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NHS - 10 out of 10 from me

Some people moan and groan about the NHS. Not me.

Our NHS is Great Bag – These Bags Are Great 

I had an NHS "lung check" for the over-65's today, booked via my GP in one of those complicated mobile units, complete with mobile scanner, for 15:50 today. I was seen at 15:50, and following confirmation that I do in fact have two lungs, I was sent on my way by 16:15, no scan needed.

However, Paul the Medic (for it was he; Pat the Postman was out on his rounds), noticed that my left ankle was somewhat swollen, and suggested I book a GP appointment, which I did by popping/hopping into my GP surgery (which I had to walk past to get back home, avoiding the middle of the Lidl next door to the practice, which invariably relieves me of money for its special offers such as a cement mixer or 2-person submersible).

The surgery booked me in for inspection by the lovely Dr Bhatnagar (who is always worth seeing, ailment or not. She is the medical equivalent of Jessica Alba, who, as a result, when she takes my blood pressure, the first two readings are always false negatives) at 18:15 on Tuesday.

In the meantime, I had ordered my repeat prescription from the practice last night before going to bed. I chanced my arm and swollen ankle (it being a mere 16 hours since I ordered the repeat prescription) and popped into the pharmacy near the practice where I have my prescription made up (as in they specifically put it together, they don't just issue me with some random medication they want to get rid of prior to its "best before" date). It was ready and waiting for collection.

I have zero complaints about my local NHS service, and feel very lucky that it consistently works so well as it has done for me the past 10 years or so.

And yes, as I said elsewhere, when solicitors can charge £175 an hour for photocopying court bundles, or £500 an hour for downloading forms from the Law Society website that they fill in (presumably soon utilising AI), junior ED doctors are worth far more than the £21 an hour they are currently striking for.

And I have to thank a school friend for prompting me to write this. He similarly pointed out the vital importance for those of a certain age having regular check-ups when either offered them, or you think you might need advice. Do NOT just use Dr Google.

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