BBC News Headines - Online

ruggedtoast

NHS Direct suck balls. If you're asking about something you havent been diagnosed with they tell you to go to your GP. If youre asking about something you have been diagnosed with they A) Tell you to go to your GP. Read scripted questions from a flow chart their computer throws up which will almost invariably conclude you have to go to your GP, invariably after being advised of some totally inappropriate treatment in the meantime.

Unless...

You call them out of hours.

If you're ever unlucky enough to call your GP out of hours you will most likely get automatically put through to NHS Directs super efficient and caring call centre. I had thought that my experience of calling Linksys' Manila based call centre to try and get my port forwarding settings on my router to work had been frustrating, however this pales in comparison. especially with the added bonus of having a 40 degree temperature and (what turned out to be) adult chicken pox lesions breaking out all over my body.

Connect to operator.
Go through address, personal details, allergies, favourite animal when a small boy
Go through symptoms as asked by computer.
Come to a symptom that has an ambiguous answer. Operator gets tetchy because they dont know what to tell their computer. (incidentally ALL of this is identical to their website, there is literally no point doing this if you have internet)
Go through more symptoms.
"A nurse will call you back in an hour. If symptoms change or worsen then please call back."

Two hours pass and symptoms change and worsen.

Call them back. "Symptoms have changed and worsened!"

Go through address, personal details, allergies, favourite animal when a small boy
Go through symptoms as asked by computer.
Come to a symptom that has an ambiguous answer. Operator gets tetchy because they dont know what to tell their computer. (incidentally ALL of this is identical to their website, there is literally no point doing this if you have internet)
Go through more symptoms.
"A nurse will call you back in an hour. If symptoms change or worsen then please call back."

Repeat until dead.

In the end I called back a third time and shouted at the regulard on the phone (something I virtually never do), and I finally got a doctor to call me back with an out of hours appointment.

One guy I know almost died because he had appendicitis and they told his mum to give him a hot water bottle to put over his stomach. She didnt believe them as he was so sick so dug out her GP's mobile number she had from somewhere and called him. Explained the symptoms, and he called an ambulance for the lad right away. They reckoned he would have had another 25 minutes tops when he got to the hospital.

NHS Direct. Useless.

lemonjelly

Possibly a variable service?

NHSdirect helped save my dads life.

He has a number of health conditions, & diabetes too.
Rang them & explained his conditions & the past couple of days. Their response was "we think he needs an ambulance". I'm one of those who worries about unneccessary ambulance trips, so asked if it was necessary. They put me directly through to a nurse, who insisted she'd send an ambulance.

He then spent a week or so in a coma in critical care.

Part way through week 2, he woke up. He remained in critical care for a few weeks. He was in hospital a couple of months. He still hasn't fully recovered.

Through his treatment, the consultants couldn't tell us much more than they couldn't figure out how he was still alive.

This was 4-5 years ago. He still hasn't fully recovered.

Between NHSdirect, the ambulance service, and the hospital, they prevented his early death.

As an aside, he has since had the need for the local air ambulance. Their donations are down (it is reported in the media). So I need to think about whether there is anything I can do to help them out.

The_White_Horse

Cleaver wrote: »

Do you rate the value of a public service based on whether you use it or not? I've never required cancer treatment, but I'm glad that people who need treatment have access and on this basis I wouldn't want cancer treatment centres closed down. A bit of an extreme example, but you get my point.

this is where you are wrong. you are glad they treat people with cancer IN CASE YOU GET CANCER. If you were 100% guaranteed you would never get cancer, but were told you would die of some other lesser known disease at the age of 55 I guarantee all of a sudden you would be thinking that some of the cancer research budget should be spent on your disease.

People like the NHS because they think that one day they might have to use it. its that simple.

The_White_Horse

lemonjelly wrote: »

Possibly a variable service?

NHSdirect helped save my dads life.

He has a number of health conditions, & diabetes too.
Rang them & explained his conditions & the past couple of days. Their response was "we think he needs an ambulance". I'm one of those who worries about unneccessary ambulance trips, so asked if it was necessary. They put me directly through to a nurse, who insisted she'd send an ambulance.

He then spent a week or so in a coma in critical care.

Part way through week 2, he woke up. He remained in critical care for a few weeks. He was in hospital a couple of months. He still hasn't fully recovered.

Through his treatment, the consultants couldn't tell us much more than they couldn't figure out how he was still alive.

This was 4-5 years ago. He still hasn't fully recovered.

Between NHSdirect, the ambulance service, and the hospital, they prevented his early death.

As an aside, he has since had the need for the local air ambulance. Their donations are down (it is reported in the media). So I need to think about whether there is anything I can do to help them out.

but there was nothing stopping you contacting your doctor or just calling an ambulance, especially if your dad was already suffering from a number of health conditions.

you don't have to wait to do something until NHS direct tells you to. are you an unthinking automaton or something?

presumably, you would be the first one suing NHS direct if they had said "he'll be fine, give him an asprin".

Air ambulances on the other hand - these should be fully supported by the Govt and they could easily be paid for by scrapping a few qangos.

ruggedtoast

The_White_Horse wrote: »

but there was nothing stopping you contacting your doctor or just calling an ambulance, especially if your dad was already suffering from a number of health conditions.

you don't have to wait to do something until NHS direct tells you to. are you an unthinking automaton or something?

presumably, you would be the first one suing NHS direct if they had said "he'll be fine, give him an asprin".

Air ambulances on the other hand - these should be fully supported by the Govt and they could easily be paid for by scrapping a few qangos.

NHS Direct stops you contacting your doctor. With my GP if you call out of hours the call is just rerouted to them. If you're lucky they then refer it to a Harmoni clinic, a dismal private sector medical service the NHS has outsourced its out of hours care to.

http://www.harmoni.co.uk/site/Harmoni/home

No matter how disinterested you think your own GP is you literally have never experienced indifference until you've sat before a Sunday morning Harmoni physician.

"Oh you're really sick? Well I dont particularly give a sh-1t. Do you think you can stay alive til tomorrow morning? Good well go and see your proper GP then".

neverdespairgirl

Cleaver wrote: »

I've never really understood NHS Direct. If I have a cold or flu then I can sort myself out with over the counter drugs and a lot of moaning to the wife. If it develops in to something more serious that's giving me concern then rather than have someone try and diagnose it over the phone, I will go to my GP. So I've never really been sure what section of ill people NHS Direct appeals to.

My opinion on the second story is that it's nice to see any baby born healthy and happy, especially when a couple has lost a previous child in tragic circumstances. I quite like the name Florence too.

the only time I've used NHS Direct was when my darling 18 month old son proved that the "childproof" Calpol bottle wasn't, in his case, remotely childproof.

They looked up what dose of Calpol was a problem, and got some poisons specialist to ring me back.

I like Florence, too, but it seems very old fashioned to me! One of my great-aunts was Florence.

neverdespairgirl

HAMISH_MCTAVISH wrote: »

No, but the numbers of people using a public service can certianly play a part in judging whether such a service is essential or merely desirable.

I've never used the services of the rape centres, or the murder squad. I'm still quite glad they exist, and hope that they see fewer rather than more people.