Swings and roundabouts really
+ Hospital saves my life at birth.

+ Hospital saves my mums life at my birth.

-/+ GP misses, on three occassions, what later turns out to be classic atypical, severe apendicitis in my mum. The hospital only just manages to save her life after the appendix bursts.

+ Hospital fixes all my broken bones/torn ligaments over the years.

-/+ GP misdiagnoses severe condition in me. The hospital properly debunks the diagnosis, albeit many, many years later.

- GP refuses me antibiotics numerous times, despite glaringly obvious recurrent ENT infection, and despite not having antibiotics even once within the previous decade.

- Hospital/GP fails to do anything whatsoever to fix the soft tissue/cartilage damage in my shoulder and knee.

In short with the NHS, it's about a 50/50, good in an obvious emergency, not much cop for the even semi-difficult diagnosis and treatment.

Not that I would ever get rid of the NHS, it and our protection of it is one of the very few things that makes me proud to be English. What I would do though is quarter the number of managers, only employ managers with common sense, and make qualifications in healthcare a requirement for all managers; a minimum IQ couldn't hurt either.
(ShiftyBastard won the World Cup on World Soccer Champs 2010!, Fri 12 Mar 2010, 13:59, 6 replies)

What
do you want them to do about the soft tissue/cartilage damage in your shoulder and knee? I have to say there is usually very little to be done about soft tissue damage in joints unless you want to go for some major operations like knee replacements. As you are presumably a middle aged man this would be a pretty shitty idea as they have a lifetime of about 15 years on average and come with a wide range of possible complications. Medicine isn't magic.
(Hippo_of_Doom, Fri 12 Mar 2010, 14:52, closed)

Little that can be done, yes. Nothing that can be done, no. A little more diagnosis than a single x-ray would've been nice.

And I'm a long way from middle aged, which is why I've had so many run-in's with my GP surgery, I want treatment of something now, before it becomes untreatable and I need something as drastic as a total knee replacement, that I wouldn't get for another 30 years.

I'm basically waiting until I'm more flush, then I'm off down the closest private clinic to get myself fixed.
(ShiftyBastard won the World Cup on World Soccer Champs 2010!, Fri 12 Mar 2010, 14:58, closed)

Saved my life and my Mum's life vs. unable to fix soft tissue?
NHS 2-0
(stuntsmile, Sat 13 Mar 2010, 10:19, closed)

This is what I thought
It's hardly a fair set of comparisons is it.
(Bazongaloid, Sat 13 Mar 2010, 12:14, closed)

I fail to understand what a classic atypical appendicitis is.

If it's atypical it can't be classic
(Pugwash, Sat 13 Mar 2010, 16:11, closed)

There was no scoring implied, merely successful vs. unsuccessful experiences.

Granted, the whole life saving thing was a bit better than the others.

And I went 50/50 on a very bleary memory for the classic atypical appendicitis, I guess I picked the wrong 50, either that, or it would explain the poor diagnosis.
(ShiftyBastard won the World Cup on World Soccer Champs 2010!, Sun 14 Mar 2010, 10:50, closed)