In Praise of the NHS, (Maybe) - Computerised Records?

I had a pre - op assessment yesterday. Surgery due on Monday 3rd - removal of ovarian "cysts".

Got there early - seen immediately. 2 whole hours with a senior nurse & a student. Masses of paperwork, a very full medical history + Bloods & an ECG. The nurse was brilliant - she really knew her job.

It was the amount of paperwork that amazed me. I have had several operations over the years, sterilisation, laparoscopic knee surgery, removal of a big non malignant lump on my shoulder, removal of a cyst on my foot, a pacemaker, removal of my gall bladder & stones. No one has ever been so thorough. I am seriously impressed with the nurse & the NHS.

Hopefully I won't be bumped on Monday. I will be in hospital for 1 - 2 nights, (because I live alone & am 72 with a heart condition). It will take up to 2 months to completely recover. I will be glad to get it over.

My point in blogging about this is that things have changed - Good. I just wonder why all of this was on pieces of paper?

I am a "thick file " "heart sink" patient. I have several chronic conditions - I won't get better - I just have to manage my conditions with the help of the professionals & medication.

It just seems strange that NHS patient records aren't fully computerised & therefore accessible to all medics wherever a patient might need to consult a doctor or nurse. (This nurse wanted a complete medical history, with dates, & I couldn't remember. I have written my own, but didn't know they would need it, so didn't have it with me).

There must be duplication of information. I imagine it's a big, time consuming job - but it will have to be done sooner or later. So why not now? Could it be that there isn't enough money??? If so it's a short term saving which will eventually turn into a costly error. The doctors on "Holby" have tablets - I haven't yet seen any in hospitals I've been a patient in. The Government & the NHS needs to bite the bullet. Computerisation has been here for a long time now. Our medics deserve a modern system.

PS
I've just been bumped to Friday7th!!!!!  No Anaethetist!

When I was a Headteacher we had to get supply teachers in if a member of staff was unavailable. We didn't just tell a class that they had to go home or not come in. I simply don't understand why the NHS doesn't re-jig rotas or have a similar system. Is it reasonable to just "bump" patients & leave them to cope with the fall out? Although this could be cancer, the chances are it isn't fortunately. That isn't the point - is this yet another money issue?

Really disappointing & I fly out to Malawi on the 24th August to work with the MicroLoan Foundation, so it's a worry.

Climate Change & Tradition

 

I think that it's absolutely potty to have the Yeomen of the Guard, the Lords & Guardsmen, (never mind the horses), dressed in thick, heavy, & extremely hot traditional costumes on the hottest June day for more than 40 years. This poor man had to be helped out when he collapsed.

 

Similarly having men in morning dress & the Queen wearing dress, coat, hat, stockings & long white gloves at Ascot. (Is she really going to be contaminated by touching her loyal subjects)? I was only wearing a linen strappy dress & knickers & I melted. I stayed in the shade & had a fan too.

 

I do understand that many Brits treasure our traditions - not least the Royal Family. So I think Pince Harry is both brave & right to say what he did about being King / Queen. Who would really want to go through this torture?  

Look at other European Monarchies. Some of them seem to have managed the transition into the 21st Century.

Luxembourg - Grand Duchy - whatever that is.
Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco - Principalities.
Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden - Monarchies.

Also look at Japan - The Japanese seem to be able to combine hundreds of years of tradition with technology & ultra modern living.

Tradition is all very well, but we should start to think about what we do & why. It's a really great opportunity.

Climate change is here - Summers are hotter & drier, Rains are torrential downpours, we don't seem to get really cold winters any more. We need to adapt to survive.

While I'm at it - there are some really potty traditions in the Houses of Parliament too, although nothing to do with climate change. e.g. Voting - When MPs vote on debates or legislation it is called a division. When MPs vote they say 'aye' or 'no'. In the Lords, Members vote saying 'content' or 'not content'. For major votes the House divides into the voting lobbies, two corridors that run either side of the chamber, and members are counted as they enter into each.

Really!?

Have they heard of the Scottish Parliament who vote using a version of PR & have an electronic voting system. I'm sure the Scots would be happy to explain it all to them, but are we happy to be so anachronistic?

