Save Hinchingbrooke Hospital

Hospitals 'should axe thousands more beds'

is what I read this morning........
A think tank....no doubt being paid outrageous sums of money claim "Reform says the NHS's focus should move away from hospital treatment as more people suffer from conditions, such as diabetes, which can be treated at home.

It says a quarter of beds could be axed to fund more personalised treatment.

The government said local health chiefs could decide, while the British Medical Association said cuts made for purely financial reasons would be "immoral".

The hospital bed count has been falling for decades, but Reforms's call represents a more rapid programme than has been seen in recent years.

There were just under 300,000 beds in 1987, but by last year that had fallen to 160,000 as advances in treatment have meant patients do not need to spend as long in hospital."

SO THAT OUTLOOK IS OKAY IN PRINCIPAL...... BUT...... BEFORE YOU CUT HOSPITAL BEDS YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE THERE IS ENOUGH SUPPORT IN THE COMMUNITY.
IN CAMBRIDGESHIRE THIS IS NOT THE CASE AND UNDER THE CURRENT FUNDING ARRANGEMENTS NOTHING WILL CHANGE.
EVEN IF YOU HAVE CLUSTERS OF G.P'S TO "POLICE" REFERRALS TO HOSPITALS, WHERE WILL YOU SEND THOSE WHO NEED TREATMENT?..... YOU WONT BECAUSE THE INFRASTRUCTURE DOES NOT EXIST. WE WERE TOLD IN 2006/07 THAT OPTION 2 WOULD PROVIDE CARE IN THE COMMUNITY -- AS WE SAID ---- IT DIDN'T --- SURPRISE SURPRISE....
IT APPEARS THAT IT WAS CLEARLY A SYSTEM OF SOUND BITES TO "ENCOURAGE" PATIENTS - THE TAXPAYER - NOT TO BOTHER USING THE NHS AND TO USE YOUR PHARMACIST INSTEAD.....YET THE GOVERNMENT HAVE GIVEN A CLEAR MESSAGE THAT NHS TREATMENT IS A RIGHT AND YOU WILL BE SEEN BY A GP AND IF REQUIRED YOU WILL BE TREATED WITHIN 18 WEEKS.....

THIS WILL NOT CHANGE, IF THE CONSERVATIVES SHOULD GET INTO POWER THEN THE NHS IS DOOMED, THEY HAVE PLEDGED TO
"Opening up the NHS to new independent and voluntary sector providers"

WHICH MEANS THEIR USUAL ETHOS OF PRIVATISATION ---IN OTHER WORDS A GIFT FOR THEIR CHUMS AND DONORS.....
BEFORE YOU VOTE CONSIDER THIS...... IF YOUR NHS OR PARTS OF YOUR NHS ARE PRIVATISED....WHAT WILL IT LOOK LIKE AFTER 10/20 YEARS?....
TO GET THE ANSWER.....LOOK AT THE ROADS,RAILS,WATER.ELECTRIC/GAS....WHAT KIND OF SERVICE DO YOU GET FROM THEM NOW.... VERY POOR...IF YOU CAN GET ANYWHERE,CHEAPLY AND WHEN YOU WANT TO AT THE PRICE YOU CAN AFFORD...
THIS IS WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THE NHS IF THE TORIES GET THEIR WAY....STOP THEM FROM RUINING YOUR HEALTH CARE......
THEIR 1ST ATTEMPT WAS CONTRACT CLEANING....THEN WE GOT SUPER BUGS DUE TO SHORTCUTS & LACK OF CLEANING MATERIALS, SO THAT SHAREHOLDER CAN BE PAID BONUSES....THE REAL SCANDAL IS.....THAT THE RECENT DEEP CLEAN OF HOSPITALS WAS PAID FOR BY US....WHY WASN'T THE BILL FOR THIS SHARED AMONGST THE CLEANING CONTRACTORS THAT CLEARLY HAD NOT DONE THE JOB PROPERLY FOR MANY YEARS?...
IN SCOTLAND THEY HAVE TAKEN CLEANING BACK IN HOUSE AND THEIR HOSPITALS ARE NOW CLEAN, THOROUGHLY CLEAN....
THE NHS IS THE POOR COUSIN, IT GETS THE RAW DEAL AND IS USED FOR EXPERIMENTATION.
CAR PARKING IS FREE IN WALES AND SCOTLAND....WHY NOT ENGLAND TOO....PRESCRIPTIONS ARE FREE IN SCOTLAND AND WALES- WHY NOT ENGLAND...?