Nanny would have us believe that her rules, regulations and targets (used to enforce her rules) are there for our own good. She would have us believe that she has our own interests at heart, and above all wants us to lead long, happy and healthy lives.
Unfortunately this is complete bollocks, as the recent shocking revelations about Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Stafford and Cannock Chase hospitals, prove.
Such were the failings within the "Trust" (a contradiction in terms) that 400-1200 people died as a result of gross mismanagement and neglect (in spite of, or rather because of, Nanny's farking target driven health service).
The situation was so bad that even our "beloved" Prime Minister was forced to apologise (something he actually doesn't do normally) for the "inexcusable" failings.
Families of the deceased, and those lucky enough to escape the hospitals alive, have described "Third World" conditions at the trust, with some patients drinking water from vases because they were so thirsty and others screaming in pain.
The trust, when initially confronted with complaints, claimed that the anomalies were due to problems with its recording of data rather than the quality of care for patients.
How these bastards try to deceive and lie to us when they feel threatened!
Given that Nanny claims her target driven NHS is "world class", how can such a Third World disaster happen?
Let me explain:
1 Targets encourage cheating, greed and an abrogation of self responsibility.
2 No one is prepared to take responsibility for their own actions, as it is easier to hide behind targets and procedures.
3 Targets can be abused; eg if there is a 4 hour treatment target, hospitals easily meet that by not admitting a patient until the 4 hour target can be met (ie they will rather let the patient suffer and die rather than fail to meet the target).
In summary, the ultimate result of the Nanny state is the stifling of initiative and self responsibility; where no one is prepared to take responsibility for their actions and people hid behind "procedures", targets and red tape.
Nanny is the enemy of the people, and will kill us all if we don't dump her first!
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Now when are the administrators and management going to get their performance bonuses?
ReplyDeleteMy wife works in the NHS at a senior level. It is all bullshit target-driven, middle management crap nowdays.
ReplyDeleteFor example, the middle management (a bunch of perma tanned Blair clones as she describes them) could not make any time for important medical issues raised by my wife and staff on the wards.
Comes the arrival of a woman of a certain 'religious faith' into the lab (breaking all rules about hygiene elf n saferty etc etc) by having to be swathed in several layers of cloth leaving only her eyes visible and yes amazingly there was time a plenty to pull my wife and her team out of the lab for a class on 'drum roll' diversity in the workplace.
Said bin bagged lady did not attend, she had commanded one of the offices (locked to others who might wished to have used it for NHS business) to prostrate herself on the floor for some reason.
While I am no supporter of the BNP I can see why they are gaining votes everywhere - another by product of our wonderful government a national socialist party gaining votes on the back of another bunch of idiot national socialists policies!
Ken<
ReplyDeleteYou are right. As you know I have worked in both the prison service and the NHS as a psychiatric nurse specialising in forensics, violence and aggression.
In the NHS, "managers" are only seen on the ward when there is a high profile visit by a politician or celeb, at such times, the "manager" puts on a white coat and pretends to be doing something technical....Funnily enough, I was always rostered to be off when such people visited, perhaps because I spoke my mind and was able to come to my own conclusions about operational matters.
We were constantly sent on various diversity and difference training courses and other PC waste of money nonsense programmes.
The management would argue over the cost of an elastoplast on the wards but, would not think twice about spending fortunes on new desks, new carpets, water chillers and "fact finding" missions to far flung destinations.....I got fed up because I spent most of my time filling out forms rather than nursing.....Much of my work was done, on the cheap, by nursing assistants who were of course not actually qualified, but I still remained responsible for their actions as the qualified senior member of staff on duty.
Another con was the government always banged on about the number of "extra" nurses they had within the NHS.....When a full time experienced nurse left, the vacancy would be advertised but with the offer of job share....This allowed two part time posts thus "doubling" the number of nurses employed however, when one looked at the actual number of man hours these two new nurses worked, that number dropped even before taking into account hours lost due to the hand over time at the start and conclusion of a shift....Sadly Labour measure success by how much money has been thrown at a problem rather than how that money is spent.....I always used to quote the example of Mars bars when I was expaining what was going wrong......If Mars bars cost fifty pence each, I could expect to get two for a pound, within the NHS, for a pound, one would not get two bars but only one and a bit, value for money was never a consideration within the NHS.
Deming taught in the 60s that targets are bad. John Seddon write sin his book "systems thinking in the public sector" not just what damage targets do, but what to do instead, with a track record of successfull implementation.
ReplyDeleteTonk - you really must not use terms such as "man hours". I'm sure you don't want Hazel Blears breathing down your neck?
ReplyDeleteWhat amazes me is that it is now unthinkable that anyone should resign over scandals like this. I am old enough to remember Crichel Down, when a government minister very honourably resigned because of misdeeds by his department. And Lord Carrington resigned over Foreign Office failures of intelligence before Argentina invaded the Falklands.
Can anyone remember a member of Brown's or Blair's team resigning over a departmental cockup?
