The End of A&E?

Unknown

The End of A&E?

You've broken your leg, had a bit too much to drink, your grandma has had a fall and broken her hip. First port of call? A&E

For many, A&E is one of the most amazing services that the NHS provides. But why has it become one of the greatest headaches for the NHS, and politicians alike? This morning, MPs debated the pressure that often short staffed A&E units come under, often making the service that the NHS can provide unsafe. The blame for this should not be laid at the doors of the nurses or doctors themselves. Bureaucratic layers of management see wards as a cost-cutting exercise. Managers have ripped through the NHS, leaving no room for nurses or doctors in overstretched wards to effectively do their job. Most of these managers have no experience of front line care, so although they may be trained in financial management, how can they possibly be fully aware of the needs of A&E wards.

The expectation of A&E is that it should be a quick fix, you arrive with a problem, should been seen straight away and leave with a solution within the hour. However with the volume of people that A&E are expected to deal with and the amount of staff available this is not possible. By placing too many expectations upon the NHS, we have lost sight of the functions that we need it to perform, many arrive at A&E with symptoms that could be treated at home, therefore increasing pressure. We have all heard of the ridiculous reasons why people rock up to A&E, so I urge people to think before they decide to go to A&E whether the problem they have is actually a problem and not just a cold.

I think that A&E nor the NHS should not be based on targets, as it is obvious that targets are not an effective way of trying to improve standards. Targets on paper look like they could be effective, but they are sometimes more of a glass ceiling rather than a something to aim for. Many A&E wards only strive to just surpass the targets rather than go above them. This not surprising as NHS trusts have been ordered to make £20bn worth of savings by 2015. I think that it is wrong to base life and death situations on the financial implications of the treatment needed.

According to The Independent, "Nurses and doctors are forced to routinely sacrifice patient privacy and dignity" and that in my opinion is wrong and something that money cannot buy, people who are ill deserve the upmost respect and dignity something that seems to have been lost not just within the ranks of the NHS, but also with modern day society.