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(, Sun 1 Apr 2001, 1:00)
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What fucks you off the most about your job? Have a right good old moan here ladies and gentlemen.
Alt:
Why is your job SKILLZ?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:31, 211 replies, latest was 15 years ago)
I resent each bit of work i do.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:34, Reply)
and this stupid system of having to register with a doctor showing a prove of residence. Yeah? What if I'm living with my in-laws and I have none? I don't go to the doctor? Go to the A&E where they tell me the can do nothing and I should see my GP? Getting a nurse on the phone to tell me I'll be ok, don't worry, you don't need to see a doctor, just leave a sample of urine in this place and we'll call you? Really?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:47, Reply)
And one had the headline "smear tests shouldn't hurt that much"
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:49, Reply)
and you can see the ratings, so you choose one based on the ratings. You get there, and they tell you that you can't register with them because you're one street out of their border. But the surgery next door (with only bad ratings) will be happy to help you.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:57, Reply)
Right now I'm really pissed off with them. I'm trying to get my Spanish insurance to cover me here, paying a premium, as my English insurance (offered by my company) only covers emergencies.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:09, Reply)
If you want a private doctor, you pay the private prices.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:12, Reply)
I'll do it. I compare your NHS with the service we get in Spain and I can't believe what you get here, when your taxes are quite higher.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:14, Reply)
it's not for the NHS though. It's for the thieving fucking politicians that take all the money and never go to prison or have to give it back, even when it's proved that they've done it. And they don't need to step out of their position, either. So they don't do it.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:35, Reply)
It's a national fucking disgrace.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:02, Reply)
But the fact that a pregnant woman gets only one ultrasound scan at 20 weeks unless she's in trouble is a fucking disgrace, it is. The same as the impossibility to see a doctor or midwife for the first 8 weeks, when the 12 first are the most important. And being told that if you need help you can go to the internet. And when you give birth you have to share your room with another 20 women and their crying babies.
Or having to spend 5 days in hospital for an ingrowing hair because they can't put the antibiotics right. Staying in a ward with many, many dying women who spent the night crying for mercy and that they let them dye.
Yes, you need to travel a little, I think.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:13, Reply)
but if you want to have an argument by annecdote then I know a bloke who went to Hospital and had a great experience. So it's one all.
I'm also aware that if you go to another country and get ill they can refuse to let you leave until you've paid for your medical expenses.
However, if you live in the UK and you get in an accident you get picked up by an ambulance and you pay nothing, you get treated in A&E and you pay nothing and you get discharged having paid, wait for it, nothing.
The NHS is a bloody fantastic body, yes it has problems, but considering it's a service that really does treat everyone equally regardless of background, it's incredible.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:17, Reply)
The stuff about pregnant women and midwives is standard treatment on the NHS. The stuff about registering at your living place and not being able to choose doctor is standard too.
The same things you get on the NHS you get in Spain too, with better treatment and better assistance. Maybe I'm spoiled, but I don't think it's right they don't check your baby at 8 and 12 weeks to make sure its heart is working, rather than waiting and if you don't bleed and are in indiscreptible pain, then you're ok.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:23, Reply)
It depends entirely on the local authority. ALmost all the ones I know do a scan at 12 weeks, for instance.
And the registration thing? I fail to see why having to prove you're a resident in the country/area to register with a GP is an issue. Seems entirely reasonable to me. If you want to be treated as a non-resident, say so, you'll still get treatment if you fill in a temp form. The registration thing exists for a very good reason - to stop one person being registered with 20 different practices every time they go somewhere different, which is a significant drain on admin resources.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:37, Reply)
I think, it'd be better if it was the same everywhere but for the good ones.
I just know that the friends that have had babies here haven't had anything checked until week 20. And no blood tests or meeting with the midwive for advice until week 8. Maybe they were unlucky.
My experience with the NHS isn't very good either, but that might be just annecdote.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:40, Reply)
And also, requires pro-active behaviour on behalf of the patient/couple. If you don't ask, you don't get. Blood tests for example - for what? if you are in a risk group for certain things, you'd get them if you asked. Otherwise, why bother?
I fully accept that, particularly our maternity care is not ideal, but it's the best that is possible in balance with eveything else in our healthcare system. And I'd rather have the NHS than pretty much any other healthcare system in the world, bar a couple of Scandanavian countries and possibly Canada.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:46, Reply)
as it's important to know your folic acid, calcium and iron levels, and which vitamins you might be lacking. The formation of the foetus during the first 12 weeks depends on the ammount of folic acid you have, so they should check how much you need to have.
