Whichever way looked at, the fact that on average hospitals have been undertaking only a little over a test per day each is staggering given the number of people admitted to hospital each day in the UK with respiratory illnesses, almost all of whom must have been considered at least potential coronavirus cases, and all of whom should have been tested as a result.
Epidemiologists say that extensive testing is the best way to beat coronavirus. The U.K. has completely failed to deliver it. And that was a choice.
That choice being made back in 1948 when we decided to have a Stalinist health care system. Never known to the the efficient manner of organising things.
NHS. The envy of the world. The ones who don’t actually believe this mantra blindly want a USA style system where people die on the streets if they don’t money. No grey area.
Public Health England have £4.5bn per annum. More than enough to be prepared for the outbreak of a virus, but they pissed the money away on sugar, fat and salt nannying, which is private, not public, health.
Yeah. We should also test every COPD or asthma exacerbation for TB. Because it makes perfect sense in a world of limitless resources.
You could spend 100% of GDP on healthcare and it wouldn’t be enough for some people.
It’s an odd mentality. People want disasters to happen when things don’t go the way they want, so that they can feel justified. Remainers want an economic collapse so that they can tell people that they were right about Brexit. It is not surprising to see Spud and the usual suspects doing the same thing about covid. It is not limited to lefties but certainly prominent in the leftie commentariat, and the BBC
Yeah. We should also test every COPD or asthma exacerbation for TB. Because it makes perfect sense in a world of limitless resources.
+1
Spud’s assertion is, unsurprisingly, based entirely on ignorance. Some doctors say extensive testing should be done, so Spud (he of no medical training whatsoever) somehow conflates that into the need to blanket test anyone with any sort of respiratory condition. Which isn’t what the doctors were suggesting in the first place. Spud’s position also presupposes that the doctors of the NHS are incapable of correctly diagnosing respiratory symptoms… which is an odd position for one who has been so vehement in his defense of NHS.
May I suggest that the number of tests is limited by the availability of test kits. These are being produced in increasing numbers. Hence more tests will be done and more cases discovered. Regardless whatever is happening with the actual number affected. And it’s nothing to do with healthcare structure and everything to do with the problems of producing test kits for a disease no-one had heard of two months ago.
We have tested well over 28,000, a number far in excess of all but three (China, S.Korea and Italy) other countries. Last time I looked there were +/-200 countries in the world.
If that’s failure, can we have more of it? The man is nothing but a partisan fool.
@Jussi
Do go and find out about Medicare and Medicaid and the Federal Law that prohibits hospitals refusing urgent treatment to anyone without insurance.
Yes, accident & emergency is “taxi rank”, but once they’ve patched you up they go looking for funds or a transfer.
I hope US emergency rooms use triage rather than taxi rank.
John B, I was assuming Jussi’s comment was taking the piss.
Recusant
But tests per million people other countries have tested more,
John B, you sound like another bore with the same handle at LF.
I hope US emergency rooms use triage rather than taxi rank.
Given that no one in ‘Merica knows what the fuck a taxi rank is, I’m pretty sure triage is the way we’ll go.
Is “taxi rank” wog for “cab stand”? If so, I don’t think they exist outside of airports and a couple of shithole cities like New York.
BiG is making a funny.
When there’s a queue of cabs (taxis) everyone gets mightily pissed if you don’t take the first one in that queue or rank.
This has then become part of the language. If you’ve got to take the first paying punter through the door then you’re operating on the “cab rank” rule. This is usually applied to barristers (court lawyers, not office ones who are solicitors) and while they pay lip service to the idea it’s purely that lip service.
So, apply the idea to hospital. Whoever gets through the door first has to be treated regardless of cash availability – which is what was being implied above. And BiG pointed out that while emergency treatment in the US is indeed offered regardless of ability to pay it sure has hell ain’t done on as stupid a basis as the cab rank rule. Triage is employed, so the sliced jugular gets treated before the hangnail, while the already severed head is ignore entirely.
OK, now that I have a translation into ‘Merican, I get it.
I’ll take your word on it being funny.
I think Dennis the almost-wog was also trying another of his leftpondian funnys, but failing, at lest in English English.
Which, perhaps, makes him Dennis the almost-wag.
‘a test per day each is staggering given the number of people admitted to hospital each day in the UK with respiratory illnesses’
I don’t know that a test tells you anything. Treatment of the patient nor your behavior is going to change based on the result. You still treat respiratory symptoms; you still isolate them as best you can.
Bah! Rumbled!
Coronavirus Surge Pricing in action
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_LBC5XCV1Y
Most don’t care – good. Gov’t should ignore Left demands and not intervene
Note: Anti-Bac = Anti-Bacteria, not Anti-Virus. >60% alcohol kills most viruses – use Meths?
@Dennis
‘taxi rank” / “cab stand’
Made me think – they used to be all over city I’m in, all gone except airports & major train stations
.
Coronavirus isolation leads to Komodo dragon conceiving three hatchlings without a mate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoV-LVzAP1c
“major train stations”: I suspect you mean major railway stations.
“I suspect you mean major railway stations.”
English English.
Train stations.
‘Merican English.
@dearieme
In UK we use
– Train Stations for train travel
– Bus Stations for bus travel
Do you use Roadway Stations for bus travel?
pcar—
Railway Stations, only ignorant plebs refer to them as train stations.
Or ‘Mericans. We tend to think of railways being for freight. Not much passenger activity here.