I read in the paper this week that the National Health Service loses 10.7 working days a year per employee due to sickness compared to 6.4 in the private sector. This equates to a total of 10.3 million working days a year. The union states that the findings were being "twisted" into an attack on NHS staff. Oh yeh?!
More alarming statistic are that public sector employee numbers have risen by over 100% since this government came to power and that taxpayers owe them an astonishing £1.12trillion in pension payments. This is equal to about 80 per cent of everything made, sold or traded in the UK every year.
This has to stop Mr Brown/Mandelson. I'm not very bright, but even I can work that one out.
And finally ... they called it PMS because Mad Cow Disease was already taken
4 days ago
11 comments:
You don't mention another statistic: apparently more than a third of the 1,400,000 NHS workers have moderate to "very poor" mental health. That adds up to at least 466,667 nut cases! I was scared about going into hospital in case I got MRSA. Now I worry about that smiling nurse - is she waiting till my back's turned?
Perhaps it's safer to be on their side. I'd like to be a doctor - they are wanting £6.92 for each Swine Flu injection they give to their thousands of patients. Silly me - I thought it was part of their job to vaccinate us!
Wow ... the bit about the 100% increase in numbers and their associated pension bill is truly alarming! Especially in light of the recent pensions fiascos (yeah, we lost money along with zillions of others).
As to the mental health issues, I wonder how much of that is due to the pressure they work under (maybe the sick days too?) and the nature of the job. After all, even being off due to stress counts as a mental health issue, and I know that this is not an easy career option.
Clearly the government has it all very wrong when it comes to the NHS. Not only are services declining, but they are costing us all more money, AND the people who provide such services are suffering. Back to the old days I say. Throw out the business managers and the bought-in services and bring back Matron! She knew the job from the the inside, probation nurse up, and she got the job done. Training and all.
Yes DogLover, silly you.
OG is always banging on about bringing back matrons. The problem is Jay that any matrons would be infected by the "job's worth" bug too.
It just not on , I am thinking of joining the health service. They said its the time they take off that ups the figures.
How much does it cost in Bank and overtime I wonder.
How is it, for so long, we have lived under the feudal system, unacknowledged? Out 'public servants' are being pushed and pushed while the top layer are rewarded for making themselves more money? We can do things to change. We can support NHS workers (and emergency services, etc) By talking about them in a positive way, we can patronise our newly-nationalised banks, check our investments are ethical...can anyone else think of practical exercises? The point I'm making, is to move towards the positive- basic pay rises, equality...
...and I'm pretty sure there are some startling results about the mental health of politicians, too! I could go on, (and, boy, I can go on!)Dog Lover- poor mental health can mean low self-esteem; calling our hard-working health workers 'nutters' isnt going to help them feel better about themselves. The whole country is being pushed down, from the top, push back!
Hi R&C
Great to see you again. I agree it is absolute nonsense all this absenteeism within the NHS. It does have to stop.
I agree with your other comment as well.
I doubt whether the government will have the guts to do anything about it. ~ Eddie
It's just a complete shambles isn't it VM and only goes to prove that you can't just throw money at a problem to solve it.
I think that everyone wants the NHS to work Sarah and I believe that it is positive to be constructively critical.
Whilst I acknowledge that many of the staff are dedicated and hard working but there are also vast numbers that are arrogant and lazy. Let's recognise that fact, sack the shirkers, lay off all the hangers on such as overpaid non-medical staff and then we MIGHT have a service that "fit for purpose" and the envy of the world again.
It's so nice to hear someone that works within the NHS to talk sense Eddie. It has become a "holy cow" that is beyond critisim and that is not good.
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