attend to.
Ten minutes later she was called in by a second nurse. All this nurse did was to take a small sample of blood.
She had spent a total of less than ten minutes with the four people involved. Only one receptionist was necessary and only one nurse (who could have completed all the necessary tasks). The four page form was superfluous because the hospital held all her medical history and the questions were repeated verbally anyway. An ECG was unnecessary; the results from four days earlier could have been used.
It is simple to see how vast sums of money are being wasted by inefficient processes, duplication of staff and unnecessary procedures. All is needs is for a manager to devise a system which overcomes all those deficiencies. It needs no money.
"Sadly a properly mixed health economy is probably the best way forward but no party can even suggest it."
Until one does, the NHS will decline and simply become a provider of last resort, rather like dentistry. It is already happening with many people (who can) being forced to pay for private treatment.
The NHS could consume the country's entire GDP and that would still not be enough for everything that everybody wants. Especiall when it is run in the way it is.
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