Remember Baghdad Bob? He was the Iraqi government official who went on TV swearing up and down that there were no Americans in Baghdad during the 2003 Iraq War. As he was making this proclaimation, a U.S. Army M-2 Bradley fighting vehicle drove by in the background. It was one of the most hilarious moments in broadcast journalism.
Well, those who support socialized medicine are just like Baghdad Bob. They shout at the top of their lungs that a nationalized health care system is the best thing since sliced bread, and while they are beating their chests, a new story about the massive failings of socialized medicine goes to print.
Such is the latest story from the United Kingdom. Specifically, The Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation which runs Stafford and Cannock Chase hospitals.
Jenny Hope, writing for the Daily Mail Online, notes the following:
| Dehydrated patients were forced to drink out of flower vases, while others were left in soiled linen on filthy wards. Relatives of patients who died at Staffordshire General Hospital told how they were so worried by the standard of care they slept in chairs on the wards. |
And other findings:
|
Now, I know that many advocates of socialized medicine will say that these are isolated incidents or that the same things happen under a privatized health care system.
They are wrong on both points. These are not isolated incidents. You can read about a myriad of other deficiencies of socialized health care on-line at the following website:
The Truth About Socialized Medicine
And, if these incidents were as common in a privatized health care system, they would be the lead stories for CNN and MSNBC and front page news for the Washington Post and New York Times almost every day of the week. But they aren't stories here because under a privatized health care system these things don't happen on this scale or anywhere near this often.
As a new father myself, the story and picture of the baby is the most hard-hitting.
Here are some other stories about what has been happening in Staffordshire:
| "My wife had treatment at this hospital and it was beyond belief. Staff tried to get my wife to believe she had already been given her tablets when they hadn't; later admitting they ran out and did not want to call out the Pharmacy! People were screaming for the toilet as their requests for assistance went unheeded." Mick, Stafford "My mother in law died at a hospital where her 'care' was almost non-existant. She died screaming in pain because nobody could be found to replace her morphine pump." Claire, Norfolk "When my father was in hospital for months, he lay in a bed with dirty, torn blankets and grubby sheets. I asked to see the Hospital Manager and was walked through the most plush of offices. I was sickened and told her so." Sammy, UK "My sister recently qualified as a nurse. During her training a fellow student commented to a manager that a doctor hadn't bothered to change his scrubs after undertaking a minor operation on a patient and wore the same ones for his next operation. She was warned any whistle blowing of that sort would result in her being kicked out." Jo, Middlesex |
This is what awaits us here in the United States if we adopt socialized medicine.
We must ensure that health care decisions remain in the hands of the people who will be most affected by those decisions: the patients and their physicians.
You can access the complete article on-line here:
Brown Apologises For Unacceptable Failings At Stafford 'Third World' Hospital
Jenny Hope
Daily Mail
March 19, 2009
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