I have to say, after using the Spanish service all my life, I find the NHS really bad, sorry. I hate the fact of having to see a GP and convince him that I need an specialist rather than being able to go to the right doctor from the beginning, for example.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:52, Reply)
That would mean the person making the decision about what's wrong with them is you, then?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:54, Reply)
it's perfectly clear that the average Spaniard is far better qualified to determine what's wrong with them than any doctor in the UK.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:56, Reply)
you see your GP first. Or if you choose your doctor wrong, he'll refer you to the right one. But usually you know. If you have pain in your bones or articulations, you go to the reumatologist (Spanglish there, sorry); if you're bleeding out of time, you go to the gynecologist. If your back hurts, you go to the traumatologist. If you belly hurts, you go to the digestive system doctor. If your throat, nose or ears hurt, otorrinolaringólogo (??). Easy. Otherwise you call like the NHS direct, explain the symptons and they tell you who you should visit.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:59, Reply)
you don't need a specialist doctor, a GP would be perfectly adequate, and if they consider there to be a need, they refer you.
These are not intrinsic problems with the NHS, they are perfectly reasonable.
There are problems, going back to arguing by annecdote, I dislocated my knee, I saw my doctor, he sent me for a cat scan, the results came back, he said there was nothing wrong with my knee, this took over a month. I went to see my chiropractor a week later for a regular checkup, he checked my knee, popped it back into place a the next day I was walking normally again.
But I'm not condemming the whole NHS for that.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:03, Reply)
Your GP gets saturated and doesn't have time for everybody; but the other way round, the work gets distributed.
I'm not talking about annecdotes. I'm talking about standards. No private bedrooms in hospitals, for example.
It doesn't matter. You like what you have. I think it could be improved. I'm not going to change your mind, you won't change mine. I've gone several times through nightmares with the doctors here. Not just one annecdote.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:09, Reply)
And, swings and roundabouts. Private rooms would be better, aye. But they are expensive. On the other hand, French-style medical systems are almost single-handedly resposible for the last couple of waves of antibiotic-resistant bacteria due to their insane pandering to idiot patients who demand antibiotics for viruses. I'll be honest, medically I know what I'd prefer.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:14, Reply)
if you didn't have to go crying and covered in blood (I might be exagerating a bit) to be referred to a specialist.
I know I have IBS. I know why it hurts. I know the stomach doctor know what to do. Please, don't send me home with paracetamol and telling me to take more fiber!
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:31, Reply)
there aren't any treatments for IBS apart from painkillers and more fibre/better diet. Sending you to a gastro specialist won't change that, I'm afraid. At least to my knowledge, and gastro isn't my field to be fair, but I thought that was pretty well known medically. Antispasmodics sometimes work, but since the best of those is peppermint you don't really need a doctor for that.
you have my sympathy though, it's horribly painful thing.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:41, Reply)
But the gastro specialist will check that it hasn't developed into cancer, as it's quite common, and that all that extra pain is not just gas on my bowels.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:13, Reply)
but I can see that it would work for certain obvious things.
But it just sounds like the French system. It sounds wonderful, but everyone in the medical profession accepts it's mental, because it's massively resource-hungry (you need a specialist in every town regardless of how much actual work they have, for instance) and it hugely panders to the patient when the fundamental problem is that people are, in general, idiots, and hyponcondriac idiots at that.
But, really, all that is really going on is that you grew up in Spain, are used to the system there, and so prefer it. You don't get on with the NHS because it doesn't work like you want it to so you don't know how to make it work properly for you. Exactly the same would be true if I went to Spain or France or whatever. Doesn't make one system better than the other for the reasons either of us mention.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:05, Reply)
I'd be happier with the NHS if I could see a doctor in less than a week when I need him. If I didn't have to convince him that I'm in trouble to see a specialist. If I didn't have to share a ward when being sick at the hospital. If the nurses were trained to take blood and put intravenous as standard, not like an optional training course.
