Mon 8 Feb 2010
NFR has lots of fun with the political class at the Oxford Union
Posted by Helen Evans under Announcements
[3] Comments
Last week, I spoke against the NHS and whole idea of socialised medicine at an Oxford Union debate. Against me were the usual political class types including Andrew Lansley MP (Conservative Shadow Secretary of State for Health), Kevin Barron MP (Labour), Norman Lamb MP (Liberal Democrat) and that doyen of producer power and legislative favour, the President of the British Medical Association, Professor Averil Mansfield.
It was a great evening and everyone enjoyed themselves hugely. I certainly did and was delighted to have on my side the top cancer specialist Dr. Karol Sikora. He has long demanded changes to the ‘Stalinist NHS Quango’ and all in all we had immense fun together.
We were there and you were fantastic.
Many congratulations.
“Dr. Karol Sikora. He has long demanded changes to the ‘Stalinist NHS Quango’”
Stalin died in 1953 so he’s a bit thick isn’t he?
Hello Helen,
It was interesting to find your blog on Health Reform. I was searching for a blog I just developed, Nurses for Health Care Reform (in the U.S.) I was interested in many of your comments on the NHS, and was, frankly, surprised. I have been a nurse / nurse practitioner for 20+years, board certified as a Family and Gerontological NP, and currently in school for my DrNP ( that is a Doctorate of Nursing Practice) which is what got me interested in politics. If you are interested in the political workings from the inside and can access C-span ( on line also) or NPR http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=124075675 it is a great way to hear and see the coverage of some of the debates.
Just to comment: the uninsured are a big problem in the US. Unless they go to the ER – they do not get health care, which means they do not get dental care, medications, or mental health care and psychiatric medications. We have 30 million of these people in the U.S. The health care reform debates right now are centered on the people who are the employed without health insurance – because it is too expensive and they cannot afford it. Health insurance is a big, profitable business here, and if you have a pre-existing condition – you can be denied, or dropped – even on the on the way to the OR – yes, it has happened. Our system is broken, and its not just verbage, I’ve personnaly seen it in my 25 years as a nurse, and also have a son age 32 who cannot get insurance.
AnnMarie