UK: Collapse of NHS leads to suicide

On Fri, 06 Apr 2007 00:49:13 +0200, Deeply Filled Mortician
wrote:

NZ and Oz are currently running headlong towards the US system,
despite it being quite clear it's a lousy direction to go.

We're not, actually. At least, not in Oz. I agree about the
US system, but we're not heading towards it at all, not even
slowly.

Ours will continue to go through changes as governments
change, but for all it's faults - I'm bloody glad I'm a
citizen here.

I have interesting blood; consequently I read and post on
several medical newsgroups and email lists. I can't fault
the wealth of the US research establishment and the
brilliance of the US technical and research expertise, but
if I do eventually need to travel there for treatment (to a
top Australian specialist - in Texas:-) I'll need to sell my
house and everything else I own first. For those who live
there who aren't wealthy the health insurance system appears
to be a nightmare and the cost of medications is horrendous.
Especially if they are unemployed.

If the NICE guidelines on self-management of diabetes within
the NHS system are anything to judge it by - I'm very
grateful I'm not under that system. Similar comments apply,
for slightly different reasons, to Canada and Germany.

Everything has a price; free health care isn't. When you
accept state subsidisation you accept State decisions on
what is good for your health; too often those decisions
become affected too much by cost-benefit rather than medical
benefit.

The blend of State and private in the Australian system,
with all it's faults (particularly in the country towns), is
still better than my international friends have described to
me in any other country. That doesn't mean it can't be
improved and that we don't need to fight locally to prevent
erosion of benefits - but I'm definitely happy to be here.

Cheers, Alan, Australia
--
http://loraltravel.blogspot.com/
latest: Epidaurus
http://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/

Alan S wrote:
On Fri, 06 Apr 2007 00:49:13 +0200, Deeply Filled Mortician
wrote:


NZ and Oz are currently running headlong towards the US system,
despite it being quite clear it's a lousy direction to go.


We're not, actually. At least, not in Oz. I agree about the
US system, but we're not heading towards it at all, not even
slowly.

Ours will continue to go through changes as governments
change, but for all it's faults - I'm bloody glad I'm a
citizen here.

I have interesting blood; consequently I read and post on
several medical newsgroups and email lists. I can't fault
the wealth of the US research establishment and the
brilliance of the US technical and research expertise, but
if I do eventually need to travel there for treatment (to a
top Australian specialist - in Texas:-) I'll need to sell my
house and everything else I own first. For those who live
there who aren't wealthy the health insurance system appears
to be a nightmare and the cost of medications is horrendous.
Especially if they are unemployed.

If the NICE guidelines on self-management of diabetes within
the NHS system are anything to judge it by - I'm very
grateful I'm not under that system. Similar comments apply,
for slightly different reasons, to Canada and Germany.

Everything has a price; free health care isn't. When you
accept state subsidisation you accept State decisions on
what is good for your health; too often those decisions
become affected too much by cost-benefit rather than medical
benefit.


And when you have a private system based on employment you accept
Insurance company decisions concerning how little they can manage to
approve.


The blend of State and private in the Australian system,
with all it's faults (particularly in the country towns), is
still better than my international friends have described to
me in any other country. That doesn't mean it can't be
improved and that we don't need to fight locally to prevent
erosion of benefits - but I'm definitely happy to be here.

Cheers, Alan, Australia
--
http://loraltravel.blogspot.com/
latest: Epidaurus
http://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/

"PJ O'Donovan" wrote in message
oups.com...
Collapse of NHS system pushed dentist to take her own life'

PJ

Life expectancy in the UK is over 80 years
Life expectancy in the US is only 76 years.

BJ Foster

What should we conclude from your figures and what is the source of
your figures?

snip

all very interesting but 2006 figures US 46th highest life expectancy,
Australia 9th, NZ 32nd, UK 37th

https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications.../2102rank.html

On Fri, 6 Apr 2007 10:49:29 +1000, "dechucka"
wrote:


"PJ O'Donovan" wrote in message
roups.com...
Collapse of NHS system pushed dentist to take her own life'

PJ

Life expectancy in the UK is over 80 years
Life expectancy in the US is only 76 years.

BJ Foster

What should we conclude from your figures and what is the source of
your figures?

snip

all very interesting but 2006 figures US 46th highest life expectancy,
Australia 9th, NZ 32nd, UK 37th

https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications.../2102rank.html

Interesting top 20:

Rank Country Life expectancy at birth
(years)
1 Andorra 83.51
2 Macau 82.19
3 San Marino 81.71
4 Singapore 81.71
5 Hong Kong 81.59
6 Japan 81.25
7 Sweden 80.51
8 Switzerland 80.51
9 Australia 80.5
10 Guernsey 80.42
11 Iceland 80.31
12 Canada 80.22
13 Cayman Islands 80.07
14 Italy 79.81
15 Gibraltar 79.8
16 France 79.73
17 Monaco 79.69
18 Liechtenstein 79.68
19 Spain 79.65
20 Norway 79.54

