The NHS is under strain, we know that.
Cleaners and cooks, porters and paramedics, nurses and neurosurgeons work damn hard – but sometimes there aren’t enough hospital beds. Medical staff put in long, tiring shifts and ambulances queue up outside A and E.
However, what recently happened to a friend of mine, a resident of Newport, illustrates that the NHS can work with remarkable efficiently and empathy.
Suddenly, experiencing alarming symptoms involving the loss of a lot of blood, he called the NHS helpline and the thoroughly professional call handler arranged for a doctor to call him back.
He did. Less than an hour later.
The doctor had the details of the earlier call to hand and arranged an appointment with the out-of-hours doctor at the Royal Gwent Hospital at 11.15 pm. He also advised my friend to take an overnight bag, as it was likely he’d be admitted to hospital.
At the Royal Gwent, the doctor who examined him said she was admitting him to the surgical assessment unit at the Grange Hospital, Llanfrechfa.
Arriving there just after midnight, he immediately had a cannula inserted and bloods taken, while a doctor hovered nearby, eagerly waiting to examine him!
After a very thorough examination, he diagnosed my friend probably had diverticulitis, common in people of a similar age to the NHS.
However, to be 100% sure, he’d arrange for my friend to have a colonoscopy in four to six weeks.
As my friend says ruefully, “It’s always good to have something to look forward to!”
The blood results that came back around 2am were satisfactory, so he was relieved to be told he could go home.
In less than six hours, he’d been examined by two doctors in two hospitals and been dealt with as a person and not just a patient.
I’d like you to remember this story next time you hear anyone bashing the NHS!