May I venture to say a simple clerk at the grocery store is more of a hero, than a well protected NHS worker, government worker etc. Kudos also to @Duckadiledundee to transport people as required.
I think if it’s not COVID-19 related or life threatening then they don’t wanna know Regardless of what’s being said on the news the rest of the NHS seems to have gone into a sort of mothballed state
It sometime seems to me, and quite a few others that we know, that the NHS attitude is - "You've got covid? Come on in, we'll sort you out. Oh, you've got cancer (heart problems or any other serious, possibly fatal disease that you can think of) have you? Sorry but you'll have to wait to be treated, even if when we eventually get round to you we all know it will be too late". Okay, I accept that I am being harsh and that the actual situation is probably somewhat different, but as I said, it sometimes seems that way! Plenty of people have had their cancer treatment stopped and have died as a result, or their situation has become incurable. God bless the frontline staff though - diamond encrusted gold, the lot of 'em! Fingers crossed for you, Dilli. Pain is no fun, especially when it stops you getting on with your life, even if it's only for a relatively short period.
I have to agree @stevethegoolie my stepdaughter announced about a month ago that she is pregnant, now around ten weeks, but she called her mother a fortnight ago as she was worried because she had been bleeding for over a week. She is a very shy girl and, if I am honest, we suspect she is actually on the autistic spectrum (Her father, her brother and her half-brother and half-sister by another mother have all been diagnosed with autism.) and is not good a confronting situations. She phoned the midwife twice and got an answer service, left a message and never received a reply. We told her to either phone NHS24 or get herself down to A&E. So she phoned the number and was told basically they weren't interested unless she had Covid19. That was the point where I told her boyfriend to get her down to A&E and, if they didn't see her, kick up hell. Once she got there she was treated properly, blood tests, scans the lot as, I gather, bleeding in the early stages can indicate Ectopic pregnancy and other serious conditions which have a real potential to be very serious but the 'automated' system and everyday NHS seems to be geared now to turning anyone away that doesn't have a juicy case of Covid19.
Wow! And there was me thinking I was being a bit harsh!! Thankfully I was right about the frontline staff though. I guess that it's the overpaid management in the NHS flexing their collective muscles again. Hope all goes well for your stepdaughter, Marty.
I hesitate to say this but not all NHS workers, despite the ultimate sacrifices given by some, the sterling work given by the majority, mean that they're all automatically worthy of praise and deference. Like any unit, there are the lazy and incompetent but in current circs it's hard to call it out. I've seen some, I'll term it generously, lackadasical treatment for people close to me recently. Like I said earlier, you should have known better than to get ill
I have a lawyer friend whose wife is a professor and an expert in virology and epidemiology and the two of them were unfortunate enough to contract Covid some time ago. For him 65, a little overweight and a type 2 diabetic, it was a bit like a mild flu and he felt strange for a few days. For her, an 'ultra' athlete who does those extreme triathalon's/Ironperson's event, 46 and, if anything slightly underweight, it affected her brain and gave her hallucinations and all sorts of odd things. He took her to hospital and the Medico who saw her at A&E tried to turn them away, talking down to her and acting like a Class 1 Utter Prick until she couldn't take it any more and explained to him why he was talking utter bollocks and gave him the numbers of several experts to consult with who would hand him his arse on a plate. Yes there are some in the NHS who shouldn't be allowed to be in charge of handing out aspirins.
I’m not gonna make excuses for poor treatment in the NHS... it’s one of the largest employers around... BUT here’s an example of how Covid has altered things in a Trust that I know well. This trust has a specific chronic condition team consisting of 4 consultant anaesthetists, 1 advanced nurse practitioner & 1 specialist nurse (this is the clinical team only) due to staffing shortages and management changes (revolving door job) this team were already behind on their waiting lists but were making steady progress into reducing it. Then Covid hit the NHS, the government said to the NHS “stop ALL non essential activity and move staff to help with the Covid situation” The chronic condition service was stopped for 5 months. 2 anaesthetists and the ANP were moved to front line activities, one anaesthetist was shielding due to health conditions, one couldn’t work front line due to disabilities following a motorcycle accident 8 years ago and so helped advise the management on latest Covid information; and the specialist nurse (not front line due to health conditions) manned the phones for all urgent calls for the chronic condition service and working through the 5000 odd referrals and follow-up patients to triage them for when the service was restarted normally. 5 months of clinics and treatments for this service couldn’t happen and so these “missed” patients are added to the backlog. In the meantime, the Trust has to review and replan how to work in the new Covid environment. They don’t have the luxury of believing alternative points of view, they MUST stick to the government advice for Covid, or risk being hauled over the Coals by the upper levels of the NHS and being sued left right and Center by the public. So systems and procedures are designed and brought in place to cope with bringing unwell and often aging patients into a large collecting area (hospital) and to try to give them the best care possible whilst maintaining the new Covid standards of care. On the back of these systemic changes, the chronic condition service reopened just over a month and a half ago, the anaesthetists came back about 4 weeks ago... So treatments are now being given in hospital again but consultations are done over the phone and they are just starting to do video clinics (again this is a massive change for the consultants to ensure they maintain best practice in a change of consultation techniques) The patients appear to be generally accepting that the service has suffered due to the 5 month hiatus, but like someone panic breaking on the motorway, the queues build up for miles and it’s hard for some to understand why they are being affected by something they can’t see. I am sorry that people are suffering, and yes... in a company this big there are rotten eggs... but the majority are just hard working common folk suffering their own illnesses, pains, stresses and family life issues as us... they don’t want to give poor care, they actually came into the job to help people.
It has been said many times, you guys in the NHS are doing a fantastic job. For me I had to wait following the lock down to get an op on my foot. I understand that it was delayed as a result of the initial problems with the virus. As part of my preparation for my recent op I had to get a COVID test. It took circa 24hrs to get my results back, thankfully it was negative and I had the procedure on Monday. So for me the service is working really well. I wish all that work in the NHS good luck and stay safe in these troubled times
Bumped into an old mate/work colleague the other day. He told me of his son whose heart operation was cancelled because of covid. He died. Bloody travesty.
Just got back from the hospital after seeing a consultant orthopaedic surgeon Gotta have surgery to fit a cage onto vertebrae in my neck This will be followed by surgery on both shoulders but I need another consultation to see if it requires fixing of my shoulders or if shoulder replacement is necessary So I’m on the list and just waiting for a date to get the first surgery done It’s Feckin ages since I did a cartwheel
Well marra that's not good news to be honest but its a way forward at least, as for the cage I'm in full agreement always thought you needed caging at times.
Jeez Dilli - that all sounds pretty serious stuff. But, at least it sounds positive, too so let's hope it can all be resolved with a minimum of the surgical stuff and associated pain. Best of luck, Big Man!
Glad you have an answer and a solution... Is the orthopod gonna do the cage or is he getting neurosurgeons involved? Do you want me to ride your bike for you when you’re recovering?
Just asking first, Can I have your bike, I will cherish it that goes without saying. PS - Nae worries though marra I will wait until your able to deliver it.
