Labour's Cancelled Ops

[stargalaxy]

Story here. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4323749.stm)
Following on from the unedifying spectacle of the political squabble last week involving Margaret Dixon, the woman whose operation was cancelled seven times, comes this.

John Reid is wheeled out to talk to Jonathan Dimbleby. Does he apologise to Margaret Dixon for not making a visit to her last week? Does he, on a wider scale, promise to deal with the rampant MRSA bug? Maybe even to get rid of the stupid targets culture that New Labour (and the Tories) have forced on the NHS? If only.

No, as always from a government that loves to talk the talk, but never walks the walk comes more spin and nonsense. The government that promised to transform the NHS now has to resort to a pre-Election gimmick. A proposal to deny hospitals of the money they need to actually reach the targets of this discredited, failed government.

What a bunch of morons... :rolleyes:

[Man Of Kent]

"Pre-election" :lol:

The 28-day rule, known as the NHS Guarantee has been in place for at least two years...

[stargalaxy]

"Pre-election" :lol: The 28-day rule, known as the NHS Guarantee has been in place for at least two years... I accept this doesn't break any rules, but the announcement of this coming rather close to an election (which we all know will be on May 5th - the worst kept secret in Westminister) does raise an eyebrow on my part.

[Man Of Kent]

You should be more worried about it being portrayed as something new.

If an NHS Hospital cancels your operation, on the day of admission/day of surgery, and cannot/does not operate within 28 days you have the right to be treated at another hospital.

This promise was part of the NHS Plan and until this year was a star rating issue...

Now I haven't seen the detail of this latest "new policy" but I would be interested to know if the scope of this promise has been increased...

[stargalaxy]

You should be more worried about it being portrayed as something new.

If an NHS Hospital cancels your operation, on the day of admission/day of surgery, and cannot/does not operate within 28 days you have the right to be treated at another hospital. This promise was part of the NHS Plan and until this year was a star rating issue... I don't pretend this is anything new - after all, this government does have a record of re-announcing plans and initiatives with ad nauseum. That said, I question whether taking money away from hospitals in fines will help them or, as I suspect, hinder them.

[Kermit]

with ad nauseum.

yes, I'm being a pedant, but saying things like that is *so* annoying.

Anyway...a politician bends the truth! Hold the front page!

[hobbs]

Story here. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4323749.stm)
John Reid is wheeled out

and i thought it was only the pope and the queen mother they wheeled out!

[Jim V]

we're in trouble if someone wheels out the queen mother to make a point in this election

[Kentish]

we're in trouble if someone wheels out the queen mother to make a point in this election
:lol:

[stargalaxy]

we're in trouble if someone wheels out the queen mother to make a point in this election :yeees: I was using a figure of speech, Mr Valentine. What I meant is John Reid hardly went there because he fancied going out on a Sunday afternoon. But with Alan Milburn and John Prescott running the Labour election campaign, anything could happen.

[Man Of Kent]

That said, I question whether taking money away from hospitals in fines will help them or, as I suspect, hinder them.

It's not really a fine, its the hospital paying for the operation to be carried out somewhere else. They would have to pay their own staff to do it anyway, and clearly they don't have the capacity or they would do it themselves.

Perhaps the best option would be for hospitals to think about what they were doing, thus avoiding the cancellation in the first place.

[Man Of Kent]

we're in trouble if someone wheels out the queen mother to make a point in this election

I don't know, I'm worried that she might make an appearance at the "big wedding" just to sate the public appetite...