is this a strain on our NHS?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailymail....-mothers-born-UK.html

In an utopian world it would be marvellous if this country could treat the worlds sick, but this is just not possible.

Taking this on board does one agree that this situation is a drain on our NHS, that cannot be allowed to continue, each at the cost of £1400 per day?

[Gromit]

AOG

I posted that for you earlier

http://www.theanswerb...Question833184-4.html

[New Judge]

The interesting (and for me the most disturbing) aspect of this report is the fact that hospital administrators posted the map “to celebrate the diversity of the sick children treated there, each at a cost of £1,400 a day”. (Yes, I know this is the Daily Mail, but I’m sure there is some truth in this explanation).

In fact, if the administrators were doing their job properly they would highlight these figures to demonstrate that the UK taxpayer is being taken for a very expensive ride, and that the practice that the numbers demonstrate is simply not sustainable.

[another-view]

I would imagine that was exactly what they were doing and the "diversity" angle is just the official line

[rov1200]

I assume the majority of these are health tourists. Just book a ticket to the UK report for private treatment, sign a form to repay the money and then return leaving it unpaid.

We are now the world's mugs as the bill has to be given to the British taxpayer.

[anotheoldgit]

Missed that one Gromit

Why did you find it necessary to post that for me, taking into account that I had neither set the question or even posted on it.

I must constantly play on your mind.

Notice also that you did not comment either on the link or on the question except to say "the medical survey helps to make wonderful maps like this possible"?????????????

What kind of answer is that?

[jake-the-peg]

Saw a spread on this in the Sun in the cafe the other day - they'd a map of the world like that - Mail reprinting the Sun's left overs?

I think you were supposed to be disgusted but in reality it was amazing where everyone had been born.

second most popular by 1 was the US

My French colleague was looking at it and said

"My Daughters were born here - but I pay my taxes to the UK Government! - I wonder how many British Mothers were on the dole!"

Hard to argue with that - don't you think?

[jake-the-peg]

And my wife's Irish so she'd not have been in the 18 either!

[jake-the-peg]

Read the comments on the bottom of the story:
---------------------------------------------
---

If we did a map with a red dot indicating the birth countries of the doctors and nurses working in our NHS I wonder what that map would look like. I think your ungenerous readership might be surprised and maybe humbled.

What a horrible bunch of scaremongering. Sue assumes that these women born 'elsewhere' haven't since become British citizens.

"Of the 550 babies admitted to our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) every year, a very small number of these are overseas patients. In 2009, there have been just two overseas admissions"
Was I the only person who read THAT sentence, rather than just the headline?

What happened to this country is that too many Britons gave up trying to be better and instead started to blame other people for their own shortcomings.

---------------------------------------------
--


Looks like the Mail has underestimated the intelligence of its readership again

[Gromit]

AOG

//Why did you find it necessary to post that for me, taking into account that I had neither set the question or even posted on it.

I must constantly play on your mind. //

Do try and keep up, you did post on that thread, thus.:

//anotheoldgit
(Thu 15:13 26/Nov/09)
Times where much easier in days gone by.

Below is a the recording of ethnic group information for patients attending the hospital, so they are able to plan to meet the needs of the community and ensure that everyone has equal access to the health care they provide....

...Why do they need this information if everyone is treated equally?//

I sent you the link to these births, because such a map could not have been produced without the survey which you were perplex as to why it needed to be taken.

[Quinlad]

It's an interesting piece from Sue. Well done, Sue.

Sadly, it's as journalistically rigourous as the views of Mel, 21 on 'News in Briefs' on Page 3 of the Sun.

AOG and others - read this, and let us know what your thoughts are.

http://www.fivechines...e-scaremongering.html

[sp1814]

Quinlad

Brilliant. You know what? I was being really thick and automatically thought "Oh, it must be people born abroad, coming to the UK, getting treatment and then scarpering".

But then because of your (rather excellent) link, I suddenly thought, "Hang on - my mum and dad would fall into that category."

They've been here for about 50 years, but on the map, they would be 'born abroad'.

Worthless journalism...but I'm grateful the DM printed it. I love it when a newspaper is 'hoisted by it's own petards'.

[anotheoldgit]

sp1814

/// They've been here for about 50 years, but on the map, they would be 'born abroad'///.

Blimey sp, could your mother be one of these 243 mothers of a sick baby?

// Each dot denotes the background of a mother with a baby in the neonatal ward of London's Chelsea and Westminster hospital.///

[anotheoldgit]

Gromit

Do try and keep up, I did not post on that thread.

Question originator ---- awfypanloafy

Answers by ------- Squad ---- Gromit ---- Rov 1200

You must try and get out more.

[Gromit]

I think you are losing it AOG

Try near the bottom of this page

http://www.theanswerb...Question833184-2.html

[Gromit]

Incidentally, my post at the bottom of that page was a bit Prophetic wasn't it?

[sp1814]

AOG

I certainly hope my mother isn't one of those mothers, because if she is, she has some explaining to do to me, my siblings and perhaps a representative from the Guinness Book Of Records.

No, my point is - the phrase 'born abroad' suggests 'foreigner' as opposed to someone who's born abroad and has British citizenship. These women could all have lived in the country for over a decade. The bald figure as it stands is meaningless because it's not been put into context.

[anotheoldgit]

Apologise to you Gromit, I didn't realise this was a multi page answer, and foolishly I only read the last page.

[tamborine]

Passports are more reaslistic as proof of entitlement to treatment.

NHS care bills should be sent to relevant Embassies to pay.

[Sqad]

tambo...morning my love.

Embassies? The problem is that in most cases the Embassies don't want to know and say that the contract is between the patient and the Health Trust.

The way to do it is to give them the account to be settled before they leave hospital.