[Archived] East Lancs Hospitals

[Jock]

Crap NHS hospitals in Lancs??

Ive had family in Blackpool Victoria and was shocked with their treatment.

Andy ' victim' Burnham looks liked a worried man with the news thats coming out.

[meerkat]

I and my family have been in hospital over the last few years, with life threatening conditions.

We have experienced nothing but high caring staff, under difficult working conditions, who's role is being undermined daily by anti public worker propoganda.

I have nothing for praise for these doctors and nurses, especially at Blackburn Royal, who have saved my life twice, and Burnley general, who saved my eyesight.

They could quite easily leave the country and earn a lot more in places such as Canada and Australia.

Carry on with your scare stories, and end up with a US healthcare system, break your leg? No problem sir, that will only cost you $10,000 to repair, but we take visa!

All this constant criticism of late is nothing but buttering up the UK public for the wholesale dismantling of the NHS.

Be careful what you wish for.

[Jock]

Front line workers are often great. The Matrons and nurses should be given more power. Still think alot of the problems are how we look after our elderly in this country. I'll still say what i saw at Blackpool Vic was shocking. If i hadnt fed and given drinks to my relative they would have died on that ward.

[T.J.Newton]

Blackburn royal nurses and hospital staff are great, its the doctors and surgeons that let the side down from time to time in my experiance.

[Tom]

I was disappointed that my wife had to have our son in Burnley thanks to no maternity ward at Blackburn as such but the hospital and staff at Burnley were absolutely superb when it came to it

[Mike E]

Apart from one snidey cow on reception, I find staff in ENT and audiology magnificent at Royal Blackburn (I'm there every month)!

[jim mk2]

I and my family have been in hospital over the last few years, with life threatening conditions.

We have experienced nothing but high caring staff, under difficult working conditions, who's role is being undermined daily by anti public worker propoganda.

I have nothing for praise for these doctors and nurses, especially at Blackburn Royal, who have saved my life twice, and Burnley general, who saved my eyesight.

They could quite easily leave the country and earn a lot more in places such as Canada and Australia.

Carry on with your scare stories, and end up with a US healthcare system, break your leg? No problem sir, that will only cost you $10,000 to repair, but we take visa!

All this constant criticism of late is nothing but buttering up the UK public for the wholesale dismantling of the NHS.

Be careful what you wish for.

Well said sir. The Tory right wing has been trying for on and off for the past 50 years to dismantle Bevan's welfare state. The NHS is their Holy Grail and today's political attack in the Commons is a warning of the dangers to the health service post the 2015 election if the result goes the wrong way.

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

I and my family have been in hospital over the last few years, with life threatening conditions.

We have experienced nothing but high caring staff, under difficult working conditions, who's role is being undermined daily by anti public worker propoganda.

I have nothing for praise for these doctors and nurses, especially at Blackburn Royal, who have saved my life twice, and Burnley general, who saved my eyesight.

They could quite easily leave the country and earn a lot more in places such as Canada and Australia.

Carry on with your scare stories, and end up with a US healthcare system, break your leg? No problem sir, that will only cost you $10,000 to repair, but we take visa!

All this constant criticism of late is nothing but buttering up the UK public for the wholesale dismantling of the NHS.

Be careful what you wish for.

Come off it, the criticism of the NHS by the general public has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with their own personal experience. My personal experience has been the exact opposite of yours, I've been in hospital for a serious operation and was kept in the dark about how it went for an entire day afterwards, was spoken to brusquely bordering on rudely on the very rare occasion a nurse came close enough to my bed to ask for some water or how long I'd be in for. During this time I saw an old bloke in a bed opposite me who clearly had dementia/alzheimer's and was verbally abused and roughly handled by a nurse because he kept getting out of his bed. I was utterly disgusted with the entire experience and dread the idea of myself or a relative having to be in for an extended period in the future.

I'm sure plenty of people have had your experience, I'm also sure plenty have had mine, so the conclusion is its a mixed bag. And thats nothing to do with politics or people getting at the public sector, its just how the standard is at the moment. The most important thing in my book is polite, pleasant and respectful treatment from nurses/doctors, especially given the vulnerable and mostly elderly state of patients in their care. And its that that I think is slipping, just like the customer service sector in general, too many people have the attitude that they're not paid to be polite and its not a requirement of their job.

[jim mk2]

Those criticising NHS patient care should read the Keogh report which today highlighted severe staff shortages in may hospitals. The review panel said they witnessed staff so busy they were unable to deliver compassionate care to patients.

One of the review team described holding the hand of a patient because nurses were so busy they were unable to do so. Indeed, when the review team made an unannounced visit to UNited Lincolshire Hospitals NHS Trust, they found nurse levels so low they reported it to the Care Qaulity Commission for investigation.

Dr Peter Carter, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said: ``There's an undeniable link between nurse staffing levels and patient mortality and we can't keep failing to address this issue. Only with the right numbers of nurses, with the right skills, can we ensure patients are looked after with dignity and compassion.