Yes, it's probably just me being picky.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:12, Reply)
You can see a doctor same day anywhere provided you phone at the right time, they are obliged to keep a number of appointments free every day. I must admit I don't undertand the obsession with private rooms, it's a massive waste of resources and means nurses can't keep an eye on multiple patients simultaneously. I'd be worried about the blood/IV thing too but that's hardly common.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:18, Reply)
I have several problems like thalassemia, an extra bone in my back, chronic tonsilitis... everytime I go to the doctor here, I'm in trouble. Every time. They don't listen to me, tell me everything's ok, give me some antibiotics, and off you go. I'm still in pain, A&E didn't know why, they send me back to the GP and I know what he's going to tell me. It's a wast of time.
To see the doctor at any time of day you must take the day off and wait at home or nearby until they call you. Which is not very useful. If they'd let you see a doctor near your place of work would make some sense, but they don't.
The time I was in hospital 5 days, only 1 nurse was trained to do IV. In my whole ward. That's not an annecdote. The annecdote is that she did it wrong and I ended up with my muscle full of antibiotics, unable to move it and big like my chest.
The problem with the ward is that you have no intimacy. That the other people that are worse than you can really be very creepy (really, 5 nights of "Please, let me dye!" are not good for anyone). In a private room, you won't see the nurse so much, but you can have company all the time, visits are allowed all day, so they'll tell the nurse if something goes wrong.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:25, Reply)
and, look - I appreciate why you might WANT a private room, but that's not an argument for why it's better to have one, except for just from your point of view. The hospital's job is to get as many people better as possible for the least amount of money. People not having privacy is not high on the priority list. Needs of the many far outweigh the personal preferences of the individual. Giving you a private room ain't going to make you better quicker.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:32, Reply)
Being in a ward is terribly depressing. Being shown around when you're half naked is not good. Having the doctor to examin you and give results in front of everybody is not good. Makes you feel bad and doesn't help to recover faster.
I know money is a problem, but I think things are not done properly on the NHS. The private room is the smaller of the problems. I gave you a list, I can give you more, like failing to spot mononucleosis after a month. Not because they couldn't find anything wrong, but because they couldn't care to refer to the specialist and have some tests done. Nope. Antibiotics and go home. We had to go to Spain and have it diagnosed and treated there.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:43, Reply)
You can't treat mono so the test is merely to eliminate other things, and is basically a massive waste of money. Did they do a bacterial/virus screen here? If not, it does sound like you've been getting some crappy doctors, but a mono test is pointless unless you're pregnant or they have a reason to suspect you have HIV
What did they give you to treat it in Spain? I'm genuinely intrigued as there is no treatment.
Edit - also, I've double checked on that and you can't pick up EBV antibodies until you've had mono about 3 weeks anyway, so a test in the first month is doubly pointless.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:55, Reply)
You do treat it to aleviate the symptoms. And you're told to stay at home and rest, not to take antibiotics and keep on your normal life. You can get very sick if you don't rest, and even lose your... bazo? spleen? mmm... I'm not sure.
A month is more than 3 weeks. They could have at least tried something different, after a month of fever and tiredness and no use from the antibiotics.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:09, Reply)
and, yes, you can very rarely get an inflamed spleen. But knowing what it is doesn't prevent that and you still can't treat it. Alleviation of the symptoms are the same as they would be for anything with the symptoms - NSAIDs, painkillers, fluids. Knowing it's mono doesn't help you one bit with any of those.
I know that to you this seems madness, because you've been brought up with a healthcare system that would have tested, but the only single advantage to testing is that you know. It doesn't help you, it costs a fortune and as it's an antibody level test it's inaccurate and massively open to interpretation.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:20, Reply)
that's what my boyfriend got. Hepatitis from the mononucleosis! When we got to Spain he had developed it already. Maybe it was more than a month, then.
Well, I think if he had been told to rest and not move until he was well, he wouldn't have developed the hepatitis. Maybe not. They told him to keep going to work as normal, and he was probably spreading it around too. I only got mild symptoms and got over it quickly.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:23, Reply)
between the systems. I don't understand why you need to be TOLD to rest if you are ill. Or, more specifically, why you need to know what's wrong with you to have to rest. Not having a go at your boyfriend, again, obviously that's just what you are used to. It just seems really obvious to me.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:26, Reply)
I've lived in Sweeden, the Netherlands and Belgium. No probs there to see a doctor in less than a week. Even without prove of residence. All I need is my E-111 and they're happy, wherever I am.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:15, Reply)
you can see a doctor without proof of residence. You're just going about it the wrong way and trying to register as a permanent patient, which for obvious reasons you can't do without proof of address. It's not the fault of the NHS, just that you aren't used to how to use it.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:19, Reply)
No, if I'm living 6 months in a hotel in Sweeden, I can see the same doctor everytime I need. If I need a treatment, that's good.
