Giantaxe

Not just over testing, but over treating. As has been said many times before, both systems have issues.

Bob

True, but doesn't change the aspect that you could be still be waiting around for hours before they do anything either....or the shit bedside manner.

Speaking from experience on both fronts.

So it happens, regardless of the healthcare "system".

Care was ultimately pretty good here, but then location plays a part as we know if can be just as shite if we were somewhere else.

Either way, bit more pricey here and a bit more dependent on the job you have, which is not much fun.

Yorkieabroad

I'm the exact opposite. In the UK I felt if they were doing something, it was for my benefit. Here I simply cannot shake the thought that their first priority is fee generation, second is arse covering and third is patient care. Plus the level of basic honesty is far below what I consider acceptable. (from the medical profession in general, not necessarily individual doctors, although there have been a few outright lying sh!ts without even the balls to admit it when caught out by their own lies)I have always had the utmost respect for medical professionals, but living here for 12 years has put a serious dent in that - in fact, now I'd put them somewhere between used car salesmen and realtors.....

I guess my fear of not being treated because of cost restrictions is less than my fear of being overtreated/tested because of fee generation. And if the former were a real fear, then there is always extremely reasonable private insurance in the UK...

Absolutely right

Yup, generate fee, cover arse - next patient please!

LondonSquirrel

There's also the fact that some choose to or are pushed into the medical profession by parents because doctors earn such a lot of money in the US. Same thing with dentists. I know my NHS dentist here in the UK isn't going to do unnecessary treatment because there are just three prices in the UK for NHS dentistry.

£20 for check-up, cleaning or scale and polish and xrays

£50 for all the above plus fillings, extraction and root canal

£200 for all the previous stuff plus crowns and bridges

Pulaski

That's a pretty damning indictment of the front line medical professionals in the US. Is that just a feeling you have or would you care to back it up with some data?

I guess we are (from an evolutionary perspective I know we are) all programmed to place the greatest weight on our own experiences and those of our family and close acquaintances. I have mostly had good experiences in the US, but know of a number of instances of sloppy unprofessional work of medical professionals in the UK. ..... A baby with brain damage after the umbilical cord got around her neck, an operation for kidney stones where they "couldn't find" the kidney stones, the local hospital "lost" my grandmother and my mother was invited to look around the ward to see if she could find her! And I heard just this week of someone who phoned for an ambulance and was told there were none available and suggested that the person needing assistance "make their own way to hospital!" I know many people have had good experiences with the NHS, unfortunately many of mine have been less positive.
Colonoscopy?

LondonSquirrel

LMAO

Pulaski

Might I recommend an anal replantation procedure?

Michael

I'm not sure how it works in the UK but in the US, the AMA will protect a doctor even if he/she is totally incompetent and even dangerous. A doctor almost has to commit premeditated murder to lose his/her license.

Derrygal

Really? I find that surprising.

Michael

CBS News then looked at the 25 doctors with the most malpractice payouts in Florida. CBS News found just four of them lost their licenses - and three of those four only lost them after they had been arrested and charged with either drug trafficking or billing fraud. The fourth lost his license after he failed to comply with the terms of a lesser punishment. In other words, not a single one of them had been stopped from practicing solely for providing poor medical care.

Despite malpractice settlements, few docs lose licenses

Six ways doctors put patients at risk—without losing their licenses | The Advisory Board Daily Briefing

petitefrancaise

[QUOTE=Yorkieabroad;11598129]I'm the exact opposite. In the UK I felt if they were doing something, it was for my benefit. Here I simply cannot shake the thought that their first priority is fee generation, second is arse covering and third is patient care. Plus the level of basic honesty is far below what I consider acceptable. (from the medical profession in general, not necessarily individual doctors, although there have been a few outright lying sh!ts without even the balls to admit it when caught out by their own lies)

?Stafford??? The idiot in charge of that fiasco was promoted. Negligence, cost reductions and arse covering at a level not seen before. 600 deaths above the norm.

No system is perfect. Closest I've come is France and I had a few issues with that one.

Private Consultants must be NHS consultants first. It's the only way to become a consultant in the UK.

