PCTs -- Waste, Incompetence and Corruption in Equal Measures.

For the most part, it is not the Doctors nurses or dentists who are the problem with the modern NHS, as per usual its the ever growing hordes of pen-pushers, seat polishers, puppets, parrots, rubber stampers and political appointees, often referred to as Middle Management who seem to be the biggest drain on NHS resources. Naturally these people gravitate to the Primary Care Trusts PCTs where they can do the most damage for the littlest effort.

The PCT is an environment in which expertise, local knowledge, sincerity and good intentions can quickly drown in the quicksand of Newspeak, Reports and Targets so beloved by politicians and mandarins alike. Even apparently sincere people with the best of intentions can soon find themselves on the road to hell in such an atmosphere.

Health Ministers of various political colours have come up with much guff and inappropriate policies over the years. The Tories for example as a first stage of making the NHS a two-tier service, contracted out cleaning services to private companies clearly lacking in thoroughness and expertise. Dirty wards and exponential growth of MRSA or C Dif were the obvious and predictable result.

The current regime quickly grabbed the baton and ran with it, setting about the destruction of NHS dental services and encouraging private dentistry thus placing NHS dentists on the endangered species lists. Here in East Lancashire for example according to the local press, at the last count more than 40,000 people could not find a dentist at all. Little wonder that hospital A and E units are drowning under a tsunami of emergency patients.

In East Lancashire they still were not content and closed the Burnley General A and E Unit despite massive objection from all quarters. Now doctors waste thousands of pounds on taxis up and down the M65 fuelling CO2 emissions, and operations and treatments take place in ambulances. Councillors have told me several horror stories about the results of this madness. How ironic it is that the nearest A and E Unit for patients in Pendle in East Lancashire is now in North Yorkshire. When the NHS is run by such a mindless government, is it any wonder that the PCTs are just pathetic glove puppets?

Only the other morning on BBC Radio Four, like some sick Christmas present, a new report stated that care and compassion in the NHS had declined further during 2008. And what is the governments answer to this type of revelation? Why nothing less than a new web site where the public could award or punish their GP,s in a farcical top ten Beauty Parade. Having tried and failed at moving the deck chairs on the Titanic, they are now re-painting them. What next I wonder? A new movie... “Health Service 2” with Alan Johnson as Lex Luthor??

If you still think senior figures in the NHS, PCTs etc actually know what they are talking about or what they are doing check out the following extracts printed in the Gloucestershire Gazette On the 23rd December 2008. “The PCT is awaiting a feasibility study on the project but members of the trust board said they were in favour of fluoridation.” Chairman Chris Clarke told a meeting of the board last Wednesday: "I can see no problem and it makes an awful lot of sense." Nobby Clark can see no problems hahahaha and fluoridation makes an awful lot of sense hohoho. I think we should pay particular attention to the word “Awful.” Rather obviously, even before any feasibility study or consultation has been carried out, they have already made up their minds to add this crap to Gloucester's water supply.

Perhaps the biggest plonker on Gloucester NHS must be non-executive director David Hardwood who said "There must be a lot of health benefits other than dental. I imagine(sic) fluoride helps with all sorts of things. “ Now that's what you call a vivid imagination freed from all constraints of knowledge and common sense. "I just can’t quite see why we have to go into such detail on fluoridation when companies already put all sorts of cocktails of chemicals in the water to purify it." Doh !!!

Mr Hardnutt not only cannot see, but also has no wish to do so and best of all does not understand the subtle but non the less important difference between treating and purifying the water and treating and polluting the consumer. Make no mistake about it, adding fluoride is pollution. Isn't it nice to know that the health of Gloucester is in such a safe pair of claws.
Those who wish to read the full tosh er... I mean text, can find it here. http://www.gazetteseries.co.uk/search/3990079.Fluoride_could_be_flowing_through_taps/
Of such arrogance and stupidity are PCTs made and I have absolutely no hesitation therefore in nominating Mr Woodentop and the Gloucester NHS as the first contender for the 2009 Flat Earth Award. If its true that ignorance is bliss, the NHS/PCT in Gloucester must now be approaching Nirvana.