Forum Topic

Fantastic service by the NHS

Having put up with 20 years of back problems, I finally asked my GP for an MRI scan last Friday. They rang me today to go into Northwick Park this SUNDAY at 08.40. How I wish I'd asked earlier ! I can't believe the service.....it's wonderful.

Penny Crocker ● 5576d11 Comments

Cameron's current proposals within the Health and Social Care Bill now before parliament could mean that in future NHS patients..(a)might have to pay part of the cost of the scan.(b)might have to insure to cover the cost of a scan(c)might have to wait a long time because of rationingMy advice to readers is to rush off now to get your medical problems resolved before the bill becomes law, chaos ensues and charges are made for treatment.

Arthur Breens ● 5575d

Penny, just Thank God you were not sent to Ealing Hospital. Weeks of waiting. MRI suites closed for power testing during your appointment (and there is no one there to tell you about it). Pools of vomit by the ambulances for hours on end.

Stephanie Flowers ● 5572d

Yes, my opinion of Ealing is not printable. I asked my GP not to send me there and she fully understood. The way they treated both my parents was unspeakable and I'd like to see the place fall into the ground. The MRI scan service at Northwick Park was very impressive yesterday and results by Friday ! .

Penny Crocker ● 5570d

"Cameron's current proposals ...could mean that in future NHS patients..(a)might have to pay part of the cost of the scan.(b)might have to insure to cover the cost of a scan(c)might have to wait a long time because of rationing"Where did you get this information from Arthur? I can't find any reference to it anywhere else.In any event, some patients already pay for the whole cost of scans / diagnostics due to the wait times for MRIs at local hospitals. Charring Cross is a good example - long wait times for an MRI but if you pay them you can pretty much have the scan the same week and done in the same unit and performed by the same staff - and this isn't a new thing; it went on for the whole time that Labour were in power.

Chris Martin ● 5570d

That's why I was so amazed by the service. I waited 3 days to get a call and then a further 4 days for the actual scan and a choice of locations........

Penny Crocker ● 5570d

But why did you wait 20 years to ask for it?

Philippa Bond ● 5569d

Multitude of reasons. Saw a back specialist 20 years ago who just told me to live with it. It has been intermittent over the years, I believed the hype that it would take a very long time to see anyone and in this last year the back spasms and pain has increased massively and now I live in fear of my back spasming at any time, including once on the tube which was sheer hell. I wish I had gone earlier but I think I was in denial that it was a debilitating condition !!!

Penny Crocker ● 5569d

One day I took a step back from myself and realised that I was sweeping things into the middle of the floor so that I could pick them all up at once.  It had just gradually got worse.My back is much better since I did quite a bit of Pilates.  However the teacher who was so good left and I have not kept    it up.  Looking after everyone else always got in the way.I have spent hours at Ealing Hospital waiting to see a Consultant only to be told that he had had to go to a meeting, that they didn't know why I had the appointment and since I was there here is a piece of paper so that you can have an ultrasound scan.  When I arrived at ultrasounds they weren't doing anything but they just laughed at the idea of giving me one since I was there.  Quite a few years ago but doesn't give you a feeling of confidence that they know what they are doing.If private and state could work well together without one taking all the easy pickings and charging a fortune for them then perhaps our system would work well.Unfortunately there is a lot wrong with the NHS.  I have just seen for myself the dire service that the elderly are getting instead of just reading about it.  New buildings that are badly designed - windows that don't open more than a few inches and the blinds have to be pulled down to keep the sun out so covering most of those few inches - and yet still so hot that a portable AC has to be fitted through a window so blocking out all the light to make it cool enough to work (don't know if there are regulations about how cool it needs to be for the patients) together with the tremendous amount of noise one of these makes.  Food from a very reduced menu not chosen by the patient and not suitable for someone who has been complaining of lack of saliva (ie dry flaked tuna or dry grated cheese on dry baked potato (one small foil covered pat of butter) or dry sandwiches).  We know the elderly don't drink enough.  What ARE they thinking?  ARE they thinking?

Philippa Bond ● 5569d

Hi Philippa, yes it's a sorry tale isn't it. I've begged my doctor not to be sent to see a consultant at Ealing so she's sending me to St Mary's, thank goodness. Your story of poor design is so typical and so sad. Nothing is ever thought through and in the end, it all costs so much more. I have tried Pilates but I think I was unlucky with the teacher because I found it incredibly tedious. Have tried literally everything else though......personal trainer, chiro, physio, osteopathy and a myopractor. Some give temporary relief but nothing lasts - hence the last ditch attempt to seek an answer.

Penny Crocker ● 5569d

Yes, you do need a good teacher.  One who will help you to find the muscles you need to find in order to work them.  It is demoralising when you have to drop out because they are doing an exercise which "if you have a back problem don't attempt this".  Perhaps there are classes specifically for people with bad backs?I also went to an osteopath when things were bad and this was helpful.I certainly find that keeping moving rather than bed-rest (which is what used to be prescribed) helps!Yes, the hospital thing is SO short-sighted.  Beware cuts in services not considered to be front-line.  What is front-line anyway?  Just A&E and not the care after admission?Good Luck!

Philippa Bond ● 5569d

Chris you asked where did I get this from? There is no reference. It is a deduction. We know that about 5% of healthcare is provided by private companies within the NHS.Many purists are not happy but I can just about tolerate this. The big problem for me is the NHS has been around for 63 years and has got better and treated more patients year on year and at a smaller portion of our GDP than most of our neighbours. Who is Lansley to come along from nowhere with 300 pages of radical changes to completely overturn all this? (The failed Forestry bill was easier to understand because it was simple. But this is the same). He and the Conservative party were heavily subsidised by the private healthcare industry before the election. Cameron said there would be no top down changes. He clearly hadn't looked into Lansley's bag. Further all these changes cost. We are told the Health service must change and that is why we have to have Lansley's Bill or its shredded successor but with no more money? We are told the drugs bill is increasing and people are living longer but nowhere in Lansley's bill does it say where all this extra money is coming from. Am I going to be shot when I reach 70? No. Is competition going to improve output? No. Is choice going to save money and improve output? No. So where is all this extra money going to come from? Hence my deduction. This crazy method of governing change has been rejected by most medical professionals. The general public are blissfully unaware because they believed Cameron. And the essence of "killing" the NHS contained in the bill is still there. That's why many of us are so opposed to the Bill.

Arthur Breens ● 5569d