Medical Malpractice

With the dismal dawning of the Age of Obamacare, the multiple horrors of the UK's version of health care presage what lies ahead in our medical and custodial lives.

The United Kingdom's National Health Service, the NHS, has been in place for some 62 years now; its birth and implementation were not merely coincidental with the decline of Great Britain as one of the world's great powers.

It's becoming tedious writing about the NHS and its regularly-occurring tales of malpractice and mispractice, long wait times for critical care, the monumental expense, its disorganization, etc.

However, with the narrow passage last month of Obama's legacy bill and with the possibility of repealing that legacy after the November elections, it's crucial to keep in mind the many flaws of socialized medicine.

I have already detailed in this space some of the numerous instances of misdiagnoses, incorrect and withheld medications, denials of treatment, mismanagement, staff shortages, staff disregard for patients, unsanitary conditions, and, worst of all, the NHS's utter disregard for premature infants born even 3 days before the arbitrary 22 week cut-off point for any care.

The latest NHS examples of what we can expect if and when Obamacare is fully implemented in 2014, four years after we start paying for it, are especially repugnant.

Clara Stokes was a former member of Britain's World War Two WLA, the Women's Land Army, the agricultural equivalent of our Rosie the Riveters, who tended English farms while the boys were off to war and were affectionately called "Land Girls."

This particular Land Girl, honored by Brit PM Gordon Brown for her "loyal and devoted service," was dishonored by the NHS in her final days and hours.

"Helpless and confused after suffering a stroke, the 84-year-old was left dehydrated, hungry and lying in her own faeces in a hospital bed for six hours. Relatives claim overworked nurses had ignored her:" http://bit.ly/bNSQQP

The Luton and Dunstable Hospital was a "flagship" NHS facility.

Carol Savage, age 50, was a mental patient with known suicidal tendencies at the misnamed "secure" Runwell Hospital in Essex, England.

On July 5th, 2004, after escaping from Runwell, Savage threw herself under a train. The NHS hospital had not considered her a flight risk even though she had a history of running away.

Testimony to its incompetence, "staff at Runwell considered Mrs Savage a 'low risk' of absconding-even though she had once been found wandering among traffic on the A130 attempting to kill herself:" http://bit.ly/bc89O7

Her daughter "won a claim under the Human Rights Act that her mother's 'right to life' had been breached by Runwell Hospital... Mr Justice Mackay, awarded Miss Savage £10,000 in 'just satisfaction' against the hospital's managers-South Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust."

Yes, America's present health care is flawed yet is still superb as contrasted with Britain's. Last I heard, no sick people were flocking to England to receive the benefits of the NHS.