Hospitals‿ and‿ illnesses

My name‿ is Lucia. Three years‿ ago I had‿ an‿ operation‿ on my knee,│ an(d) the experience taught me more‿ about how health systems work than‿ any newspaper‿ article.

The initial diagnosis took four months,│ because the waiting^wai-ding lis(t) for the specialis(t) was long‿ an(d) my case was not‿ urgent. The surgeon was‿ excellent,│ but the pressure he worked‿ under was visible:│ he had twelve patients‿ on his lis(t) that morning. The hospital‿ itself was‿ old,│ six people to a room,│ and‿ I caught‿ an‿ infection that kep(t) me in bed for‿ an‿ extra week. None‿ of this was the fault‿ of the staff. It was the fault‿ of‿ a system that runs‿ every department‿ at full capacity,│ so that‿ a single‿ emergency delays‿ a hundred people.

What‿ I now believe‿ is that the debate‿ about health care should be about quality of care rather than‿ about money alone,│ an(d) that‿ an‿ ageing population makes rationing‿ unavoidable‿ in some form. If you hear‿ a politician promise‿ everything for‿ everybody,│ ask them│ who will staff‿ it. The nurses│ who looked│ after me were‿ extraordinary,│ an(d) they were‿ also exhausted,│ an(d) that‿ is the sentence‿ I would put‿ at the top‿ of‿ any reform.