Pulaski

I nearly said the same thing, ..... but IMO it really needs a "" to make the meaning clear.

Yorkieabroad

[QUOTE=Pulaski;11598135] Yes, it is pretty damning, and I don't mind backing up at all. I've probably mentioned some of these before on here.

Son broke his arm when he was 2 (fell of a horse at a carnival - he may be Texan, but clearly not a cowboy). The place that set his arm invoiced for 3 pieces of the plaster for the cast at $200 each. We had watched them do it and they had used one piece, so we disputed the invoice. We were told not to worry about it as our insurance would pay, but we have a high deductible, so it would be us paying... I was getting nowhere on the phone, so we went to the office. The doctor that treated him (and owned the practice) referred us to the nurse. The nurse said it was nothing to do with her and referred us to billing. Billing said they just billed what the computer said, and it said bill for 3. So back to the head of the practice... We actually got all 3 together in the office, and they continued to pass the buck in front of us. I asked them how many pieces they would expect to use on a 2 year old. All declined to answer. I presented them with the cast and asked how many pieces it looked like were in there. All declined to answer. By now you could tell from their faces that both the doctor and the nurse were lying and knew it, but neither of them would admit it. The billing person was off the hook as she was only following orders. Basically, they were caught lying, they knew it, and none of them had the decency to admit it. Liars. Beneath contempt.

Another one - I had a knee op a few years back. I got all the estimates in for the different parts of the procedure. The anaesthetist estimate was given in a face to face meeting - they wanted to see me as I have a condition which restricts the GA I can have. It tuned out that the anaesthetist that would be looking after me had actually trained at St James' in Leeds on this specific condition, as the UK is the leading authority on it -feather in the cap for the NHS Afterwards we got the actuals. Surgeon - fine. Facility - fine. Anaesthetist billed way over the estimate - almost 3 times. I disputed it, and got nowhere. The guy in billing asked me to fax him the estimate and I replied that I couldn't because it was done verbally in a meeting. He actually laughed and told me it was a trick question, that he knew I didn't have one because they never give them in case they are asked to justify the difference - basically admitting that they reserve the right to rip off the punter.

Last couple of years Father in Law has been having treatment for cancer. My wife went to all of his consultant/doctor meetings to make sure there was nothing lost in translation (his first language is not English). Wife soon started getting uneasy about some of the procedures being recommended, and referred to a friend in Taiwan who is a US trained Oncologist. The friend felt that a lot of unnecessary procedures were being scheduled, and recommended we get a 2nd opinion. When they mentioned this to the original consultant, he first of all got defensive and told them not to worry as medicare would be paying, and that a 2nd opinion wasn't necessary, would waste time, and Medicare money. When they insisted on getting the second opinion, he started backtracking with "if we drop procedure X can we get started?" Negotiating treatment - seriously? wtf? Anyway, long story short, they got a 2nd opinion, that agreed with the long distance advice from Taiwan, he underwent that treatment and is now a year in remission.

When son was 10 paediatrician wanted to test his cholesterol due to family history (mine is high). Tested him - fine. Then said she wanted to test him every 6 months. Went for the next test and it was also fine. She then said she wanted to test him every 3 months.... We switched his doctor, and now he is on a 2 year testing cycle - and it is still fine.

I could go on and on, but every single time, with a few notable exceptions, I come away from talking to medical folk feeling like a need a good shower.

The exceptions include:-

-My kids first pediatrician - just a few years qualified, very good, no BS. Unfortunately he died of a brain tumour at 33
-The surgeon that did my left knee - nice job, and I asked him if he could clean my right one out. Told me he could, but he wouldn't as it would be a waste of money due to the condition.
- the second consultant that looked after my FiL and cleaned out the overloaded treatment procedure that the first had recommended.

Absolutely -you can read all the reports going, but your personal view is going to be hugely based on personal experience. Folk dismiss it as "anecdotal", or "just your opinion - read the statistics" but at the end of the day, you can't shake your own feelings.

kins

I think we could be here forever if we're all going to list examples of bad healthcare...

jenninedinburgh

Tru dat