Dr Who - I am the Brain of Morbius

People of my generation will remember this 1976 series with Tom Baker as Dr Who. Personally I loved the clunkiness of Dr Who back then. It was a family date with the TV on Saturdays, supper on our laps, including my 8 year old daughter who sometimes hid behind the settee because it was so scary.

I now realise that I am getting like the Brain. I was chatting to a friend comparing notes & we both felt our bodies were letting us down. Physically we simply can't do things that we took for granted. We are turning into our parents - Mine always seemed old to me.

The thing is, maybe we need to develop a Zen, accepting, state as we age:-

• Ok we fall asleep & are fatigued by many things. 
• Ok the joints hurt & are stiff. 
• Ok we can't open tins, bottles & jars.
• Ok we forget things & our memory isn't what it was.
• Ok we can't do the housework.
• Ok we don't hear so well, so we don't enjoy big groups

Most of those things can be either accepted or solutions can be found.

The thing is that we are alive & have huge skills, experience & often qualifications. These are stored in our Brain. Data retrieval might be a little slow & unreliable, but all our life experience is there to be used.

I'm quite happy to be the Brain of Morbius so long as I find meaningful ways to contribute & maybe make things better.

Grenfell Tower - Who is to Blame?

David Lammy, Labour MP for Tottenham, spoke movingly about the Grenfell Tower on Radio 4 this morning. #GreenfellTower Twitter - David Lammy (@DavidLammy) 

The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 is a landmark in law. For the first time, companies and organisations can be found guilty of corporate manslaughter as a result of serious management failures resulting in a gross breach of a duty of care. 

Grenfell Tower was undoubtedly a total tragedy. The human suffering is appalling. The
repercussions will spread their tentacles through lives for years. I couldn't believe the footage of  the fire that I saw yesterday. How could this happen to people, in their homes, in a wealthy borough & a wealthy nation like the UK?

Well it has happened. What do we do about it?

Like all major news items, there is massive speculation in the media, followed by the press. Experts are brought in & the good, thoughtful, ones refuse to be drawn into conclusions by interviewers looking for soundbites. It really doesn't help - it just fires, (no pun intended), people's anger, grief & fear. People want to know why. They also want to blame. Its human nature in these situations.

We should do the victims & the traumatised people left behind the courtesy of conclusions backed up by evidence. Then we should hold any wrongdoers to account in the courts - Not the court of public opinion.

Meanwhile, Politicians, from the top down, need to examine their consciences about how their austerity, cost saving, policies have affected the less well off people in our country, who are probably the majority of their constituents. The Wealthy & the Corporate World also need to examine their consciences, about how their affluence & power could be better used than giving them a lifestyle most of us gasp at. Paying reasonable taxes would be a start.

The people who lived in the Tower, the emergency services, the local community, showed yesterday the amazing capability of the the human spirit to cope with calamity. They are a shining example to everyone. I really don't know what I would have done in these terrible circumstances, but I hope I could have matched them.

Skype - Is it me?

I have been trying to get Skype on my Laptop, my iPad & my Mobile, because I may be going to work as a volunteer with a charity in Malawi & we need to have conference calls. I'm reasonably techie. I've used Skype before, years ago on a laptop. I wasn't anticipating any problems.

My current Laptop has Ubuntu as my Browser, which is relatively unusual. But I found & downloaded Skype for Linux - Nothing happens - I've tried several times. Is it something to do with Microsoft? The Laptop is 8 years old. Should I bin it & buy a new one or move onto my iPad?

My iPad is my most recent hardware & I haven't used it much. I prefer to be on a desktop & don't feel the need to always be connected to everyone & everything. I also prefer actually talking to real people - Call me odd if you like. I got it downloaded & I can sign in, but when the test call came through it worked on my mobile, but I didn't see anything on my iPad. Doesn't the call come through to more than one device at a time? Can't it cope with multiple ones?

My Samsung Mobile was a doddle to download & it worked first time.

I really want it to work on the bigger screen of the iPad, especially for video calls if I call my family.

Someone please tell me what I'm doing wrong. It's all been hugely time consuming & deeply frustrating. Life's too short for all this hassle.

Maybe I should become an internet free, gadget free, zone.

UK Election Blues - Dis-May

Mrs May was well and truly dissed by the electorate & it was probably all of her own making.

