Surgery in the womb: 'I've done the best for her'
Helena gave birth to her daughter Mila - short for milagro, or miracle, in Spanish - at University College London Hospital three months after the surgery.
Thanks to the NHS.
There is strong support for the principles of the tax-funded NHS (National Health Service) across all sections of British society. Basically, everybody who is registered with the NHS can access the full breadth of critical and non-critical medical care, i.e., free at the point of delivery, meaning that nobody is financially discriminated against.
The NHS is not perfect, but Brits are not going to abandon it any time soon.
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6 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.While I am in dispute with our medical care providers on the level of quality they provided my father, both my mother and father as pensioners got free health care in my mother's case two knee replacements (around $30,000 each when I had mine down privately) but her hospital stay was longer. Two hip replacements and a two week stay in ICU when she had a heart attack.
Dad had numerous stays towards the end of his life and the quality of care had slipped at our local hospital so the only thing it cost him was his life when the hospital administers 5 doses of morphine 5 times stronger than prescribed by the dr. I am in the middle of a legal wrangle about it now.
Budgie
Level 8
May 2, 2021
2
Ryo1:
Hi there. It is appalling when any healthcare provider fails to deliver a high standard of services as expected. Do you think that universal healthcare is a bad idea because of your personal experience with it, or do you still support its principles?
Here in Australia we have had a Universal Health Care system for decades, it too may not be perfect BUT it works and No-one is refused treatment.
Triphid
Level 9
May 2, 2021
1
Ryo1:
Hi there. The principles of universal healthcare are so significant that it is worth supporting them.
@Ryo1 May I give you an instance WHY Universal Health Care is so IMPORTANT.
On January the 28th. 2000, my 15 year old Daughter, of whom I was the Legal Sole Custodial Parent, was diagnosed with Mature B Cell Lymphoma, Stage 2 level as well.
My income was the Government Sole Parent Pension and the Family Benefits adding up to approx. $ 548.00 per fortnight.
Her Chemotherapy treatments MEANT we HAD to remain in Adelaide, Sth. Australia for the entire 10 Chemo cycles ( 3 weeks per cycle on average).
Each dose of Chemo given by Intravenous Infusion cost between $ 8 and 10,000 a time, that did NOT include the Hospital bed, plus the fold-out bed for me to sleep on while she was in hospital, etc, etc.
After each treatment, usually 6-7 days later there were injections of G.C.S.F. to aid in rebuilding her depleted Red Blood Cell and Platelets counts, 1injection every day for 4 consecutive days, each costing $1, 200.
Then we had the accommodation cost, $60 per days for 7 days per week.
Most thankfully ALL of this was paid for, NOT by having Health Insurance, BUT by the Nation Health Care System known as Medicare.
Something I had paid into at a rate of 1.5% per fortnight from my wages when I was working.
Ryo1:
@Triphid You went through a lot... I cannot even begin to imagine how terrible it must've been for you to watch your daughter suffer, let alone losing her for the horrible disease. Your story certainly confirms the importance of universal healthcare. Thank you very much for sharing your very personal story. Best wishes
I am from the US but was traveling in the UK a few years ago and had a situation where I needed immediate care on a weekend in London. I went to a hospital and they saw me. The doctor was nice and competent-seeming, but I'm familiar with this condition and he seemed to be making the usual mistake (which was going to lead to continued pain for me, and might have led to some real damage). He was excellent enough at a meta-level to have the humility to consult with and refer me to a specialist at the next hospital over, and when I went to that party, the situation got addressed nicely. I was right, in the end, but whenever I tell the story I make sure people know I appreciated both doctors and that the first one had the special quality of being willing to listen to a person in distress and ask for broader perspective from another expert. In this case, this special quality was the key to the whole story. Throughout the matter, nobody gave me an overly hard time with paperwork (though the initial reaction of the first person I saw when I found the hospital at first was that it was going to be many hours, which fortunately it was not). As to money, my only cost was some medicine that it turns out I didn't need anyway.
I have not been historically invested in arguing health insurance and related laws a lot, though I do have my views. There was no "hypocrisy" involved with me going to request this medical care, since I have not been an intransigent citizen arguing for zero government involvement in medical payments, whether for one's own countrymates or for visitors. And I don't think our personal anecdotal experiences here or there are make or break in determining whether we are right or wrong in arguing high level principles. Still, this story (which I've only glanced at) relates a situation/anecdote/testimonial, and these do have their place, as we use these discussion forums to share information and perspective. My own anecdote here I think also leads me to say
- I was really grateful that the care I got was good and cheerful (important) and prompt. I was in a lot of pain, and the situation was both mentally and physically demanding.
- I would have been willing to pay a decent amount, and it would not have harmed my gratefulness for the quality care, but separately I was grateful that the bill was not high. It may sound odd, since in this case "not high" was actually "zero", but to complete my own tale in my own way, I don't think that my gratefulness for the reasonably priced health care was increased due to the reasonable price being zero.
- Separately, I was particularly grateful for (and impressed with) the lack of paperwork and hassle. Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, that is how things should be done.
kmaz
Level 7
May 2, 2021
3
Ryo1:
Hi there. Thanks for sharing your experience with the NHS and I'm glad that the NHS didn't let you down.
The NHS was founded on three core principles: that it meet the needs of everyone; that it be free at the point of delivery; that it be based on clinical need, not ability.
It is very important that nobody is financially discriminated against. The NHS has been helping babies have the right start in life with the treatment their parents probably couldn't have afforded. I'm sure everybody would agree that quality of life matters.
Your Queen could do the world a favor give sanctuary and NHS to Julian Assange disarm all British nukes tell the truth for world peace b4 she dies handing her crown to a genius not genes
Larry68Feminist
Level 7
May 2, 2021
0
The ONLY REASONS the US doesn't have universal healthcare are greed, ignorance, greed, and ignorance.
Did I mention greed and ignorance??
KKGator
Level 9
May 2, 2021
10
You didn't mean "greed and ignorance" by any chance did you? I wasn't sure so I thought I would clear up that minor point...usually you are fairly succinct in your responses but in this case you appeared to be driven by emotion ... Just to clear that up...you DID mean "GREED and IGNORANCE ... correct? I mean we are talking about our TOTALLY HONEST and DOG FEARING REPUBLIKKKAN "leaders"...and we ALL know they would NEVER...EVER, EVER, EVER....EVER act in a way that would make them appear like the MONEY GRUBBING, SNOTWEASEL ... MORONS that they have so broadly been accused of by the "fake NEWS" MEDIA...(greed and ignorance...say it ain't SOOOO)...
I agree. Except I would call it IGNORANCE and greed.
Ryo1:
Hi there. It is peculiar that among the developed countries, the US is the only one which does not have universal healthcare. I often hear the narrative from the right side of the American political spectrum that once you commit yourself to universal healthcare, you are on the path to communism. Lol
It's been 70+ years since the birth of the NHS and there is no sign of England turning communist.
@Ryo1 Yeah well, the reich-wingnuts like to scream about socialism and communism. All the while, taking every dime they can from those who profit the most.
The democrats take plenty of special interest money, too. However, the republicans have been screaming the loudest about it, the longest.
They fear monger and the sheep believe them. Even against their own best interests.
I would be jealous, however, I live in the United States which has the best health care in the "fucking world." The "fucking world" includes North Korea and Brazil and India etc.
Beowulfsfriend
Level 9
May 2, 2021
5
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