Take out the tiny principalities, small islands and
city-states like Hong Kong and Macao and the top 25 becomes:

Rank Country Life expectancy at birth
(years)
1 Japan 81.25
2 Sweden 80.51
3 Switzerland 80.51
4 Australia 80.5
5 Iceland 80.31
6 Canada 80.22
7 Italy 79.81
8 France 79.73
9 Spain 79.65
10 Norway 79.54
11 Israel 79.46
12 Greece 79.24
13 Austria 79.07
14 Netherlands 78.96
15 New Zealand 78.81
16 Germany 78.8
17 Belgium 78.77
18 United Kingdom 78.54
19 Finland 78.5
20 Jordan 78.4
21 Bosnia and Herzegovina 78
22 United States 77.85
23 Cyprus 77.82
24 Denmark 77.79
25 Ireland 77.73

Cheers, Alan, Australia
--
http://loraltravel.blogspot.com/
latest: Epidaurus
http://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/

On Thu, 05 Apr 2007 20:46:11 -0400, "Frank F. Matthews"
wrote:

Everything has a price; free health care isn't. When you
accept state subsidisation you accept State decisions on
what is good for your health; too often those decisions
become affected too much by cost-benefit rather than medical
benefit.


And when you have a private system based on employment you accept
Insurance company decisions concerning how little they can manage to
approve.

Agreed. I have both state and private.

Cheers, Alan, Australia
--
http://loraltravel.blogspot.com/
latest: Epidaurus
http://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/

On Fri, 06 Apr 2007 01:37:58 GMT, Alan S wrote:


Take out the tiny principalities, small islands and
city-states like Hong Kong and Macao and the top 25 becomes:

Rank Country Life expectancy at birth
(years)
snip
21 Bosnia and Herzegovina 78
22 United States 77.85
23 Cyprus 77.82

Yeah! Take THAT! In your FACE, Cyprus!

USA! USA! USA! USA!

- TR
- trying out to be a Republican.

"PJ O'Donovan" wrote in message
oups.com...
Collapse of NHS system pushed dentist to take her own life'

PJ

Life expectancy in the UK is over 80 years
Life expectancy in the US is only 76 years.

In reality the measure of the effectiveness of any health system is the
infant mortality rate

According to the CIA fact book the UK infant mortality rate is about 25%
lower then the rate in the USA...

--
William Black


I've seen things you people wouldn't believe.
Barbeques on fire by the chalets past the castle headland
I watched the gift shops glitter in the darkness off the Newborough gate
All these moments will be lost in time, like icecream on the beach
Time for tea.

On 6/04/07 11:09, in article , "William
Black" wrote:


"PJ O'Donovan" wrote in message
oups.com...
Collapse of NHS system pushed dentist to take her own life'

PJ

Life expectancy in the UK is over 80 years
Life expectancy in the US is only 76 years.

In reality the measure of the effectiveness of any health system is the
infant mortality rate

According to the CIA fact book the UK infant mortality rate is about 25%
lower then the rate in the USA...


6.43 deaths/1,000 live births for the USA
5.08 deaths/1,000 live births for the UK

If you compute it in terms of the USA as the reference
the UK is 21% lower.

If you compute it with reference to the UK, the US
is 27% higher.

France does a bit better, 4.21 deaths/1,000 live births
and the US comes out 53% higher compared to France.

Sweden does even better with 2.76 deaths/1,000 live births

The problem in the US is the variation of infant mortality
rates with social class. On the Island of Manhattan
the rates are (2003)

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/pre...111-0827.shtml

Highest IMR * Fort Greene, Brooklyn had the highest IMR in the City (11.0).
Other neighborhoods with high IMRs include Jamaica East, Queens (10.3) and
Tremont, the Bronx (10.2).

Lowest IMR * Neighborhoods with the lowest IMRs were Flushing, Queens (2.0);
Kips Bay-Yorkville (2.3), Riverside (2.3), the Lower West Side (2.8) in
Manhattan; and Bay Ridge, Brooklyn (2.8).

***
So between the best, around 2.0 and the worst, 11, there is a factor of
5.

The rate in Cuba, which is hypersocialized is 6.22 deaths/1,000 live births,
marginally lower than the USA.

"VainGlorious" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 06 Apr 2007 01:37:58 GMT, Alan S wrote:


Take out the tiny principalities, small islands and
city-states like Hong Kong and Macao and the top 25 becomes:

Rank Country Life expectancy at birth
(years)
snip
21 Bosnia and Herzegovina 78
22 United States 77.85
23 Cyprus 77.82

Yeah! Take THAT! In your FACE, Cyprus!

USA! USA! USA! USA!

- TR
- trying out to be a Republican.



LOL

Make credence recognised that on Fri, 06 Apr 2007 01:37:58 GMT, Alan S
has scripted:

Take out the tiny principalities, small islands and
city-states like Hong Kong and Macao and the top 25 becomes:

21 Bosnia and Herzegovina 78

Who woulda thunk that?
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
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