In Worthing, the most I got as a temporary patient was one visit. They won't follow my treatment because I'm not registered and I'm moving home soon.
That means a month without treatment. Not good, not.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:28, Reply)
I registered with them as soon as I came back from hols and got my first appointment for tomorrow. Very fast, isn't it?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:29, Reply)
you phone them when they open and say you specifically need an emergency appointment. You get one that day.
It might sound like I'm having a go and I'm really not, I'm just pointing out that the faults here aren't with the NHS, just that you're not used to how to use it to get what you want
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:35, Reply)
and gone to the doctor many times. You only get a day appointment if it's an emergency. And you have to take the day out of work. I'm talking about being able to go to the doctor near the place you work if you want. Being able to choose your doctor.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:37, Reply)
if it isn't an emergency, why does it matter if it takes a week to see them? that's rather the definition of "emergency"
being able to choose your doctor is a matter for debate. I can see why there are advantages, but they are selfish from the point of view of the patient. The system doesn't allow it, and that's how it is. Why do you need a doctor near work anyway? surely if you are so ill that you need to see a doctor right away you'd be off work?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:46, Reply)
You might be having a problem that still allows you to go to work. Upset stomach maybe. Maybe a cold that feels like a flu. Maybe a lot of pain in your ovaries, as I have now. I can go to work. It's not an emergency because I'm not bleeding. Therefore, that means 4 weeks of paracetamol until I see a doctor. OK, normally it would have been only 1 week, maybe 2, still it's a lot of time to be like this, not only for the pain, but for the stress that comes with not knowing what you have (I already went to A&E, they touched me here and there and told me to go to my GP)
If I could go to the doctor near work, I could work tomorrow and just take some hours for the appointment. As I have to go in Worthing, I need to take the whole day off.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:53, Reply)
because you are the one refusing to take time off work. Seriously, it's you're own fault and yet you're blaming a system which could help you, but you've got to give a little too.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:57, Reply)
I'm taking the time off work. Of course I am. After 4 weeks trying to see someone!! I haven't spent this 4 weeks not wanting to go, they couldn't visit me before. In fact, they gave me an appointment for next Tuesday and I asked it to be changed to Friday, so that I only lose 1 day, rather than 2.
What I don't think it's ok is that you have to take the day off for what probably is only a cystitis. And that you can't choose where you want to be treated.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:00, Reply)
You said you had to wait 4 weeks to see a doctor at a set time. Badger has pointed out that if you need an appointment that day that you can get one but you said that you would have to take the day off. Which is not unreasonable.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:02, Reply)
I said I had to wait 4 weeks this time, as I said several times that I tried to get the appointment after the hols but had to go through the whole registering thing and stuff. Normally it'd take 1 week, 2 at most. I know that.
It's that stupid registering process that I don't understand. And why I can't see the doctor where I want.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:11, Reply)
"follow a treatment" ? If you've got a longstanding condition with a prescription then all you need is a repeat, surely?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:43, Reply)
It needs to be tested to make sure the medicines are still right, as it changes quite quickly.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:45, Reply)
I can't comment, but maybe you have found a loophole in the system then - if you move around a lot but have a longstanding medical issue than the NHS lets you down.
It's still basically brilliant, though. whatever you think.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:51, Reply)
is a fucking disgrace too. And not being able to choose the one you want as well. The fact that they don't do one smear test, ultrasound and breasts check once per year... I could go on...
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:15, Reply)
Or a smear test? Or a breast check?
What are the downsides of having all these regular check ups? I'm thinking that you don't really want to be having breast X-rays unless you need them because 1) they are uncomfortable, and 2) blasting radiation at your tits isn't great.
So, somebody has done a cost benefit analysis of either screening everyone all the time at massive expense and inconvenience, or only screening people who are most likely to have the diseases you're screening for. Because the NHS does not have a bottomless budget.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:19, Reply)
On a private clinic the ultrasound is something like £50, so the real cost will probably be a lot less than half of it. That includes a picture that you don't need when it's just a normal test. The breast check is done by hand by the doctoc, who checks for cysts, no machines are used there. That's 5 extra minutes or their time.
