Are we really going to sit by while they destroy the NHS?
- Thread starter Bernie Gunther
- Start date
Bahnhof Strasse
Met up with Hannah Courtoy a week next Tuesday
Jesus fucking wept.
Guy who works with me, his partner had been feeling tired recently and with a constant cold. Went for tests last week, yesterday she gets a call from the hospital to say that they have the results and it's leukaemia, fairly advanced and treatment must start straight away. Clearly devastated, they spent last night in despair. Midday today the hospital calls to make the appointment to start treatment tomorrow. They run through what will happen etc., then check the date of birth and next of kin, both wrong, eh? They called the wrong person yesterday, she doesn't have leukaemia, some other poor woman does, who presumably was at that point unaware.
ffs.
Guy who works with me, his partner had been feeling tired recently and with a constant cold. Went for tests last week, yesterday she gets a call from the hospital to say that they have the results and it's leukaemia, fairly advanced and treatment must start straight away. Clearly devastated, they spent last night in despair. Midday today the hospital calls to make the appointment to start treatment tomorrow. They run through what will happen etc., then check the date of birth and next of kin, both wrong, eh? They called the wrong person yesterday, she doesn't have leukaemia, some other poor woman does, who presumably was at that point unaware.
ffs.
Gromit
International Man of Misery
For the past three years I’ve had some health issues.
I’ve experienced NHS [poor], Cleveland Clinic (American private) [Amazing] and Circle Health Group (British private) [quicker version of NHS].
The American firm has a web portal. You can manage appointments, see test results, send messages to your doctor, view and download letters & your medical record.
I love it because the moment a test result is in you get a notification. You can instantly see what is normal and what isn’t. Then Google and prepare for your discussion with the consultant.
That trends bit is a graph of all your previous tests so you can see if it’s gone up or down etc.
It’s frigging amazing. I can’t see why the NHS can’t have this. It exists. It’s not impossible.
I hate the way the NHS baby you through test results. Receptionist can’t tell you, must speak to the doctor, there an appointment next week if you phone before 8 etc.
I’ve experienced NHS [poor], Cleveland Clinic (American private) [Amazing] and Circle Health Group (British private) [quicker version of NHS].
The American firm has a web portal. You can manage appointments, see test results, send messages to your doctor, view and download letters & your medical record.
I love it because the moment a test result is in you get a notification. You can instantly see what is normal and what isn’t. Then Google and prepare for your discussion with the consultant.
That trends bit is a graph of all your previous tests so you can see if it’s gone up or down etc.
It’s frigging amazing. I can’t see why the NHS can’t have this. It exists. It’s not impossible.
I hate the way the NHS baby you through test results. Receptionist can’t tell you, must speak to the doctor, there an appointment next week if you phone before 8 etc.
chainsawjob
Kipping in the dunes
chainsawjob
Kipping in the dunes
Anyone doing anything for the 75th anniversary today?
Keep Our NHS Public (KONP) have various events around the country.
I'm doing my local one.
Keep Our NHS Public (KONP) have various events around the country.
I'm doing my local one.
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
It was.
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
This reminds me of the current arguments about ticket offices, smart ticketing etc on the railways. Modernisation in these regards - ticketing on the railways, online results and monitoring for the NHS - are exactly the steps we should be taking. I've had similar experiences with recent health scares and only the current NHS locks away test results behind appointments and paper-based systems.
I work in medical records and know that increasing numbers of Trusts are going digital, only not far or fast enough. If Fitbit can provide more detailed health results, in an easier to access format, than the NHS, something has gone wrong.
chainsawjob
Kipping in the dunes
newme
Giant in Pastyland now
I had a full blood panel run on the NHS last week, said they would contact me within a week if anything was concerning, heard nothing. Can get the results but have to phone in as you said, does seem daft if I have to make an in person appointment and use up time for someone to hand me some test results. Do have some kind of private healthcare through work but I have never bothered yet.
Kevbad the Bad
Amiable Bowel Syndrome
This does mean, however, that those without smart phones, or whatever hardware and software become necessary in the future, will be left behind with a second rate service. The money will be spent on the new fashionable tech. Those with learning difficulties, mental health problems, no money, dementia etc etc, in other words those who may need the service most, will gain the least or lose out.
ska invita
back on the other side
I'm wishing death on tony blair to celebrate
Making Appointments, sending follow up information to people, booking more appointments related to the outcome of X,Y and Z - these are all completely solved technology problems, if British Gas can do it - so can the NHS.
The challenge is that when you are implementing technology to run business processes - customisations kill you - if 5 GPs practices want to book appointments in slightly different ways - that’s 5 sets of customisations and all of them need testing whenever you change anything.
If you are running a team in a call centre in British Gas booking service appointments and you want to do it a slightly different way to the other 5 teams doing the same thing - they’d tell you to GTFO.
The challenge is that when you are implementing technology to run business processes - customisations kill you - if 5 GPs practices want to book appointments in slightly different ways - that’s 5 sets of customisations and all of them need testing whenever you change anything.
If you are running a team in a call centre in British Gas booking service appointments and you want to do it a slightly different way to the other 5 teams doing the same thing - they’d tell you to GTFO.