Christina McAnea, head of health at the union Unison, added: ``We are pleased that the Keogh Review, as the Francis Report before it, has recognised the relationship between quality care and safe staffing levels. Unison has been campaigning for safe staffing levels and the right skills mix on wards for many years. This includes in the evenings and at weekends - there is clear evidence that out of hours cover isn't safe.

``It is time for the Government to start listening and take action by committing to minimum staffing levels.''

[gumboots]

I was in burnley general today for tests and could not have been treated better. Polite, caring, taking time to explain if I'd wanted it- I didn't as there are only so many things you can say about the tests they did and I've had them all before - I know I was an easy patient to deal with, but I've been in and out of a few of our hospitals and health centres over the last couple of years, and it's always been the same, nor have I ever seen anyone else treated any less well. I know there must be bad cases or the review couldn't have found them, but on the whole I personally, and I appreciate others will have different experiences, have received excellent care.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

I've been a champion of the NHS all my working life, started work in 1965 so work it out for yourself. Having said that there is something dramatically wrong with the way it's being run at present. We've poured money into the system and we're not getting the outcomes that level of investment demands.

My own little story.

I got an appointment at Oldham Royal a few years ago. The appointment was in three months time. A week before my appointment I received written confirmation of my appointment. Two days after that I received another letter moving my appointment three months in the future. I phoned and complained so they re-instated my original appointment.

This pattern was followed THREE times in the next year. A week before my appointment date I got written confirmation followed a day of two later a letter cancelling my appointment and moving it three months into the future.

Each time I complained and each time I got to see the specialist's labourer.

Was I satisfied with my treatment ? No I bloody wasn't !

Anybody in the NHS like to tell me what that was all about ?

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

Those criticising NHS patient care should read the Keogh report which today highlighted severe staff shortages in may hospitals. The review panel said they witnessed staff so busy they were unable to deliver compassionate care to patients.

One of the review team described holding the hand of a patient because nurses were so busy they were unable to do so. Indeed, when the review team made an unannounced visit to UNited Lincolshire Hospitals NHS Trust, they found nurse levels so low they reported it to the Care Qaulity Commission for investigation.

Dr Peter Carter, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said: ``There's an undeniable link between nurse staffing levels and patient mortality and we can't keep failing to address this issue. Only with the right numbers of nurses, with the right skills, can we ensure patients are looked after with dignity and compassion.

Christina McAnea, head of health at the union Unison, added: ``We are pleased that the Keogh Review, as the Francis Report before it, has recognised the relationship between quality care and safe staffing levels. Unison has been campaigning for safe staffing levels and the right skills mix on wards for many years. This includes in the evenings and at weekends - there is clear evidence that out of hours cover isn't safe.

``It is time for the Government to start listening and take action by committing to minimum staffing levels.''

Do agree with that. But like all workplaces I think there's some people who force themselves to be professional despite unacceptable levels of pressure, and some who take it out on those around them. That's bad enough when, as in most other industries, those around them are work colleagues. But if nurses are taking that stress out on patients then that's totally out of order.

I'm not bashing the NHS as an institution, I've got a friend who works in it and she's the type of person who wouldn't have a snappy word to say to anyone even if she was surrounded by a hundred screaming patients. But those who work in it without such a naturally compassionate mentality should be trained that they need to maintain one, that should be the last thing to go. Its one thing seeing a nurse once in 4-5 hours, its quite another when that one point of communication results in rude or dismissive treatment.

In the personal experience I mentioned with what can only be described as the nurse bullying a mentally disabled old man, it was in the middle of the night and a cluster of about 3-4 nurses had spent most of the night huddled around the nurses station chatting, on occasions loud enough to wake me up. Not one of them looked busy.

[adopted scouser]

Took my chiefs and not enough Indians

[Jock]

Took my chiefs and not enough Indians

Exactly, get rid of all these middle managers and employ nurses who'll have time to sit and feed the elderly. Its a disgrace that elderly patients are dying from lack of food and water.

[Paul]

Yes, excellent idea and one I would support all the way. Problem? There are no nurses or midwives to employ to provide the care because we stopped training new ones!

The very simple fact is the NHS, and I would echo the comments of gumboots and others regarding the outstanding g care I have received, does not have enough fully trained frontline staff and there are very few in the pipeline.

[T.J.Newton]

If the NHS was done away with what would the alternatives be? (every working person paying £100s a month in health insurance, as many large European countries and America do already, NO THANKS!)

Exactly, get rid of all these middle managers and employ nurses who'll have time to sit and feed the elderly. Its a disgrace that elderly patients are dying from lack of food and water.

sorry, but I don't think nurses should be having to hand feed patients, that's not what they trained and studied for years to do(they're not care workers), maybe the family members of those elderly people should get there lazy self centred butts down to the hospital at food time and do it themselves.

[Paul]

TJN care covers an enormous range of skills and is not just about medical attention but appreciating the patient's needs as a whole. A few minutes chat while helping someone with food, drink or perhaps just making them more comfortable can provide medical staff with important insight and the patient with a real feeling of being cared for.

Some argue the more traditional approach to medical training helped create the more rounded approach as nursing staff in particular learnt on the ward in a real-life situation rather than a classroom.

