Glory

I got spotted over the weekend.

It happens occasionally, if I’ve been on the telly, pontificating about the NHS. These days, even the wireless has its downside. Much radio is also streamed, ‘in vision’, as they say.

People are usually very nice, particularly if they agree! If they don’t it’s interesting to talk to them, find out why… they are often right.

This encounter was very difficult. I met a couple and their young daughter. They were polite and charming and in no way threatening but they were obviously worried, anxious.

They’d read the Guardian. I knew immediately what was coming.

It was last Friday.

‘… hospitals in England are cutting staff, closing services and planning to ration care in order to make “eye-watering” savings demanded by NHS bosses.’

‘…diabetes services for young people … were among the areas of care likely to be scaled back.’

Their daughter has diabetes.

‘What are we supposed to do…’ 

Dad’s voice tailed off and he fixed his gaze on me.

I said he shouldn’t worry… it won’t happen. This is not NHS policy.  

It was a clumsy survey from a trade organisation for hospital managers. A handful of them were trying to get some attention in the media, as the cuts mean half of them were going to lose their jobs.

The family went on their way. Reassured? 

Dunno. I don’t think so. 

They’d read what I’d read;

The survey of 160 ‘senior figures’, make that lunatics from 114 trusts (just over one person a Trust so that probably means chief executives), that belong to NHS Providers, found that:

• 47% were cutting services and another 43% were considering doing so.
• 37% were cutting clinical posts and a further 40% may follow suit.
• 26% were closing some services and 55% more may do so.

Personally I’d like to put the 160 ‘senior figures’ up against a wall and let them explain to mum and dad, how they expect them to manage their daughter’s diabetic condition.

The bunch of the brainless belong to NHS Providers. A trade organisation for, originally FT’s. 

Their rationale for banding together was they didn’t want to be lumped in with the hoi-polloi of primary care and all the other parts of the NHS, they considered themselves special, hence they broke away from the Confed…

… which is now run by a Labour fan-boy… (I’d like to see him explain this to Mum and Dad).

This nonsensical survey, planted as a Trojan in the media, designed to…

… well, designed to do what?

What exactly was the point? Let the public know the NHS is in a bad way? There are over 7m people on an NHS waiting list, all of us know someone.

Talk to their staff… through the Guardian?

Do these lummox not realise; the’re frightening people like the mum and dad with their delightful daughter…

… when we should be fighting for them.

What are these thuggish, numbskull, so-called leaders thinking of when they unilaterally announce rationing in the NHS and take it upon themselves to announce the end of, ‘end of life care in the NHS‘… for heaven’s sake.  

Healthcare managers make no oath of allegiance to the NHS. They have no hippocratic undertaking… but we do expect they reach the dizzy heights because they are committed to the NHS, its principles and roots…

… have some understanding for the sensitivities of vulnerable people and their families.

It is reasonable to expect they have some awareness of the critical role they play in reassuring mums and dad with delightful daughters, gramps and nannas, old geezers, the frail, the victims of happenstance and the bewildered… the nation… that under their purview, the NHS is safe in their hands…

… and they will not announce in the newspapers, the whimsical ending of services that of the 70m people in this once great and noble land, over a million every day, will rely upon, when they are in extremis.

Idiocy is expected from politicians and the likes of Streeting but not highly paid NHS leaders.

If Jim Mackey is looking for people to sack, to cut the budgets… I suggest he starts with these 160 knuckleheads and closes NHS Providers because it exists, fundamentally, on fees from hospitals and that is tax-payer’s money.

As for the rest of ‘senior managers’ if it has come to this and I seriously doubt it has, their version of shroud waving is bang-out-of-order…

… your job is to say, face-to-face, to Streeting;

 ‘I will not be part of this. I will not dismantle the NHS.’ 

Tell him to shove his re-set, where the sun don’t shine. Find some bottle. Labour is weak, on the back-foot in the polls, failing in elections and still suffering from NI uplifts, winter-fuel problems and disability benefits.

Charmer doesn’t all need this as well.

Offer to cut the deficit by the time of the next election and keep services in tact.

He can’t sack you all and by the looks of it, half of you are going anyway…

… do the right thing; go out in a blaze of glory!

News and Comment from Roy Lilley
Contact Roy – please use this e-address roy.lilley@nhsmanagers.net
Reproduced at thetrainingnet.com by kind permission of Roy Lilley.