Anticant:
ReplyDeleteMs Blears breathing down my neck!!!.....The thought has sent a shiver down my spine and put me off my scones and jam!!! I think I need compensation for the harm caused:-))
I think you hit the nail on the head....Nobody is prepared to take responsibility for anything these days....I was always led to believe that the buck stopped with the minister in charge of the department that cocked up(can I say that?)and that he or she would naturally resign following such a cock up.....I wonder just what one would need to do to be expected to resign....Perhaps peel ones granny with a rusty potato peeler?....Perhaps I don't know.
The best place for targets is painted on managers' backs!
ReplyDeleteI fully agree with what has been said so far. In my opinion, the management team at the hospital in question, and their imperial masters in the government should be prosecuted for corporate manslaughter and (hopefully) if found guilty, given a lengthy jail sentence. I cannot see it happening, somehow, because these sort seem to cover each others backs, and possess not one microgram of shame between the lot of them.
Unfortunately, this is nothing new, although the situation has deteriated considerably in recent years. Some years ago, a good friend of mine, who is no longer alive, was a senior nurse in a mental health facility. One day, an emergency occurred, involving the prevention of someone from dying. In the middle of this incident, a manager walked into the room. My friend carried on with his job and, eventually, the immediate crisis passed. Afterwards, this manager, a young female demanded to know why my friend had not acknowledged her as a senior member of staff. He explained that he was dealing with an emergency. I would not have blamed him if he had responded
'**** off!' I think you may well agree with me that this sums up all that is rotten with the National Health Service and all our other public services..
Reminds me of that lovely night shift I worked once when I was in (commercial) I.T.
ReplyDeleteMajor problem, everything dead in the water and I'm tapping away at the old keyboard, lit only by my desk lamp and the red glow of my eyes. Suddenly the hairs on the back of my neck begin to stand on end, Hammer House of Horror style.
Slowly, fearing the worst, I turned ... to find no less than sixteen managers in a semi-circle behind me, watching my every move. Not just managers from my department, oh no - they'd paged out other departments too and they all thought that they were going to sit and watch me work. Ratio, literally, sixteen to one in management's favour. Crisis they explained, must be seen to be helping where they can, fully accountable, mumble mumble, how long would it take for me to fix whatever it was they said?
I did tell them to effoph, did mention that I wasn't selling fecking tickets and did mention that I wouldn't type another keystroke until I couldn't see any of them, and to my amazement, they all did.
For some strange reason I have never had a promotion in four decades of working that I didn't have to leave the company for. Any ideas why?
When are the suits for corporate manslaughter going to be issued?
ReplyDeleteThis is an appalling case as highlighted yet two managers have just resigned and walked away. Why are there no CRIMINAL investigations here or do we have to wait until another 'fucking enquiry' takes place.
Apologies are not sufficient. The NHS is about as appalling as we can get in terms of expectation, service delivey, communication etc and I speak as someone who is trained in pathology. This is a FUCKING MESS.
The fragrant Cherie Blair (sorry Booth) might take up the case, eh? Oh sorry, she is too busy trying to get some potential mass murderers back into the UK after the frightful Americans locked the bastards up.
ReplyDeleteThe longer I brood on this, on the patients, and their families, the more murderous I feel.
ReplyDeleteEspecially since I am sure that this catastrophe is happening in other places. The bastards simply have not been exposed yet.
I am glad that some of you above can still think clearly about the matter, Me, I have delicious visions of hempen rope.
W. S. Badfellowe said...
ReplyDelete"Reminds me of that lovely night shift I worked once when I was in (commercial) I.T.
Major problem, everything dead in the water and I'm tapping away at the old keyboard, lit only by my desk lamp and the red glow of my eyes. Suddenly the hairs on the back of my neck begin to stand on end, Hammer House of Horror style.
Slowly, fearing the worst, I turned ... to find no less than sixteen managers in a semi-circle behind me, watching my every move. Not just managers from my department, oh no - they'd paged out other departments too and they all thought that they were going to sit and watch me work. Ratio, literally, sixteen to one in management's favour. Crisis they explained, must be seen to be helping where they can, fully accountable, mumble mumble, how long would it take for me to fix whatever it was they said?
I did tell them to effoph, did mention that I wasn't selling fecking tickets and did mention that I wouldn't type another keystroke until I couldn't see any of them, and to my amazement, they all did."
Good for you! Shows how much work these parasites have to do, doesn't
Anticant, Tonk,
ReplyDeleteYou do realise that if everyone in the government, indeed the Palace of Westminster in general, had any moral fibre and deemed it necessary to resign t correct misdeeds ... the entire place would be empty, don't you?
Of course one could observe that such a result would be utterly marvellous provided we had previously ensured that the EU would not walk in unopposed to replace them.
Like being caught between Scylla and Charybdys! At least with our own MPs and local councillors, we do have the opportunity of voting them out every few years,
ReplyDeleteSystems Thinkers know that targets damage service.
ReplyDeleteHave a look at in the press in The Systems Thinking Review for over 40 examples where this is the cause and then listen to podcasts and watch video that explains why!
http://www.thesystemsthinkingreview.co.uk/