It's time to start digging up those Squirrelled Nuts!!!!

Brilley

..back on thread.....
Recently had a meeting with our "FA" and after 3 years since retiring we have finally decided to start pulling in some funds from our SS ISAs which we have had for more years than I care to remember. (ie very much digging up our squirreled nuts!), although still can't get used to the idea of "drawing down" from savings, (hope we get over it soon!!)...

arnoldy

atush wrote: »

Charge for missed appointments. Will help a lot, and agree about the pensions.

Yes there should be an insurance based or at least co-payment system - that way people would appreciate how wonderful the "free" NHS is and stop the worst of the abuse.


By the way NHS staff work hard but they are not special cases loads of people work hard from street cleaners to those on minimum wage.

Terron

Sea_Shell wrote: »

Earliest on-line Non emergency appointment available...…...6th January 2020!!! So I've booked it, as it will be serious if they haven't cleared up by themselves by then!!!!

A persistant cough that lasts three weeks is a potential emergency. One of the possible causes is a heart problem and you would likely be sent for a chest X-ray to check. I was 8 years ago. It turned out to be non-urgent but the check was needed.

Terron

MallyGirl wrote: »

I have 2 GPs in the family. 1 decided the working conditions were so awful in the UK that they have moved to New Zealand - still working as a GP but shorter hours and a much nicer lifestyle. The other has a young family and has no interest in becoming a partner in a practice - this has limited her job opportunities although she is working.

My father was a GP. In the 60s he was part of a 2 man practise and every other week he was on call 24X7. Then he joined a 6 man practise and was only on call every third week. Then came out of hours services though he was still the backup for them. I am not certain that things have got harder, though it is still not a job I would want.
If I call before 8am I and usually get a non-urgent appointment that day from my local surgery.

MallyGirl

Terron wrote: »

If I call before 8am I and usually get a non-urgent appointment that day from my local surgery.

That must be nice. It is 3 weeks plus here. I am lucky that my employer provides BUPA plus a 24hr GP+ service so if I am really ill then I can get access to someone who might be able to help. Most do not have that luxury

nigelbb

JoeEngland wrote: »

AFAIK there's a world-wide shortage of medical staff. Various factors like an ageing population, an increasing population, and lifestyle caused illness are adding to demand for medical services in the UK.

Most other EU countries manage to train enough doctors without a reliance on vast numbers of immigrants.

nigelbb

Terron wrote: »

My father was a GP. In the 60s he was part of a 2 man practise and every other week he was on call 24X7. Then he joined a 6 man practise and was only on call every third week. Then came out of hours services though he was still the backup for them. I am not certain that things have got harder, though it is still not a job I would want.
If I call before 8am I and usually get a non-urgent appointment that day from my local surgery.

It used to be sustainable for GPs to do their own on calls but with an ageing but more importantly more demanding population the workload became too high. There is little in the way of domiciliary OOH GP work now & mostly people just call an ambulance so they get seen in A&E.

nigelbb

MallyGirl wrote: »

That must be nice. It is 3 weeks plus here. I am lucky that my employer provides BUPA plus a 24hr GP+ service so if I am really ill then I can get access to someone who might be able to help. Most do not have that luxury

It’s a postcode lottery as to whether you get a good GP practice or not. Many patients do get a good service but the perception is that it’s impossible to get to see GPs as we hear these stories so often. You can almost always get a non urgent same day appointment at the practice where I am registered.

shinytop

nigelbb wrote: »

Most other EU countries manage to train enough doctors without a reliance on vast numbers of immigrants.

I was rather enjoying this thread when it was discussing peoples' experiences of transitioning from the accumulation to the decumulation phase of retirement. It's one thing comparing differing experiences of obtaining GP appointments but I would rather read political opinion and analyses about it somewhere else, if at all.

Sea_Shell

I wish I'd never mentioned it in the first place now!!!

No more NHS/political chat please. Plenty of other threads for that stuff.

Cheers.