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Why would anyone 'have a pop' at me? I asked an open question and it was prompted by my own, albeit limited, experiences in the Dutch and German health systems and the French system seems to have a good reputation. I am genuinely interested in the thoughts and experiences of other posters regarding the health systems of our European neighbours - and finding it strange that asking such a question is worthy of a 'pop', as you put it.Originally Posted by Dembe
You are misunderstanding me. I am not saying there is anything wrong with what you said, but people are quick to have a go at LoM for what he said, you've both had opinions and nobody is bothered when you have one, but for some reason as always LoM has one and people criticise it.
It's a good question and I have some interest in this area, though I'm not that familiar with continental healthcare systems - but on the whole, it's a bit of a minefield comparing different healthcare systems. One way is to assess where systems are better or worse, comparatively.
https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/insight...ther-countries
This short overview does that to some extent. Briefly - 1. more efficient in some areas (eg admin, contrary to what some would have you believe), 2. better protection from financial stress & lower spend on private healthcare (so fewer people not accessing services because of the financial implication), 3. fewer beds & equipment, 4. lower staffing levels & 5. worse patient outcomes on average (but note, the UK performs better in some areas).
That's not to say that other systems are all rosy though - there are funding issues, ageing populations, greater demand for services, workforce shortages etc - so this is a global problem, not only a UK problem.
I don't have the exact figures but as I understand it, pound for pound the NHS outperforms many other countries, so comparing to France or Germany, for example isn't that helpful if they spend more per capita (I think Germany has some of the highest spend per capita), or have some elements of 'co-payment' (as does France I believe). One of the key issues is we've not kept up with demand - so the requirement is something like a 4% budget increase each year whereas the NHS has been systematically underfunded, at least in recent years, and now we're in the crisis we can see all around us. That said, we should still be looking to France to learn how to improve cardiac care, for example. Incidentally, Eric, I'm glad to hear you're ok and in good hands.
Another thing you often hear is the 'too many managers' mantra - which I can understand - we all feel like we need more front line staff and fewer bosses - until you unpack the data - which shows that managers are a vital part of the healthcare service, and are under immense pressure themselves, rather than the bureaucratic fat-cats the likes of the mail would have you believe. https://academic.oup.com/jpart/article/29/2/193/5236802 - this study shows their positive influence overall.
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