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Fri, 14 Aug 2009

Hospital Week, or why the NHS is actually OK

It is odd seeing various reports that implementing properly state-funded health care in the US will lead to problems with death panels, or poor service.

I can only really comment on my own experience of the NHS.

I've found that the system of registering yourself to a GP is fairly pointless, time-consuming and buearucratic. Actually seeing a GP requires it to be an emergency or you to "plan" your sick days, because you need to have an appointment or be willing to wait, many, many, hours.

However, once you have a referral to a specialist, and you see them, further appointments, tests other diagnostic stuff is amazingly fast.

I've been in and out of hospital all this week on various days and I've got at least another 3 - 4 appointments covering the next month already lined up.

I don't recommend visiting hospitals so frequently but if you have, the NHS is a nice way to do it

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Anonymous wrote at 2009-08-14 15:16:

The biggest complaint I and many others have regarding government-run health care: if it sucks, you have little to no alternative, and you still have to pay for it. Sure, your governmental health care may work well for *you*, in the cases where you've had to use it. Consider what you would do if you needed some major procedure and the NHS refused to pay for it.

Russ wrote at 2009-08-15 03:44:

I would call the "broken". Having a GP should be a joy, and picking a GP should be a very personal decision.
I'm really happy with my GP, if I wasn't, I'd pick a different one. Scheduling GP appointments is easy, if its fairly serious problem, its a next day thing. There isn't a long wait once I arrive (if there was, I'd pick a different GP).
And if I already know what kind of specialist I need, I don't need an appointment with me GP to get the referral.
If I didn't have a GP or didn't want to wait for an appointment, I could pay a higher deductible and go to an urgent care facility, where I would be treated almost immediately.

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Anand Kumria
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