The most telling part of the Civitas debate was when Charlie McEwan, the head of a not for profit health insurance firm said, “these days with the internet, nobody needs a gp, you just look it up” Professor Smith suggested the same thing, advocating for direct access to consultants.
There was laughter after Charlie’s comment, but after the Prof’s suggestion there were murmurs of approval.
What was telling was that people still agreed with them, even after I explained that 1 in 3 people will develop dementia, 1 in 10 will be on at least 10 regular prescriptions, 1 in 5 will have heart disease, 1 in 7 will have diabetes and so on. In short, most of us will have a range of complex interacting chronic diseases. The pin-stripe suited advocates of markets in the room were so wedded to their ideology (or, more likely future personal profits) that nothing could shake them from their conviction that they’ll remain healthy and autonomous to the end.
They’re designing a health service for themselves, their future and their profits. They’re dining with politicians.
We’re not.
A Better NHS 