advertising health care

Advertising health care

When Dr Crippen was a student, he spent some months in Eastern Europe,

in particular in Czechoslovakia. It was some time after the Prague

Spring of 1968. The country was firmly back under the control of the

Soviet Block. "Dubcek" graffiti was still everywhere, but fading.

A lasting memory was the food shops.

There were long queues outside, but the shelves were nearly empty. In

the centre of Prague, in Wenceslas Square, alongside the "ordinary"

shops, were the "special" shops. (I seem to recall they were called

Tusek shops, but I cannot find a reference on that.) They were well

stocked and open to all. But they only accepted foreign currency.

Ordinary Czech citizens did not have foreign currency. Tusek shops

were for diplomats and the occasional tourist who dared to visit the

country.

A perfect model for what our NHS has become. The government is

inextricably committed to the phrase "free at the point of entry". It

is the New Labour NHS shibboleth. Trouble is, it is no longer

attainable if, indeed, it ever was. Medical technology expands

exponentially and, on current trends, by the end of the century

healthcare costs will consume the whole of the global GDP.

Rationing in the Healthcare shop

Health care has to be rationed. Healthcare is being rationed. But New

Labour cannot admit to it. So it does it stealthily. Slowly but surely

the NHS Healthcare shop is being de-stocked. The shop manager is NICE.

NICE is an arm of government. NICE clothes rationing in specious

science. There is no "scientific evidence" that early drug treatment

helps Alzheimers. There is no "scientific evidence" that Velcade helps

myeloma. (see Thousands of myeloma patients lose their last hope after

not-so-NICE final ruling on Velcade) There is no "scientific evidence"

that bumble bees can fly.

As the NHS patient queues to get into the empty Healthcare shop, he

can only look with envy at those lucky citizens with "foreign

currency" (aka private health insurance) who can access all the health

care that is available.

The government cannot admit the truth. Rationing is disguised as

science and lack of resources is disguised by political sleight of

hand. Stress that it is the citizen's right to enter the free

healthcare system and, subliminally, right of entry to the health care

system will be equated with availability of healthcare.

The latest scam is advertising. Allow hospitals to compete against

each other. Give them an advertising budget. Russell Brown (at The

Brown Stuff) highlights the absurdity of a state owned monopoly

cutting resources by night and spending taxpayer's money on

advertising by day. Advertising resources that are no longer

available.

How best to sum it up? We need to call again upon the services of the

Rev Charles Dodson:

"Have some wine," the March Hare said in an encouraging tone. Alice

looked all round the table, but there was nothing on it but tea.

"I don't see any wine,"she remarked.

"There isn't any," said the March Hare.

"Then it wasn't very civil of you to offer it," said Alice angrily.

� Copyright NHS BLOG DOCTOR

posted by Dr John Crippen at 11:22 AM

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