And I suppose that budget includes as well that you can wait 4 weeks to see a GP and if things get worse then, well, that's ok as the cost benefit analysis says so.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:26, Reply)
but the main reason for nearly everything the NHS does is clinical.
With screening it's maily the problem with false positives. They mean you then have to take biopsies and shit, which have a risk of infection pain discomfort etc.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:29, Reply)
or you're at risk they'll screen often, there's no point doing blanket checks for everyone when 90% of breast cancer for example comes from the 30% of the population with family history.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:30, Reply)
about checking breasts by the doctor with his hands, similar to the one you do at home, but making sure he doesn't miss anything, as he's better trained. Not talking about the screening.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:38, Reply)
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:41, Reply)
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:43, Reply)
I might do, who knows.
I keep going to my doctor in Spain once per year, but he's very old now (and looks like Benny Hill) so you might get lucky.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:45, Reply)
You know your breasts better than anyone. If you think there's something different then see the doctor and be insistent.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:50, Reply)
I see a gynecologist, who is for a fact, better trained than me to do it.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:55, Reply)
He's not an oncologist, and anyway, even if he was, what you are looking for is changes over time and abnormal lumps - the only person that can spot that realistically is you.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:53, Reply)
In Spain you don't need to go to a GP first to be referred to the specialist, you contact the specialist directly and visit him. I'd see my gynecologist for this, who is trained on it. And as he does it every year, he know what to expect.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:56, Reply)
because I sometimes forget what divots and scars are on my scalp and I probably scratch that once or twice a day. So for him to be able to remember what changed from a year ago is bloody spectacular.
Of course you could just be a massive hypochondriac.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:59, Reply)
he writes it down, so that he remembers for next time. You're just being silly now, you know?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:02, Reply)
No, you are being extremely silly if you think that a written description of a pair of tits can provide any better information than you carrying out regular two, three or six monthly checks yourself.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:05, Reply)
and you're being really stupid now. If there's something that doesn't feel right, he'll check. If it's ok, nothing wrong with it, he'll write it down.
As I said bellow, he know what he's looking for. I don't know how a cyst feels. I do the checks myself, but I like someone else to corroborate I'm doing them right.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:19, Reply)
how can he possibly remember one set of breasts?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:59, Reply)
He's looking for things that are wrong, if he finds something abnormal and finally it's something that it's not bad, he writes it down and next time he knows.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:03, Reply)
over the course of every month, which is why you are advised to check yourself at the same time each month.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:06, Reply)
Do you know how a cyst feels, and, if you know what you're looking for, you can't miss it? I don't know what I'm looking for, though. I check if everything seems ok, but I have no idea what I should be expecting. He does.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:17, Reply)
And there's a very strong possibility that the doctor - any specialist you care to mention - wouldn't know what it was until further tests were done.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:21, Reply)
You're looking for anything which is different form "normal", and only you are going to know what normal is by doing regular checks yourself.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:25, Reply)
I want someone who know about it to re-check that I'm doing it right. I might have missed a spot, or just thought that doesn't feel too bad.
Most of the cancers in Spain are found by the Gyn. Women usually don't do the checks themselves, this way you make sure they get checked at least once a year.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:35, Reply)
Every month or two, because if their is a tumor, you could be dead within a year.
And if you're not sure how to do it, doctors and nurses can show you how and there is so much information available about this.
But going to see a doctor to have your tits fondled is neither cost efficient, nor a good way of picking up potential problems.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:41, Reply)
it's how most of them are found in Spain. Women a lot of times miss the cysts. Or think it's just an ingrowing hair or some fat. It's good to have a second opinion. And it takes him 5min to do it.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:47, Reply)
If you find something you are concerned about, you go and see your GP who may examine you, or refer you to a specialist. But as I just said, you're looking for changes and you are going to be the best person to know if something has changed.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:50, Reply)
It's a way to make sure women get a check at least once per year. We have to do it every month, yes, but most don't do it. And it's a good way to get reassurance that you're doing it right and that things are still ok.
