Hello there friends from across the pond!

[MyManGoofy!]

I was curious and I hope I don't open too big of a can of worms!!

There are a couple threads over on the community board having to do with the health care system here in the US. Any time this topic comes up, there are those statements such as "Well, we don't want socialized medicine like the UK" or "Socialized medicine like they have in Europe is bankrupting their countries". Which is real easy for us to say, but we don't know.

So, is it as bad as most Americans want to make it sound?

Are there people going without care and getting sicker/dying because of long waits?

Does it bring your economy down?

Are you unable to live because of the tax burden this creates for you?

I am really interested in your responses and well if you hate this topic, just tell me to shove off ya dang Yank!

 

[natalielongstaff]

welcome to the uk boards

i think our NHS is great we do pay for it in taxes and some of the operations/procedures you can get done i don't agree with. Generally iots a good system tho

 

[wayneg]

Wow such a big topic, not usual for on here.
Our NHS needs help but it is so big no idea how it can be done. I have seen both sides of the NHS from terrible care to the best you can get. When our DS was born premature the care was outstanding, so good I donated a cheque when he came home. On the other hand DW was in a few years back she was given wrong strength medication or totally missed her medication some days. Even gave her some to bring home that she was not allowed to take. while she was in the food food was not edible and the care was terrible.
So its good and bad, I think they waste millions of pounds puting the money in wrong areas.
Regarding the tax, I would gladly pay more to get a better service, then again thats another topic, I think the tax system is a mess also. I pay my dues as a self employed business owner every year, the tax office decide to pull a year out of my accounts for investigation and found I had incorrectly accounted for the year and ended up paying another $18,000. To this day I still believe I should not have payed it but the way the system works it was easier to pay in the end than fight any longer. I was very close to packing up and moving abroad after this and if it ever happens again I will go.

 

[Pootle]

Hello

I agree with Natalie! Whilst there are some problems with our health service, overall I think it's pretty good and nice to know it's there as a safety net. I visit old people and am always impressed by the very good care they get with the NHS.

There's something a bit unpleasant (well, to this European anyway ) about needing to provide proof that you can pay for medical treatment that you really need.

From what I've read, you are more likely to have expensive treatments/surgery recommended, that you might not need, in a wholly private system. I believe that because of your expensive cover, many people in the US are totally without health cover. Not good.

The NHS is expensive to run, and could probably benefit from some changes, but when I last heard, we were still a pretty rich country so I don't think we're teetering on the edge of bankruptcy because of it. I would imagine it's not difficult to make up a list of pros and cons for both systems but I wouldn't vote to swap

 

[higgy66]

I can only sing praises for the NHS as the treatment myself or my family have received has been excellent.

What an excellent system - you're ill - you go see your doctor and get referred for whatever treatment you may need. Yes there are waiting lists and sometimes the treatment may not be on our doorstep but it is there eventually.

For emergencies the treatment is instant - for non emergencies this can take time and this is where we have problems with waiting lists. Who decides what should be treated first???

I work for an Amercian company so we get priavte medical insurance as a perk (but we pay the tax!) and to be honest I've had this 5 years and have yet to call on it and have gone down the NHS route every time.

Cut backs have produced a lack of nurses, beds, equipment etc. We need the government to take stock and realise this is a NHS to be proud of and inject some cash, new ideas, productive management etc etc.

We should be a country famous for our NHS and care of it's citizens.

 

[Lizzy Lemon]

Like others have said, there is good and bad. We had excellent help for our son when he was born with a heart defect and he had to spend the first three weeks of his life in hospital, as it was a distance from our home they even accommodated us so we could be near him, on the bad side there are sometimes quite length delays to see a GP or wait for an operation. We have been lucky in our family no nasty tales to tell. I work for the NHS and moral is low amongst the staff, it has been reported recently about attacks on NHS staff from disgruntled patients which is totally unacceptable. There are a lot of demands on the public purse and I wouldn't like to be the one to have to sort it out but there is a lot of waste that could be trimmed.

