An early start this morning as I need to negotiate the Jubilee line up to Stanmore from London Bridge which takes over an hour. I catch the papers on the tube and notice the stuff Tony Blair has been saying about the NHS yesterday. Blimey Tony, please can I work in the Health Service that you just described, it sounds great! Obviously no mention of the junior doctor fiasco…
Tony’s big focus has been on waiting times, and to give him his credit they have come down a bit with all the money they’ve thrown at them. But that’s not the whole story.
Go into A+E these days and have an honest chat with any of the nursing sisters or casualty doctors about the four hour turnaround time, for instance. It’s actually quite difficult to process, investigate and treat patients in four hours. As a doctor you’re under huge pressure to rush your work.
You are petrified of missing something because the trust will be fined if you don’t get that patient stitched up and outside again within four hours.
I’ve known critical patients rushed up to the wards without proper investigations because the priority has been to get them out of A+E before the deadline is up. The flipside to achieving targets seems to be a production line approach to treating patients.
Most doctors hate it when the target becomes more important than the patient.
Up in Stanmore I’ve got a meeting with the professor who supervises my research. He is a leading light in orthopaedics, a real credit to the British medical system. I occasionally bump into other doctors from abroad who can’t believe that I’m working with this legend.
One of the worries that juniors have these days is that we won’t be able to scale these kind of heights. It’s going to take us much less time to become a consultant under the new system (used to be 21,000 hours and now just 6,000 hours) and things like research are almost frowned on these days.
For example in the recent application for consultant training you scored the same on the form for a three year PhD in cutting edge medicine as you did for a three day computer course!
I suppose a lot of today’s blog seems to be whingeing, but most junior doctors feel pretty passionate about what’s going on - such as the dumbing down of British medicine - not just me.
We’re usually a pretty apathetic bunch and it takes a lot to get 12,000 of us on the streets of London as we did last month. It’s not just about self preservation. It’s mainly because we still believe in the NHS and haven’t lost all hope yet.
Still, what triviality am I banging on about when Liverpool and Chelsea are going to address some truly important issues tonight. Gotta go with the reds even though I’m a southerner…
Whilst I sympathise with your deliberations surrounding the New Health Schemes, I remain as appalled as your self insofar as to the vile treatment of patients.
On the matter of A&E for example, (following the data processing of the patient) many a trust quite rightly categorises such injuries in order that those with life threatening injuries are given priority. Then, without prejudice to any natural person whatsoever, language as well as toxic levels no doubt bring about much to talk about.
If Mr Blair’ cabinet of medical provision is continually imposing penalties on hospitals just because they miss their illicit target*, then I’m afraid the recipe for disaster was created not by the hospital, but other such divine sources, yet we wonder why vital treatment goes unfunded.
Nonetheless, today’s hospital receptions resemble airport lounges, as compensation culture further exasperates, as well as encourages unwarranted claims by those who find this a money spinning avenue.
Still looking on the bright side, I’m glad you support Liverpool as the current NHS dun arf give you the blues. (Oh dear, money run out)
(* Yes there must be targets in order to achieve, but a fine? How sad is that! New prescription for the NHS please!)
Posted by: Khalid 1 May 2007 09:10:55