Grump, grump

“See there’s a blinkin’ queue,” the fit elderly man walking towards me called.

“They don’t open for seven minutes,” I replied.

“Lazy lot,” he grumbled as he stood beside me outside the pharmacy.

“They’re open till six each evening,” I retorted.

“Like the damn doctors, striking!” This strong man older than me grumbled.

I was irritated and said, “They’ve good reason to make their voices heard.”

“Medical people shouldn’t strike.”

“They went through a lot during the pandemic and promises were not met.”

“Rubbish. Doing their job. That was all.” “I was in hospital twice during Covid, they were obviously utterly exhausted but still gave me their all.” “That’s their duty.”

“Yet they were compassionate and saved my life.”

He continued to grumble, “They’re well paid, better than us pensioners. The NHS is falling apart because of them.”

“Not at all. I’m here this morning to pick up emergency pills as I’m dashing off to hospital. That is service and I experience the same three weeks ago.”

“You’re lucky. I don’t get that treatment. Takes weeks to see anyone.”

“When it’s urgent they respond rapidly. Anyway, back to them, the consultant I recently saw is on the same pay as in 2008. I bet your pay was never frozen like that. What did you do?”

“Salesman for the south of England, working from London. I worked hard”

Ha, so that’s why he was so well dressed. Many come down here with their London money and feel entitled. I continued, “In how many countries can you get the sort of service I’ve experienced. We are so lucky you.”

“Too many foreigners working here, slows everything down,” he moaned.

“Because we don’t train enough of our own or look after them, there’s a shortage and hence too much pressure at work, so our people go to work abroad.” I told him our local hospital displayed 74 flags from around the world representing staff working there.

Grump, grump, grump, he went on. Anyway, collecting my pills I dashed to hospital and was dealt with very quickly. The English chap next to me in A&E complained about the 45 minute wait and I told him of a time in New York when I took a mugged man to the nearest hospital, but without a wallet or any identity, though this chap was bleeding seriously, they refused to see him. I got so angry that the security guard had to have a word with me, he was apologetic and said this was the way it was and advised me to ring around for help. At about 1 o’clock in the morning, I found an English woman who came in with her health card and doctors who had been so belligerent treated him, saving his life.

How lucky we are in this country. Foreigners on holiday are treated first and asked questions later. In the A&E, I could hear Africans, Phillipinos, Portuguese and French voices. When living in France we once rushed into hospital with a young French boy bleeding from his head and they wouldn’t even see him until the panicking mother found her health papers, that was a good 20 minutes lost, despite his blood dripping everywhere.

However, our health system is not as good as it used to be. Our politicians have run it down and now an election is looming they are desperately pretending to repair 12 years of poor investment. That’s the trouble with democracy, it is short term, dependant on the next election. Health and education should be controlled by civil servants, not self-oriented politicians. To counter this, we need a system which makes politicians accountable, for without this they do what serves them, not what benefits the country. If a midwife must be accountable for her actions for 25 years, Boris should be for the huge damage Brexit did and Truss too for the loss of that £60 billion she threw away. Jail should be in order.

Our political system would be better if political promises had to be met. Democracy everywhere would gain, as would we, as would the world. Look at the promises made about Climate Change - they have come to nothing yet time is running out.