The reality of working for the cash-strapped NHS

[Richard A Thackeray]

So, a trainee radiologist gets seconded to a porter, gets to go on smoke breaks, the radiologists haven't enough work to do, because nothing is scheduled, so they play on their phones (don't blame them)

Seems likes an odd secondment, I guess it's a hypothetical example?
We don't even see HCAs going around with Porters, only on patient escorts, not to see what goes off 'behind the scenes'

Trolleys and chairs are "condemned" because they are not functioning correctly, leading to shortage of equipment, leading to patients missing their scans, meaning a whole lot of professional wages and expensive lab time wasted. Not to mention patient distress. Why are they condemned? Because they haven't been cleaned, the moving parts parts not lubricated and the bearings not greased. Why hasn't this basic maintenance been done? I have no idea, I just watch the replacement £kkk chairs arrive on trial, whilst with a basic tool kit and some WD40 I could put many other pieces of equipment back into use in a few hours.
I actually carry a multi tool so that I can work.

Ours aren't allowed to repair/lubricate them, as we've not been trained
Plus, the land-lords, are more likely paranoid about lubricant dripping on the floor & someone slipping/claiming
(more the cost/bad-press, than the persons injury!)

I have a small stash of screwdrivers/allen-keys/pliers/etc......... unofficially of course

I could go on and on, but there is no point, nobody is listening. I have 5 immediate managers, they have a manager, who has manager, who has a manager, who has manager, that's as far as I've got, I have no idea how far the lineage goes.

It's very much like the rowing competition story

 

[MarkF]

Seems likes an odd secondment, I guess it's a hypothetical example?
We don't even see HCAs going around with Porters, only on patient escorts, not to see what goes off 'behind the scenes'

No, it's true, the junior radiologists get seconded to porters, personally I think it's really bad idea unless it's to an unusually motivated (non smoking) porter!

I was getting away from the OP's point anyway........ it's a madhouse to somebody like me entering it at middle age. Stupid practices, stupid initiatives, stupid systems, often directly working against other stupid systems, nothing functions normally and I think this leads to medical staff not being able to do what most of them would like to do, work, be productive, they get stressed and disappointed in their lot (they don't leave tho' ) and lose their focus on the problem, management.

 

[MarkF]

m back. If people brought them back to the surgery, these items would still get binned because no one could be bothered to process the paperwork or clean them for re-use.

Ha! I keep thinking that if I can eventually track down the person responsible for authorising the "condemning" of equipment, and come to an arrangement, I'd be a rich man very soon.

 

[classic33]

Ha! I keep thinking that if I can eventually track down the person responsible for authorising the "condemning" of equipment, and come to an arrangement, I'd be a rich man very soon.

I know the local one!

 

[mjr]

don't blame the NHS . blame your GP.

Great but so what? Plenty of people have a choice of exactly one GP surgery, so blaming them fixes nothing because it's not like you can go anywhere else. Postcode lottery.

What's the online is not an option thing all about? Since last year GP surgeries MUST let you order your repeats on-line, it is mandated (all too late imho).

Mandated but where's the enforcement? Also, dumping prescription requests because it doesn't match their idea of when you should order should be banned too, unless they've good cause to think you are hoarding.