Again, they pick most of them. Very few women find them themselves.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:55, Reply)
is perfectly capable of going to see a GUI clinic for a general check up once a year if she wants, she just has to arrange an appointment herself, hardly a massive inconvenience.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:59, Reply)
And I think that's very good, specially if you don't need your GP first to tell you that you can go. In that case, I retract myself about the breast cancer check. I still think the other things are wrong, but well... And they could give us some info about that GUI thing too, when we have the smear test at least.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:02, Reply)
Spain's mortality for breast cancer is about 20/100,000 as opposed to 27/100,000 in the UK. That's enough of a difference to maybe be significant, except that breast cancer is much lower in southern european countries than northern ones regardless of heathcare systems (the Dutch and the Danes have rates in the 40/100,000 for instance, the only nothern exception is Norway). So it's much more likely to be diet and climate and genetic factors than a man motorboating you once a year. But it's interesting, for sure.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:14, Reply)
I'm pretty sure most of those cancers were diagnosed by gyns.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:18, Reply)
I'm just making the point that self-diagnosis is obviously at least as good or we'd have a brutally higher mortality rate.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:22, Reply)
if GPs or Obs/Gyn guys here started doing manual breast examns annually then the sexual harassment panda would be all over them like they were bamboo.
I'm intrigued that a gynaecologist has convinced people he knows about breast cancer, though. That's some top fibbing work
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:26, Reply)
for what you say.
And here, for everything the Doc has to do to you, there's a female nurse to check everythings fine. And he asks you everytime he's going to touch you if it's ok (which I find a bit irritating, but I understand)
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:33, Reply)
they'd be no better at spotting a tumour than your average car mechanic.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:36, Reply)
You don't know what you're saying. They do find most of the tumours in breasts in Spain. Women fail to feel them sometimes, or just can't be bothered to do the check themselves.
He's been told as well as an oncologist, how to check for them. And not only breast, but ovaries and uterus cancers or cysts, using ultrasound. That's how most of them are found too, on your annual visit to the gynecologist. An early diagnose is the most important thing to fight cancer.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:49, Reply)
if he's specialising in both gynaecology AND oncology he's going to be no better than average at both. There's a reason for extreme specialism in the medical profession.
Ovarian and uterus and cervical cancers are absolutely picked up in your biannual screen here too. But not by the bloke that does the smear, by the lab it's sent to, which is a specialist oncology lab. I'm sure that's same in Spain.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:03, Reply)
I don't know what that biannual screen is. I only get a smear test every 5 years here.
The Gyn specializes on women's reproductive system, and that includes spotting the beginning of a cancer or a cyst. Maybe that's why his degree takes 7 years + 3 of training at the hospital.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:17, Reply)
every woman I've ever lived with has had it every 2 years. Bi-annual. sorry for confusing words.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 17:23, Reply)
I'm thinking on writing a strongly worded letter to the newspaper about them! Four weeks to see a fucking doctor, and I need to take the whole of Friday off because they only accepted me in Worthing, where I don't live, but I recieved a letter there and that's ok to prove I live there.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:00, Reply)
Make a complaint to the primary care trust, they have to investigate and give you a response within 20ish days. A few people will get an earful.
Honestly the NHS takes all complaints seriously.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:06, Reply)
change the system and let me register at my place of work, rather than where I live, as I spend most of their working ours at work, not at home?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:08, Reply)
then you can take time off work.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:13, Reply)
I need to register to a doctor first. Which I can't do, as I don't have prove of residence, because I don't get my flat until next week and in the meantime, my post keeps going to Manchester. Do I take the day off and travel all the way to Manchester to see the GP? Really? For a urine infection that only needs some antibiotics? FFS!
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:17, Reply)
I was registered in Manchester, but I went to see my local doctor near brighton and got a presecription.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:24, Reply)
and was told I couldn't do it without registering. I got a temporary one by only showing a letter and my passport. Then I tried Redhill, and couldn't either. To register you need to show a couple of letters and mortgage or tenancy agreement (at least in Redhill) and I don't have them. So I can't see the doctor. I have to travel 2h on the train after work to see one in Worthing.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:28, Reply)
Temporary registration. Say you're on holiday there.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:58, Reply)
alt: my job isn't SKILLZ anyone could do it
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:35, Reply)
as i work for a company in the top 50 best to work for in the country:
I get for me and the wife dental, medical, life insurance/assurance, a bonus, £300 quid holiday money, 25 days holiday, critcical illness cover, 5% pension contribution, a gym at work and subsidised masseuse and personal trainer.