Brainaddict
slight system overdrive
I don't know what kind of backswoods GP surgeries you folks are going to but my results are all available to me online through Patient Access (an admittedly privatised service latched on to the nipple of the NHS), including whether its in the normal range. I guess it highlights how unevenly GP services are rolled out when your GPs are private themselves.
E2a, in theory they can also book appts etc through Patient Access, though they choose not to, probably because of uneven internet access.
E2a, in theory they can also book appts etc through Patient Access, though they choose not to, probably because of uneven internet access.
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sparkybird
ask the bird...
I can see my test results via the patient access website. Not all of them, but most and it tells you if they are in normal range. Also graphs plotting results over time
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
That's the thing. There are some great advances in technology across the NHS but, to take one example I know from our Trust, something like maternity departments are only just creating programmes GPs can access notes from anywhere in the country. It's still incredibly difficult to share notes from Trust to Trust.
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
I rarely share my actual opinions on this forum and now look at me.
I completely get this point. But there's a danger of saying "all pensioners and people with mental health problems are a blob we can't possibly teach or provide access to learning tools so everything must be anchored around the past rather than moving forward."
Decades of underfunding by dickhead politicians has created an NHS which struggles to help those in need, not just through hospitals but care and housing etc. Bringing the NHS up to a decent technological standard should also mean bringing disadvantaged and poorer people up with it: the conflict I can see is politicians would rather direct everyone to private care instead.
kalidarkone
Bringing YOU round.....
I'm on shift waiting for the Cheap shitty nasty cake that they roll out on these occasions.
The39thStep
Urban critical thinker
Why is closing ticket offices on the railways and shifting everything online exactly the steps we should be taking? Or have I misunderstood you?
kalidarkone
Bringing YOU round.....
Just found out staff have got to pay £2 for cake WTF? 
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
The world is digital. We can't be an island glued to the past on every score, that's how Brexit was won.
The39thStep
Urban critical thinker
That's a poorly worded slogan rather than an explanation of why closing ticket offices and 'shifting everything online' is exactly the steps we should be taking.
MickiQ
In My Defence I was left Unsupervised
When I worked for Evil American Megacorp there was a big £Billions deal signed one time. In the daily email that came round telling us how wonderful it was to work there and how lucky we were was a item saying celebrate the deal with "Breakfast on Us! Morning of Whenever". I excitedly turned up expecting something like a full English buffet to find out the breakfast consisted of one bap with a couple of slices of bacon (choice of sauces though) and a cup of tea in a plastic cup. Definitely felt swindled.Just found out staff have got to pay £2 for cake WTF?
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
I was on a train the other month, to Ilkley. Every passenger in my carriage had digital tickets except one, and the guard had a good laugh with them about being "old fashioned".
The customer base is already shifting from queuing for paper tickets; they expect digital tickets for air travel, gigs, even hotel bookings. Queuing up for a paper ticket works for the old fellas at the heritage railways, it's no longer how society functions.
Like I said earlier, there are ways to help people get access to tickets. There will be staff on platforms.
I don't like all the plans from the government and I sure as hell don't support them. But in some ways the railways have to avoid being themselves turned into heritage lines.
Gromit
International Man of Misery
If it’s proper health care rather than one of those ‘you pay and can claim most of it back’ schemes…
I’d say damn well bother with it.
The difference is startling and you are actually lifting some burden off a stretched NHS.
The danger is you might get used to it and find it hard to go back to plain old NHS.
I’ll admit I felt a bit of a class traitor using it at first but I can live with being a class traitor when the alternative is waiting years on the NHS on an emergency list. Yeah a two year wait and I was on the quick list!!!
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
I work with a woman who uses NHS for some things and private for others, and heard the similar thing from you, that it's sometimes hard to go back to an overrun GP surgery but that's the balance she's struck.
The39thStep
Urban critical thinker
Unintentionally or possibly intentionally this is just a tepid defence of the rail companies' proposals. It has nothing to do with either embracing technology or avoiding whatever turning into a heritage lines means. It is purely about saving money , reducing staff and boosting shareholders profits. It's in a similar vein to abolishing the guard on the train. There are scores of surveys from passengers on what they want, suffice to say that the closure of ticket offices is not one of them.
I don't want to pursue this on the NHS thread but I will pursue this, and you, regarding this subject elsewhere.
Lets me just make one small comment on the question of digital transformation of health services which you unfortunately tried to link with the closure of ticket offices. Health Innovation Manchester is very clear in its work on digital transformation that:
"While it is clear that digital tools can enhance patient experience by enabling flexibility, convenience and self-management, the rapid acceleration of online consultation platforms in response to the COVID-19 pandemic has also let to challenges and negative experiences for some. Members of the public who took part in the panels and interviews highlighted that they are willing to adopt new behaviours and digital technologies if they see value and benefits, however they also have some concerns relating to inclusion, safety of the technology and communications from their GP practice."
The gung ho notion that everyone has an app is fundamentally not only flawed but is actually discriminatory and could actually lead to greater health costs .
brogdale
Coming to terms with late onset Anarchism
You obviously have a smart phone and the ability to use it.
PR1Berske
Alligator in chains by the park gates.
I do.
brogdale
Coming to terms with late onset Anarchism
ding, ding
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