Can Gerry Robinson Fix The NHS?

**Will** · 01-15-2007, 10:25 PM

Did anyone watch this? I've seen two episodes, I don't know if there are any more. But basically Sir Gerry Robinson was given the task of cutting the waiting list and improving a hospital in Yorkshire.

BBC show under fire after damning verdict on NHS | Special Reports | Guardian Unlimited Politics

He managed to reduce waiting lists, and he got 90% of operations were done in under three months.

It just goes to prove that the Government needs to do more then just pour money into the black hole that is the NHS. They need to restructure it, and get people just running it properly, all the money in the world won't make crap management any better.

bugsy · 03-01-2007, 06:44 AM

......and as soon as he is out the door they all revert back to they way they were. Anyone with half a brain can see that for the camera, all appears to be going well, but give it a couple of months.....even a year later. Educating the nhs is not a 6 mnths stint and then its ok for ever more.

**Will** · 03-08-2007, 09:03 PM

Well clearly it is a six month stint, if he managed to turn it around in that time. Maybe it will go back to it's old ways if not kept up, but he's proven that with proper management the NHS can be saved. It proves that it can be done without continually pouring more money into it.

The Relic · 01-31-2008, 03:06 PM

One way they can cut waiting lists is to actually allow hospitals to finance complete instead of partial treatments of conditions up front.

My wife has trick knees which can dislocate at any time. In late October they both dislocated at the same time, causing massive trauma and effectively crippling her. Now, the truth is that the surgeons could replace her knees and return her to an active life; it was the first thing her consultant suggested and he has repeatedly mentioned the possibility since. However, he cannot commit her to surgery because she is apparently "too young" for the treatment at 43, which is NHS speak for, "If we pay to do this now there's a slim possibility we may have to do it again in your sixties, so we're not allowing you to spend the money." Instead it has been proposed that she has a partial replacement of the single knee which has worn away to the greatest extent.

What this means for her is that unless we pay a large sum to have her knees replaced privately - anathema to her anyway, as she is a committed socialist - she must carry on enduring constant pain with accompanying depression for years to come, else become dependent on a cocktail of pills - a further longterm drain on the NHS, please note. I'll add that the situation and the change in her personality has already damaged relationships within our family.

Sorry about the rant, but I think you can see why the lack of foresight of the NHS penny pinchers has angered me.

Pie'n'mash · 02-02-2008, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Relic

One way they can cut waiting lists is to actually allow hospitals to finance complete instead of partial treatments of conditions up front.

My wife has trick knees which can dislocate at any time. In late October they both dislocated at the same time, causing massive trauma and effectively crippling her. Now, the truth is that the surgeons could replace her knees and return her to an active life; it was the first thing her consultant suggested and he has repeatedly mentioned the possibility since. However, he cannot commit her to surgery because she is apparently "too young" for the treatment at 43, which is NHS speak for, "If we pay to do this now there's a slim possibility we may have to do it again in your sixties, so we're not allowing you to spend the money." Instead it has been proposed that she has a partial replacement of the single knee which has worn away to the greatest extent.

What this means for her is that unless we pay a large sum to have her knees replaced privately - anathema to her anyway, as she is a committed socialist - she must carry on enduring constant pain with accompanying depression for years to come, else become dependent on a cocktail of pills - a further longterm drain on the NHS, please note. I'll add that the situation and the change in her personality has already damaged relationships within our family.

Sorry about the rant, but I think you can see why the lack of foresight of the NHS penny pinchers has angered me.

I understand your rant fully, I also see that this particular problem is on your wish list or more accurately; "things to do before you die". It is disgusting that she has been refused treatment, I think if any treatment can improve health for twenty years, even two years, there is no reason to refuse. What ever happened to doctors that wanted to make people better?

If she is on a cocktail of pills them I am assuming that this would cost more in the long term than actually giving her the operation? I say this as a recent debate on "presumed consent organ donation", used the argument that not only were there not enough organ donors but that it cost more money to medicate those that were waiting for a transplant rather than the transplant operation.

Also if she had the partial replacement, as it doesn't last as long couldn't it be true that she may have 3 costly operations in the 20 years? I can't see a difference in the cost of this particular operation so is it just the simple reason that it takes longer to recover from the full op, so therefore takes up too much time in a hospital bed and after care?

I'm sure you've seen this site:

Knee replacement - What happens? - Types of knee repalacement

From what I can see it says the partial knee operation is less suitable for a young, active person. Wouldn't that mean that a young active person would receive a full operation then?

Pie'n'mash · 02-02-2008, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Will

Did anyone watch this? I've seen two episodes, I don't know if there are any more. But basically Sir Gerry Robinson was given the task of cutting the waiting list and improving a hospital in Yorkshire.

BBC show under fire after damning verdict on NHS | Special Reports | Guardian Unlimited Politics

He managed to reduce waiting lists, and he got 90% of operations were done in under three months.

It just goes to prove that the Government needs to do more then just pour money into the black hole that is the NHS. They need to restructure it, and get people just running it properly, all the money in the world won't make crap management any better.

Quote:

He ends up asking the doctors to work through their lunch breaks to maximise the use of operating theatre time and addresses the question of why some consultants are so unhappy with the health reforms put in place by the government. By the end of the programme , the waiting lists had fallen and 90 per cent of patients were now getting their operation within three months.

Everybody is entitled to a break, yes if you treat people like donkeys then more work may get done in the short term, not the long term. I think more money will make a difference, more surgeons trained, higher wages for nursing staff and less chance of being refused an operation on the basis of lack of funds and operations being a waste of money or too expensive.

The Relic · 02-03-2008, 02:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pie'n'mash

I understand your rant fully, I also see that this particular problem is on your wish list or more accurately; "things to do before you die". It is disgusting that she has been refused treatment, I think if any treatment can improve health for twenty years, even two years, there is no reason to refuse. What ever happened to doctors that wanted to make people better?

If she is on a cocktail of pills them I am assuming that this would cost more in the long term than actually giving her the operation? I say this as a recent debate on "presumed consent organ donation", used the argument that not only were there not enough organ donors but that it cost more money to medicate those that were waiting for a transplant rather than the transplant operation.

Also if she had the partial replacement, as it doesn't last as long couldn't it be true that she may have 3 costly operations in the 20 years? I can't see a difference in the cost of this particular operation so is it just the simple reason that it takes longer to recover from the full op, so therefore takes up too much time in a hospital bed and after care?

I'm sure you've seen this site:

Knee replacement - What happens? - Types of knee repalacement

From what I can see it says the partial knee operation is less suitable for a young, active person. Wouldn't that mean that a young active person would receive a full operation then?

You're spot on on every point, Pie. The irony is that it's perfectly obvious that the consultant also believes that the full treatment now would save money in the long run, and he's hinted that he's argued strongly in its favour but the bean counters can't see beyond this year's accounts. The fact that we have a two year old daughter and nine year old son who are being robbed of my wife's full care and that she has intentions of returning to lecturing in Psychology once our daughter is established in school does not seem relevant to them.

Anyway, we've banged out letters to our MP and everyone we can think of in the NHS who might make a differnece. It's the only recourse we have, and we know it won't make any difference.