Bye bye NHS, welcome Serco?, Our health care sold for profit Options

[JeffG]

What if you don't have (can't 'afford') a balanced diet?

Sorry, but that's a daft question. A balanced diet is a lot cheaper than stuffing yourself full of expensive pills.

[Andy Capp]

Sorry, but that's a daft question. A balanced diet is a lot cheaper than stuffing yourself full of expensive pills.

A balanced diet (often used to mean fresh food) you need to shop more regularly, have a place to store it, the wherewithal to prepare it and cook it, and usually costs more.

A bottle of multi-vits for a month is usually less than £5.00.

http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=258119027


Vitamin A 100% RDA
Vitamin D 100% RDA
Vitamin E 83% RDA
Vitamin C 75% RDA
Thiamin 127% RDA
Riboflavin 114% RDA
Niacin 113% RDA
Vitamin B6 143% RDA
Folic Acid 100% RDA
Vitamin B12 40% RDA
Biotin 20% RDA
Pantothenic Acid 100% RDA

[NWNREADER]

Going back to the main thrust, as the purpose of the Health Service is to provide health care free at the point of delivery (the state funds, not the patient) does it really matter if the service is provided by a company and not the state service? I know about the profit element, and the risk of decisions being made on cost, not need, but those can be managed within the contract. Even within the totally State-provided system decisions are (being) made on basis of cost.....

Just asking....

[Squelchy]

does it really matter if the service is provided by a company and not the state service?
Just asking....

It's the quality of service that's important. Isn't it?

[NWNREADER]

It's the quality of service that's important. Isn't it?

Fair point. Differentiate private Health Care and NHS Healthcare quality?

[Squelchy]

Fair point. Differentiate private Health Care and NHS Healthcare quality?

Well, have private companies done well cleaning the hospitals? Getting water into your home as cheaply as possible? Running the railways?

I'm sure you'll recall last month it was revealed that private healthcare companies are now offering 'expensive' patients cash sums to go back to the NHS.

Generally profit should not be the overarching issue for a healthcare provider, and the NHS should not be dismantled or sold off.

[Andy Capp]

Fair point. Differentiate private Health Care and NHS Healthcare quality?

Private Health Care tends to be a value added service. To compare is rather like comparing social and private housing.

[Andy Capp]

... and the NHS should not be dismantled or sold off...

...unless it was voted for. As it happens, on this, the Tories have plainly lied.

[Cognosco]

Fair point. Differentiate private Health Care and NHS Healthcare quality?

They both have staff to pay, NHS not the highest paid staff in the country, they both have buildings to supply maintain they both have overheads. The only difference that I am able to find is that NHS establishments have minimum standards to maintain the private sector are exempt?

The biggest difference is that private sector need to make a profit where is it going to originate from apart from cost savings- probably reads cost cutting to patient care?

Has the other public utilities meant an improvement to services and less cost for the general public has it meant no taxpayer subsidies to the private sector? Has it meant a reduction to the taxpayer either through less taxation or reduced point of service costs? I don't believe so? It has just meant that the private sector has taken a slice of the taxpayers money in profits.

[Cognosco]

It's the quality of service that's important. Isn't it?

And so far privatisation has not even started yet?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-19665640

[Andy Capp]

Yes, look at the quality and efficiency experienced in private elderly care homes. NHS services via private care coming to a town near you! We might need some more immigrants mind, I doubt the locals will work for the wages - not with these house prices.

[On the edge]

Yes, look at the quality and efficiency experienced in private elderly care homes. NHS services via private care coming to a town near you! We might need some more immigrants, mind, I doubt the locals will work for the wages - not with these house prices.

That's an interesting point. What has happened there does not show private provision in a good light. Certainly worth another thread on its own - but spot on. Even though I'd suspect other factors at play in this - it ought to be very high up in any consideration about doing more.

[Andy Capp]

You are right, it is not a like for like. I understand that one of the insidious aspects of the 'new deal' is the passing of responsibility away from those that we can elect to government.

[NWNREADER]

As with the telephone service, the benefit the private companies offering 'cheaper' service is they have not developed the infrastructure. They can just buy into the existing.
In the Health arena, one of the major costs for the NHS is the provision of drop-in services - including GP surgeries as well as A&E.
Many people after A&E admission cannot be moved to private facilities...... Latching a private ward system onto a 'public' A&E would be a recipe for cost disputes.....

[NWNREADER]

While this adds fuel to the argument the same charge of fixing targets can likely be laid at the desk of the NHS managers. The difference is the fees on offer as opposed to a personal bonus....

[Squelchy]

Fair point. Differentiate private Health Care and NHS Healthcare quality?

Well. to take one example, that of Cornwall, Serco were awarded a contract to run an out-of-hours G.P. service.

They were told their performance would be audited, they complained this would interfere with their business plan and were thus told they could audit themselves.

Running an out-of-hours service costs money, so to save money they just didn't run one. Well, not a proper one.

Their managers made a total of 252 false reports back to the PCT (with fiddled figures) to show that everything was O.K.

When the S hit the F the PCT looked into the affair, told Serco to start fulling it's contact and released a statement to the effect that the service would now be "fundamentally safe and effective". I wonder.

[JeffG]

Deleted (NWNREADER has already provided the link to Squelchy's source).

[NWNREADER]

Helpful link to the BBC News item that Squelchy is apparently quoting from, so others can read it.

As posted by my good self above!! (Post 35)

[JeffG]

As posted by my good self above!! (Post 35)

As edited before you posted in humble recognition of that fact.

[Squelchy]

Deleted (NWNREADER has already provided the link to Squelchy's source).

Nope, this was my source..

Shame

Same story though.