She produced a Manifesto without consulting the Conservative MP's or even her cabinet, never mind the wider Conservative grass roots membership. It was done by her small clique "who she trusts". So doesn't she trust any of the others? If not, why not? It doesn't bode well for "Strong & Stable government".

Compare that with Mr Corbyn's huge, inclusive, consultation of people's views, which had gone on ever since he became leader.

She came across as hard & messianic. Someone who "knew" she was right - That's arrogant in my book. "Strong & Stable" began to grate with unending repetition & eventually was poisonous.

Mr Corbyn was measured & listened.

She vacillated time & time again - U turns don't even begin to cover it. Is that what we want from our leader? Someone who continually changes their mind & blows in the wind of public opinion? Not the characteristic I look for.

Mr Corbyn was at the very least consistant. He does what it "says on the tin".

Mrs May used dirty politics. She slagged off the opposition with personal attacks. She didn't give the electorate the information they needed to make an informed choice. It was all half promises & half truths or even lies. There were no costings for anything

Mr Corbyn's Manifesto was fully costed & checked out as accurate.

Mrs May was so arrogant & afraid that she didn't actually meet the people. Her speeches were given to invited audiences of the faithful. No challenge there. She declined several TV interrviews & wouldn't argue her case with her opposition. Why? Was she so unsure she could win an argument? Or was it hubris?

Mr Corbyn just got better & better. Ordinary people queued in their hundreds to hear him speak. He wasn't afraid of TV debate & managed to make Paxman look rude & unnecessarily interventionist - (He is supposed to clarify, not override).

Mrs May looked glossy, well heeled, expensive & expensively styled. Read this personal internal memo which I think still applies.It appears we pay, out of taxation, for her wardrobe.
news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/pmspay.pdf

We also seem to pay for independent advisors out of tax according to this. 
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/samantha-cameron-special-adviser-fashion-aide-taxpayer-salary-530000-a6974181.html
That might appeal to the corporate world, the financial world & the rich - but does it appeal to ordinary people? Not one bit when many in work are poor & sinking under the weight of austerity. She buys Vivien Westwood, Roland Mouret, Amanda Wakely. Her jewellery got noticably bigger & bigger & over the top. This is not how people on the high street dress. She should take some lessons from the Duchess of Cambridge who at least makes a real effort to wear "ordinary" clothes.

 

Personally I'm really pleased that Mrs May did not get her mandate for a "Hard Brexit". I hope she & the Conservative party have really learned a lesson. If I'm honest I doubt it though.

Electioneering & Dirty Politics

I haven't been as involved with an election since 1979. Being on Facebook makes a huge difference. I get posts from all my friends with different views. I also listen avidly to BBC 4 Today & PM & watch selected programmes on TV.

What emerges is three things:

• Our unreasonable expectations of what an individual poltician will know & be able to trot out when being bombarded by aggressive interviewing.
• How some politicians think that personal attacks, (or rather slagging off), is acceptable & wins them votes.
• How some politicians twist the truth, (lie), & try to frighten the electorate into voting for them.

It's all very unsavoury & I actually think quite dangerous. Between the Great Wars the propaganda machine & totally unprincipled leaders took the population with them by similar tactics. I'm not saying that the Consevatives are doing the same thing, but there are similarities.

However the blame lies partly with us - the Electorate. We are allowing dirty politics, post truth lies & character assasination to be accepted as reasonable & normal. It isn't.

Politicians who resort to these tactics will behave in a similar unprincipled way when elected. They will change their mind on policy promises without blinking an eye. They have already done it.
We accept Soundbites & Slogans from Tentative Theresa who turns in the Tide while Thatcher Turns in her Tomb.

How many of us could remember all the facts & figures for multiple policies when being harried by terrier interviewers who don't even listen to the answers. They routinely interrupt & shout & don't let the interviewee finish the answer. I would imagine it's akin to torture. We the people deserve to actually hear the policies being fleshed out. We do deserve to hear the politicians being challenged to back up their policies, but in a reasoned way. Not a barrage of words where you can't actually hear anyone properly.

I'm actually sick of it all. Please lets have more reasoned, intelligent two way, proper, discussion by people who actually know what they are talking about.