 

[BingsingsWaltDisney]

Mymangoofy

look at it this way mate you go to hospital they treat you and its free

there is no need to show a credit card or any such thing.

in our country its sometimes a postcode/zip code lottery for treatment (but thats a long story)

in your country it is the ability to pay

we are one of the richest countries in the world do you really think that we turn people away if the need treatment. no we dont, but can you say that your system does? if it is to be believed we think that you turn them away from the doors beacuse of the inability to pay. is this true??

sorry if i sound a bit downbeat mate but if you read the UK Dis board
I dont think you will find many bad words said against your country.
the majority of people are really nice.


the NHS takes a lot of stick but it is probably one of britains greatest achievements free health care for all. i can think of only one other country that does this and that is sweden

 

[Joanne UK]

Most of my NHS experiences have been good ones. The only time I've ever complained was over one of our GPs. He "presumed" my Mum had cancer, that was what he had written as I looked in her notes. She didn't - she actually had DVT/Pulmonary Embolism. They didn't realise until the Post Mortem.

 

[mikki.young]

The NHS has problems but it is better to have it than not. I don't think our taxes are as high as some other european countries realting to this (France springs to mind). For the US to have something similar would be like having all of europe on the same system - very difficult!

 

[Laurafoster]

I agree the NHS has its problems but its better to have it than to not have it!

I ahve had nothing but great treatment from the NHS!

 

[carolfoy]

I agree that the NHS is one of the best things about this country, I would hate the thought that you have to prove that you've paid your dues before receiving treatment.
Yes, there have been things that have gone wrong but people have paid top price for private healthcare and things have gone wrong - its just not as widely reported. Also a lot of private healthcare suppliers use the same hospitals as the NHS anyway so overall issues like cleanliness are the same.

I have visited voluntary hospitals in Africa and India and have amazed at the cleanliness of these places, I truly expected them to be comic relief style mud huts but they are beautifully kept - when I asked about them they said 'the staff here are so proud to work in these hospitals and they are so pleased with the donations that were given to be able to build them that they will keep them really clean.' Now I'm not saying that our hospital staff don't have the same level of pride just that they are too overworked.

 

[hildasmuriel]

Wow, it's so pleasing to read that other people are proud of our NHS too. If you believe what you read in the papers then it's falling apart at the seams but I wouldn't swap it for any other scheme. Both my babies were born 'on the NHS', all the tests throughout pregnancy were provided, parentcraft and ante-natal classes, all care (and anaesthesia!) during childbirth, midwife visits to my home for 10 days afterwards, then all their healthcare since - milestone checks, vaccinations and boosters, eye tests, dental care - ALL FREE at point of delivery.
Sure it's not perfect but it has always been there when my family have needed it.

 

[MyManGoofy!]

Thank you all so much for your replies! What I am getting then, is that none of you would trade your system for ours, even though it does mean more in taxes, right? But how do people feel about their taxes being used to care for someone that may not have paid ANY taxes?

if it is to be believed we think that you turn them away from the doors beacuse of the inability to pay. is this true??

Technically a person is not supposed to be turned away if they cannot pay. But, we do hear about some hospitals that "patient dump". We have had a few stories in the news recently where ambulances have been caught leaving people (mostly homeless) on the side of the street - one still attached to an iv and wearing a hospital gown.

I have a friend here in Orlando whose son was very sick. She took him to the hospital where he had to be admitted for 6 days and now she has to find a way to pay almost 20 thousand dollars of medical bills because she had no insurance. ( I bet she wishes she lived in the UK!)

(my apologies for bringing such a serious topic to this board. I saw the title and thought it was similiar to the CB, just UK related. In penance - should any of you have questions or require help regarding trips to WDW, keep in mind that I live here and would love to help ya out! I even used to work for the mouse at one time!!)

 

[wayneg]

Thank you all so much for your replies! What I am getting then, is that none of you would trade your system for ours, even though it does mean more in taxes, right? But how do people feel about their taxes being used to care for someone that may not have paid ANY taxes?

