One of the reasons many of us worry about Donald Berwick, Obama’s nominee to head CMS, is his oft-stated love for the NHS—Britain’s socialized medical system. Here is an example of the kind of care that patients receive in the system for which Dr. Berwick has so much admiration:
As an experienced GP, Uday Pathak had good reason to trust his instincts and knowledge when his wife became ill. The 62-year-old suspected she had cancer and urged medics to carry out an immediate full body scan. Tragically, they delayed for seven months and 54-year-old Pradnya later died of the disease.
After an inquest confirmed that she may have recovered if the hospital had listened to him, Dr Pathak made it clear that his wife was the victim of NHS negligence and asked this mordant question:
If something like this can happen to me, what is happening for everyone else?
Not a hard question to answer. “Everyone else” is getting terrible care, and often dying as a result. Sometimes they are allowed to starve to death. Sometimes the NHS won’t pay for their treatment.
Sometimes the clinicians neglect basic hygiene. Sometimes they leave emergency patients stacked in ambulances in the ER parking lot. Sometimes the NHS simply lets patients languish on waiting lists.
This is government-run health care. This is what Donald Berwick will give us if he is confirmed as the Administrator of CMS.
[ht ECM]
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