Happy Birthday to the NHS
Today sees the 68th anniversary of the founding of the UK’s National Health Service. Known throughout the UK as ” the envy of the world”.
Please add your birthday wishes to the comments box below!
Thanks very much in advance!
National Health Service
It has been been , for long term political observers, a rather odd campaign in terms of political issues. But there have been a couple of stand outs – one, of which, is the issue of healthcare.
As US readers may know healthcare, in the UK, is mainly provided free at the point of use to those who need it. That being said the National Health Service will be 70 in a couple of years time and it would be naive to suggest that it is not “creaking” a bit.
So the purpose of this blog is to find out if you consider the future of the NHS to be important in how you decide to cast your vote. To do this we have set up a poll below and it would be great if you would take part. Secondly and, maybe, it would be great if you could share your ideas as to how healthcare in the UK might be improved. Please use the comments section below to share your ideas!
Feel free to vote and comment below even if you a not eligible to vote in the UK. Why? Because everyone’s opinion is useful in charting a course for healthcare in the future. And we can learn for the experiences of other countries when it comes to healthcare reform. I mean – has Obamacare really worked in the US?
State Healthcare?
In the US healthcare reform has been a major issue. Just look at Obamacare.
So I found myself wondering if government really was the best agency to be providing (or even involved) in healthcare?
What do you think?
Please feel free to take part in our poll below. It would be great if you could use the comments section below to expand on your thoughts!
Thanks in advance!
Healthcare professionals should they be free?
In the UK this morning healthcare reform (and funding) was back on the political agenda. The BBC’s web site today reports “Leading figures from the health world are calling for a national debate on how the NHS in England is funded. In a letter to The Times, they say challenges from an ageing population mean the system is “creaking at the seams” and cannot continue as it is. Signatories include the heads of the Royal College of Physicians and Royal College of Nursing. The BBC’s health editor says the group feels future options may include higher taxes or charges for some treatment.”
Which means, I suppose , that there is some attempt to solve the whole funding crisis of the UK’s healthcare system. Which, of course, is what Obamacare hopes to achieve.
In the UK as many of our readers know the National Health Service offers its services (which are more or less universal) at no cost when actually receiving treatment. Often referred to as “free at the point of delivery”. I should mention here that the services are not free but are paid for by the UK taxpayer.
But , for some, this model is past its sell by date.
They argue that changes in medical technology and increased life expectancy mean we are going to have to rethink how we find healthcare.
But that does not automatically mean that free at the point of access is a bad idea. I’m really interested in what my readers think. We have set up a poll below to find out what you are consumers of medicine and healthcare think. So it would be really great if you could take part.
I would also be really useful if you could share your thoughts in more detail in the comments section below.
Many thanks in advance.
Healthcare reform
Healthcare reform seems to be the watchword of the day.
From Obamacare in the USA to the restructuring of the National Health Service in Great Britain the whole globe is chaning the way health is organised.
Not just that but a raft of new technologies and techniques are becoming available. Add to this the rise of generic medical products which leads to lower costs especially in developing nations then we have a very interesting future,
But our interest today is a bit different. yes there have been loads of changes. But have they actually improved or even changed the quality of the healthcare we receive as members of the public?
To answer this question we have decided to run a short poll to find out what our readers think.
The poll is below and it would be great to find out what you think!
Thanks very much in advance!