Back in the late 80's l had the privilege to work as receptionist in a single practice surgery. There was no fancy aesthetics just the waiting and room and the GP's room. Patient care was forefront and the most crucial part of the surgery. The core value ,patients had a voice and were respected and listened to.
Sadly these surgery's and partnerships are virtually are non- existent being replaced by tendered private sector medical groups and organisations which have been awarded contracts from the NHS .
Does the NHS logo provide us with a false sense of security? Do we automatically presume the core value of patients welfare is uppermost in the mind and that the NHS is there as a public service for our benefit and not for profit ?
It appears to me that the big private cooperation's are swallowing up GP practices by giving the illusion of state of the art equipment,( which mainly cannot be used due to lack of funding!) and state of the art buildings, that will benefit the patients and Dr's immensely ! Once they have sold you the dream of what they can do for you, the NHS signs the contract then becomes beholden to their budgets and profit margins and patient well-being is insignificant due to the high pressure of accumulating returns for the companies .
Excuses that are used frequently ,'We have an elderly population and not enough Dr's'. Why? It appears to me that Dr's, due to the high workload and targets no longer wish to become GP's . The old ethos and core values to humanity has been striped away to the 'conveyer belt of one in one out and time is money attitude !' within local surgeries.
How much are we really aware when it comes to our GP services ?
How many of us have a choice of surgery within our area that is not owned by the same group or company or organisation ?
Do we really understand the impact of these contracts when it comes to rights, penalties and clauses ? How many contracts are awarded to private medical groups and organisations when it comes to Dr's surgeries? Is it exclusive to one certain group or organisation in one region or area ? If so the population can be held to ransom at the whim of a profit making organisation with exclusive rights to one area. Where is the choice for the public and where is the care ? With no other competition these groups can become complacent and the therefore their is no need for patient core values but profit only.
As with all things these days it is down to money, however by employing private sector companies that have and rightly so, need to make a profit for their own shareholders are we neglecting the right of the public to be able to access proper health care and what l would call a, 'core fundamental' the right to choose a surgery of our choice in our local area instead of having no choice.
Patients vulnerability in my opinion, is being exploited yet again by being let down by governments who wish to alleviate the responsibility of a public service onto companies by outsourcing services for the 'right' price and state of the art tech and not the patients well-being. How many times do we now here of patients not being able to contact the surgery, being turned away and told that there is nothing wrong with them only to be told at a later date that their diagnosis was wrong or is now terminal ?
Have we sold out to the big medical groups and organisations which have exclusive rights to regions and areas ? Have we neglected to see how this public service is being monopolized by some at the expense of the public and the core concepts on which the NHS was founded ?
Health in Wales | NHS Wales Shared Services
PartnershipGP surgeries and the private sector - Early Day Motions - UK Parliament
NHS Tenders & Frameworks - A complete guide to Winning NHS Contracts (healthcare-tenders.co.uk
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Hi Hede
(I noticed one of your links applies to Wales, so I thought I'd start by saying that, England & Wales, have the most similar legal system, within those [great] nations of the UK).
My response will be succinct, and entirely my view;
The UK has slipped too far 'to the right', generally.
There seems to be less than ideal control/management of costs, paradoxically, in both central and local government. Much of this (for instance - large scale civil engineering projects - an area of some expertise of mine, if I have one) is evident, from the effects of some modern forms of contract.
Part of the difficulty is in cultural evolution, the internet and social media age. This diffuses, to an extent, personal accountability.
The NHS as a concept, along with the BBC and The Open University, are three of the best UK founded institutions.
Best wishes,
Jeremy
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Thank you Jeremy for you comments.
It is gratefully appreciated.
I feel fortunate that l am able to write this blog to assist with my understanding of how l view society and how others also view it .
I wish to agree with you regarding the concepts we have of the NHS, Open University and the BBC . My view is, the NHS, can be beholden to those who have come from a a background outside the health sector and have dealt with only commodities . This gives them advantage and knowledge of how to cut and make profits from a stand point where items fit neatly into boxes but when it comes to humans beings we just cant all squeeze into those boxes and thus the issues arise.