I have to do too many spreadsheets though :(
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:35, Reply)
I do many spreadsheets too, and don't get all that.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:42, Reply)
don't think he contributed though.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:54, Reply)
I'm missing the dental, holiday money and gym. I can get upto 29 days of holidays, though.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:54, Reply)
And I am senior enough that only the CEO can fuck with me. (strikethrough)
Experience is the SKILLZ in what I do so I am very lucky. I have been here 8.5 years which is my longest serving job by 6 years.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:53, Reply)
that it's best to change jobs every 3-4 years. I disagree. I think I'm getting more (responsability wise) by staying here than changing so often. You just have to keep an eye on what's happening around and make clear on your appraisals that you're not getting enough, if you aren't.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:55, Reply)
lots of paperwork though... boo! is that good enough
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:58, Reply)
but that's happened only once, so I won't use it. I hate when we're at the end of a project and have to check all the numbers one by one. We get massive lists with all the data, and have to check it against drawings, datasheets, calculations... it's called SUPERCHECK and it's awful. If you find a mistake, you have to confirm which number is right and change the others, letting everyone know you've done it.
This has to be done by at least 3 people. One checks. The second one checks the checks. The third one checks again. It's a nightmare.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:41, Reply)
It means checking everything is correct, 3 times!
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:53, Reply)
We have up to 8 sheets to sign off on some jobs, with a minimum of 2 signatures on each.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:54, Reply)
Made-Checked-Approved. I understand the reasons behind it, but in the era of technology and computers I'm sure things could be done a bit more automatically.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:53, Reply)
part of the problem is that I haven't got around to doing my PhD.
But most of my job involves teaching in a classroom, not research. The qualifications and experience I already have mean that I do a bloody good job. A PhD would not add to that in any way. As far as publications are concerned I also have a fuller list than some of my colleagues who do have a precious doctorate.
All that said, I adore my job. It's like doing stand up but I don't have to be funny all the time. I also get the time to do my own thing too. It would just be nice if I had pay all the year round.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:45, Reply)
or things are too complicated to do it?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:48, Reply)
Added to which I can't afford to do a PhD. A paid one came up recently...in Leicester. I can't drop things and move to Leicester. Unfortunately the areas I'm interested in are both quite new and unusual so there aren't many Profs around who would be able to supervise me.
For now I'm back to plugging away with the novel I began years ago - if I finish it and get it published I'd be employed permanently on that basis as it's the equivalent to a PhD for quite a few departments.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:52, Reply)
We do exactly the same stuff...but they get paid more.
Ah well, we'll all get the sack before long - no one will be going to Uni anymore.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:56, Reply)
I didn't know it'd count as a PhD for you, but seems much better than 3 years doing research and a VIVA.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:01, Reply)
I know of other members of staff who don't have PhDs but are HoD and have a reasonable publishing history behind them. My pub history is a bit half-arsed imo.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:05, Reply)
What about next Sat?
Seriously, I hope you get the time to do it and that it gets published.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:07, Reply)
perseverance.
Honestly.
How else do we explain Jeffrey Archer?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:10, Reply)
No idea who he is, but I bet he's bad :)
Then, there you are, go on for it!
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:18, Reply)
Getting a good publisher is a different matter - a lot is to do with being in the right place at the right time and proper research. Sending a ms to someone who matches what you do, for example.
But first I need to finish writing the bloody thing. I'm about 40,000 words in. 20k has been redrafted again and again but now I've expanded it it'll all need redoing.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:53, Reply)
for your work which publisher you choose? What's the book about?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:05, Reply)
No point sending a thriller to someone who only publishes academic text books, for example.
The book is...dare I say it...literary fiction.
*ponces*
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:07, Reply)
whether it's right or not, them's the regs. Mostly because you can't supervise or examine PhDs unless you have one yourself.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:57, Reply)
It still irritates the hell out of me that I do all the other stuff.
*vents*
*rages impotently*
And it's a good rule to have - that makes me even more cross! How dare I be WRONG!!!
