Doctors should not be accountants (From Northwich Guardian)

My five-hour delay over clinic appointment did nothing for my well-being

7:50am Wednesday 8th February 2012 in Your Letters

The idea that GPs should decide finances for the NHS is not a good one.

Doctors are trained over many years to heal the sick. They have quite enough to do, seeing 50-odd patients or more per day. To expect them to be financial experts as well is ridiculous. Money cannot cure all ills, and the attitude of young staff to patients needs a lot of attention.

For example, making a 2pm appointment for 30 or 60 patients to attend a clinic, ending up with a notice telling them on arrival there is a five-hour delay, does nothing for the well-being of a worried, nervous, ill human being.

I do wonder how any of us survived the system run by the dear old family GP, who seemed able to attend to his patients 24 hours a day. He or she had a ‘panel’ for lower income patients. People seemed to have survived to a ripe old age, many never entering a hospital.

Why is it all so complicated and unpleasant today?

Jane Brown Northwich