Quite how you can be sure those you criticise are idle wasters is beyond me. Perhaps it's just another example of the ill-informed conclusions people jump to these days when seeing something which doesn't fit their own, often incorrect, preconceived ideas.

[Steve Kean's Hypnotoad]

sorry, but I don't think nurses should be having to hand feed patients, that's not what they trained and studied for years to do(they're not care workers), maybe the family members of those elderly people should get there lazy self centred butts down to the hospital at food time and do it themselves.

Incredible. Maybe the family members of those elderly people have full time jobs and pay thousands of pounds a year in national insurance and maybe the elderly person in question has paid tens of thousands of pounds in their lifetime in national insurance, and maybe its a flipping disgrace if they're then expected to starve to death short of making their own feeding arrangements.

[dave birch]

The answer is simple,

just pay more tax so you can afford to employ the people to do the job you expect to be done.

Either that, or import more lower paid workers to do the job; but have we been there before?

[thenodrog]

I've been a champion of the NHS all my working life, started work in 1965 so work it out for yourself. Having said that there is something dramatically wrong with the way it's being run at present. We've poured money into the system and we're not getting the outcomes that level of investment demands.

My own little story.

I got an appointment at Oldham Royal a few years ago. The appointment was in three months time. A week before my appointment I received written confirmation of my appointment. Two days after that I received another letter moving my appointment three months in the future. I phoned and complained so they re-instated my original appointment.

This pattern was followed THREE times in the next year. A week before my appointment date I got written confirmation followed a day of two later a letter cancelling my appointment and moving it three months into the future.

Each time I complained and each time I got to see the specialist's labourer.

Was I satisfied with my treatment ? No I bloody wasn't !

Anybody in the NHS like to tell me what that was all about ?

Ha! Some champion you are Tyrone. Best to go private I'd suggest. Political dogma is no good to you when you are 6ft down in a box.

btw My opinion of the NHS is that lack of money is not the primary issue ... it's too much wasted money. The NHS behaves like a bonfire on Nov 5th, no matter how much wood (or in this case funding) you build it from it has still all gone up in smoke by the morning.

[thenodrog]

Yes, excellent idea and one I would support all the way. Problem? There are no nurses or midwives to employ to provide the care because we stopped training new ones!

The very simple fact is the NHS, and I would echo the comments of gumboots and others regarding the outstanding g care I have received, does not have enough fully trained frontline staff and there are very few in the pipeline.

Why is that then? Nursing offers a bloody good safe career, one which is well paid and will travel the world. There are not many careers that can guarantee to last a lifetime these days are there? And and it's not like we are short of unemployed school leavers is it?

[thenodrog]

Well said sir.

The NHS is their Holy Grail and today's political attack in the Commons is a warning of the dangers to the health service post the 2015 election if the result goes the wrong way.

Well said Sir...... a warning for 2015 indeed.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2365120/Keogh-review-11-NHS-hospitals-placed-special-measures-Jeremy-Hunt-reveals-thousands-patients-needlessly-died.html

[Paul]

Why is that then? Nursing offers a bloody good safe career, one which is well paid and will travel the world. There are not many careers that can guarantee to last a lifetime these days are there? And and it's not like we are short of unemployed school leavers is it?

Funding cuts for student midwives and nurses has been a national issue for 7-8 years. Surely you haven't missed that debate / discussion?

You're right it is a good career but no longer as safe as you describe, some of the stuff going on inside the NHS is nightmarish.

Gordon unemployed school leavers aren't what the government is looking for in medical training. It's a degree course these days.

Now I've started to reply I've just realised what a bloody stupid response you made. Read the papers.

[thenodrog]

Funding cuts for student midwives and nurses has been a national issue for 7-8 years. Surely you haven't missed that debate / discussion?

You're right it is a good career but no longer as safe as you describe, some of the stuff going on inside the NHS is nightmarish.

Gordon unemployed school leavers aren't what the government is looking for in medical training. It's a degree course these days.

Now I've started to reply I've just realised what a bloody stupid response you made. Read the papers.

'Bloody stupid response'? Why is that?

If we agree standards are dropping since the old days (pre MRSA / premature deaths etc) of Matron's, a Sister in charge of every ward, Staff nurses, SRN's, SEN's and Auxilleries then why tf are there any 'nightmarish' things going on? Moreover why do we need nursing to be a degree qualification? Surely degree level might be required for SRN and above status for a person giving out drugs and using some of the more advanced technology but is degree level really needed to change a dressing, a bed pan, give a bed wash or to help someone eat?

Nursing has been a bloody good and well paid job since the 80's but you'll never hear that from any nurse. I know loads and whilst they might be good or bad at their job give them a platform and they are all professional moaners, brainwashed for years through their peers, vapid politicians and a red top press into believing their lot is a poor lot .

[jim mk2]

The NHS trains nurses, midwives etc and then they go off to the private sector to earn more money.

If the private sector needs nurses and other medical staff there should be legisation for it to train its own and to the same high NHS standards or pay the NHS compensation for the training costs. .