Tags
A&E, accident, ambulance, Coalition, Conservative, Democrat, emergency, hospital, Labour, Lib Dem, Liberal, national, NHS, paramedic, privatise, Tories, Tory, Wales

This was not the actual ambulance involved in the case mentioned below. It is intended to be a representative picture of an ambulance. We mention this to head off anyone who wants to point out that it’s the wrong colour.
Readers of this blog will know that Vox Political is a staunch supporter of the National Health Service here in Wales which, under Welsh Labour, remains a nationalised system and still works better than the part-privatised Tory/Coalition patchwork on offer in England.
The site has good evidence of the choice available when dealing with surgery by appointment – but with criticisms focusing on emergency treatment, I have been frustrated by my inability to comment on this aspect of the service from first-hand experience.
Now I have first-hand experience.
Around 5pm today, a lady visiting Casa Vox had a fainting fit, directly in front of yr obdt srvt. Her speech slowed down, her arms and legs started to shake, and she folded up – concertina-like – and dropped to the floor (banging her head on a low cabinet – this was in the kitchen – because I wasn’t fast enough to catch her).
Attempts to revive her seemed to succeed partially, but then she passed out completely.
So Mrs Mike dialled 999 and asked for an ambulance.
What followed was enough to convince me of one fact:
Everything you have heard about NHS Wales, from Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, is wrong.
Even where they have singled out known problems, they are wrong because their solutions are wrong.
They haven’t experienced NHS Wales’ emergency teams in action; they are wrong.
The ambulance arrived within four minutes of the call.
Two paramedics installed themselves in the kitchen and interrogated Mrs Mike and Yrs Truly, while carrying out thorough tests on the unconscious lady.
When they decided they were happy to move her, they brought in a wheelchair and transferred her to their ambulance. Mrs Mike dealt with them after that but they were able to revive the poorly lady and she was able to stroll back in (with the aid of sticks) around 90 minutes after her attack.
This was not a case that required hospitalisation, although the paramedics had discussed it with us; they were considering three hospitals at one point and would have made the journey if necessary. In the end, it was not.
Instead, the paramedics were able to do everything that needed to be done at the scene, cutting out any extra strain on ambulance time and obviating pressure on A&E departments.
Yes, this was a minor case.
But it proved that this blog’s faith in NHS Wales is well-founded.
Yes, it is an extremely subjective viewpoint.
But if anybody wants to put forward a different view, all we have to do is ask:
What’s your experience?
Follow me on Twitter: @MidWalesMike
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