Why should they not be cared for? they are a human being in need of help. If they dont pay tax thats probably because they are unfortunate enough to come from background a lot worse than many of us on here that can afford to go to Disney parks.
Personally I have only been to the Doctors 3 times since leaving school 24 years ago so I pay more in the NHS than take out, hope it stays like that.
I have a business, get a new BMW every 3 years, goto Florida 50 days a year as well as other countries. If I earn the money and have a very privilaged life why should I not give something to the ones that need care and help? I am sure the majorty would prefer to be paying tax. OK some abuse the system but they will any system.

 

[BingsingsWaltDisney]

Why should they not be cared for? they are a human being in need of help. If they dont pay tax thats probably because they are unfortunate enough to come from background a lot worse than many of us on here that can afford to go to Disney parks.
Personally I have only been to the Doctors 3 times since leaving school 24 years ago so I pay more in the NHS than take out, hope it stays like that.
I have a business, get a new BMW every 3 years, goto Florida 50 days a year as well as other countries. If I earn the money and have a very privilaged life why should I not give something to the ones that need care and help? I am sure the majorty would prefer to be paying tax. OK some abuse the system but they will any system.

If only there were more like you

Nice one Wayne your One Of The Good Guys

 

[carolfoy]

Well done, Wayne, I totally agree, I can't stand people who tell everyone how much charity work they do then resent people having free health care.
I also have paid more in than i take out but you never know what tomorrow has in store for us.
My Dad first met his doctor a couple of years ago (he's 76!) but has been in need of him a few times since. He's worked since he was 14 so deserves the very best of treatment.

 

[MyManGoofy!]

Why should they not be cared for? they are a human being in need of help.

That is one of the most wonderful things I have ever heard. You don't hear that very often over here.

 

[Chris and Pooh]

In our local hospital, two wards closed because of superbugs, a patient is found dead in a toilet 12 hours after he was last seen because front line staff are over stretched and did not notice he was missing.
Cleaning which is put out to tender, ie the cheapest service possible resulting in blood stained floors remaining the same for at least three weeks,

My father mis diagnosed for four weeks by his GP and then eventually diagnosed with Bilateral Pnuemonia by my brothers Doctor but unfortunately too late.
The NHS is at crisis point, too many pen pushers, too much money being wasted.

Yes its free but then so is MRSA , a free gift from the NHS to many of its patients

 

[mark&sue]

Our welfare state is based on the more fortunate looking after the less fortunate. I think the trouble with the NHS and to that matter the prisons, schools and housing is that the system was set up for a much smaller population than we have today and of course we do not turn people away from our country as the US does.

THe NHS is a great system but perhaps we have just too many people and not enough hospitals etc., compared to the percentage of the population when the original system was set up.

Just a thought. I too am happy to pay my taxes in this way and hope that I don't need to use it in the future.


Susan



Susan

 

[MorningGlory]

Why should they not be cared for? they are a human being in need of help. If they dont pay tax thats probably because they are unfortunate enough to come from background a lot worse than many of us on here that can afford to go to Disney parks.
Personally I have only been to the Doctors 3 times since leaving school 24 years ago so I pay more in the NHS than take out, hope it stays like that.
I have a business, get a new BMW every 3 years, goto Florida 50 days a year as well as other countries. If I earn the money and have a very privilaged life why should I not give something to the ones that need care and help? I am sure the majorty would prefer to be paying tax. OK some abuse the system but they will any system.

Great post wayne, couldnt have put it better myself

As to the original post, thanks for bringing it up MyManGoofy. It is heartening to see so many people backing our NHS. It gets a raw deal in the media IMO, for political reasons more than anything, but I still see an angel every time I see a nurse. Sure, it needs work done to it but I think thats been a case of good money being wasted by bad management, which the NHS is famed for. If they could completely overhaul the administration side of it and cut down all the bureaucracy, it would rival even the best of private healthcare systems.