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:03, Reply)
it has to be there for examining PhDs, absolutely. Otherwise that would be like getting a driving test from an examiner that can't drive. But, for other stuff... I dunno.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:22, Reply)
and people doing things without checking are the two biggest narks in my job. They both make me want to murder people
The team and the laughs are the best parts. If I didn't have a right old giggle every day I would have left here years ago. I certainly didn't stay for the money
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:48, Reply)
I'm finding that in Marble Arch they giggle a lot less than in Manchester, which is a big problem.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:49, Reply)
I get it at work so that is good
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:50, Reply)
I usually have this discussion. Some friends think job is just a place you go to get money so you can spend it on your free time and have fun. I think I can't spend at least 40h/week doing something I don't enjoy, even if it doesn't pay that well.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:03, Reply)
Obviously the internet is not the place for this.
In other news a hungarian has stolen my lighter. EPIC SADFACE
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:10, Reply)
and then got serious. Clearly, I'm not good with it in writing.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:19, Reply)
I hope it's only because a lot of people are leaving and all this change of office bussiness. I miss going out with the guys on Friday after work for a pint and have a few laughs.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:04, Reply)
While he has his moments of treating the company well, he treats individual employees like shit.
Alt: I work with some superb people, and we have some cracking laughs.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:52, Reply)
lots of "ayes" and now "cracking"
You are Wallace AICM Wensledale
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 14:56, Reply)
He's from a Lancashire village.
I suggest you visit the Macc Lads website.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:06, Reply)
It's freezing cold in winter and stifling hot in the summer. The fact the boss is related to me just means he gets to treat me far worse than he would an unrelated employee.
I do get a lot of finacial perks though.
My main skill is being completely trustworthy with all the business and bosses financial dealings.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:03, Reply)
If I've ever seen your office or it's just the fact that you describe it so often, but I have a clear idea of how it looks like, with your big-ish desk with the PC, and all those filling cupboards thingys.
Have you taken me to your office?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:05, Reply)
Now I have a phone contract I'll take a pic soon and send it to you.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:08, Reply)
so only have myself to blame.
Christmas parties are fun though, by myself.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:05, Reply)
"This job would be great if it wasn't for the fucking customers"
Apart from having to correspond with mongs, the worst thing about my job is everyone on B3ta thinking I'm a telecommunications analyst for some absurd reason. Which I'm not. I'm a managed services co-ordinator. The differences are endless, apparently.
Good things about the job; both the bosses I've had have been awesome, I can work at my own pace and (evidently) get away with far too much pissing about online and for some reason everyone seems to think I'm good at it. Even though I'm less stressed than I was in my last job, which paid £6.5K a year less. SkillZ
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:08, Reply)
Do you make sure that cleaners turn up on time and do their job properly?
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:16, Reply)
Just engineers instead of cleaners. Fuck me, that makes my job sound shite.
*examines paycheck*
And I don't care!
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:22, Reply)
I'm still slightly confused as to how this job pays as well as it does or confuses so many of my colleagues when it really is very simple at the end of the day. Busy, but simple. A bit like me.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:55, Reply)
because you are good. At pissing about online, I mean.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:21, Reply)
it is know as the feckless loser graph
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:36, Reply)
Those that can't teach go into recruitment ;)
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:33, Reply)
I am surrounded by them all the time though, moaning about how little their commission is when their basic salary is already twice what mine is, the buggers!
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:35, Reply)
And the contractors are nearly as bad as the recruiters
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 15:43, Reply)
which is pretty much what happens. The only thing that keeps our business afloat is many of the drivers, a hard-core of dedicated customers and, I'm modestly told, me on the phones during the dayshift. I'm technically self-employed, I earn £5 an hour, I don't get paid for hours I don't work, there are no benefits apart from occasional free lifts to work and back, my office is the grubbiest little shithole from hell and it breaks my soul to get up every day and go to work.
It sounds like I'm complaining, but I'm not. It's a job, an income, in a town where the job market has been stagnant for longer than a year. Daughter and I survive on the money with a little help, I get to piss about on the internet all day (which I'm sure will be evidenced in TGB's next graph), I'm on first-name terms with many of our customers, some of the drivers are fantastically wonderful people, I finish work at 3pm most days meaning I have a whole portion of day once I leave, and last but not least it just about beats lying around in bed all day feeling sorry for myself.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:02, Reply)
I get to set my own hours (mostly), I get international travel, each day brings new challenges and I have (in the main) great customers who actually WANT to see me.
Perks are good, my workmates are an excellent, if slightly eccentric bunch of engineers and I've been in to some really interesting companies.
What do I do?
I sell sticky tape! Very technical, quite expensive sticky tape.
(, Thu 14 Apr 2011, 16:53, Reply)
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