People will use NHS 2000 times

garde · #1 (**permalink**) 29-01-10, 02:04 PM

This is an article out the other day - People use NHS '2,000 times each' | News

The full article doesn’t actually stipulate how these visits are made up, but assuming it incorporates NHS dental visits that still leaves a whopping 1800+ visits to either your GP or Hospital.

Having a very mild condition that needs a regular prescription I will still only use around 240 prescriptions by the time im 80! Im on a yearly checkup so will see my GP or have a telephone call from him to confirm my condition is stable so that can account I guess for another 40 visits. Even if I say im going to be ill once a year for the rest of my life and need another 40 prescriptions & visits, im still no where near average.

Ive had a few trips to A&E as a child, a small op when I was 7, a few checkups after that, one trip to A&E as a teenager including a few nights stay and more recently a bit of laser treatment to my hand, 4 or 5 visits for this – I reckon im still in credit by at least 1650visits – if I have 40 years left that’s 41.25 visits per year!

Is it me or does this figure seem exorbitantly high?

Who is this average person? No-one I know that’s for sure

sjr4x4 · #2 (**permalink**) 29-01-10, 03:09 PM

What a load of old cobblers!

Quote - "The average person is in contact with the health service once a fortnight (2,153 times up to the age of 80), while collecting an estimated 1,330 prescriptions.

They also make 31 visits to Accident & Emergency and go on 12 ambulance journeys."

Who on earth conducted this crackpot study? Bet it cost the taxpayer a few hundred thousand though

VirtuallyMary · #3 (**permalink**) 26-02-10, 01:17 PM

It's average vs typical.

I'm betting, for instance, that people who require frequent treatments or therapies (eg dialysis 3 times a week, or chemotherapy) have each individual visit listed as a separate contact, and that if they get NHS transport (eg cancer patient transferred by non-emergency ambulance from hospice to therapy unit) that's an extra contact for each trip as well.

There'll be the supervised methadone programs in there as well (drugs consumed on-site only) which are daily or even twice-daily contacts.

I'm also betting that things like going into A&E counts as at least 100 separate contacts - a contact with the ambulance service, a contact with the admissions unit, a contact with the triage nurses, a contact with the ward nurses, a contact with a doctor, a contact with the X-ray unit, another contact with a doctor, a contact with the surgery team, a contact with the anaesthesiologists, a contact with the recovery room...

Stavros · #4 (**permalink**) 26-02-10, 01:22 PM

Well I have used my quota up damn kidney stones.

Kip FX Design · #5 (**permalink**) 26-02-10, 01:31 PM

Maybe its all that Veg!

sjr4x4 · #6 (**permalink**) 01-03-10, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VirtuallyMary

It's average vs typical....

True, I suppose 90% of the population averaged over 10% of high users.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VirtuallyMary

There'll be the supervised methadone programs in there as well (drugs consumed on-site only) which are daily or even twice-daily contacts...

Every cloud!! Onto NHS direct right now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kip FX Design

Maybe its all that Veg!

didn't know sprouts had stones in them?

Stavros · #7 (**permalink**) 01-03-10, 06:45 PM

I am like an otter.
I swallow stones for ballast hence the mid riff its not fat just big pebbles.

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