Russian roulette ?

[Kit W]

In England the NHS is payed for by a deduction directly form a persons income/wages. The government takes 9% before tax and that 9% goes into a pot. It pays for the unemployed, pensions(including those with private pensions), the NHS and other areas which are bit complicated to explain here. The more people in work the more money to go round. Why? Because the money that goes into the pot today goes straight out. There is no fund as some people seem to think there is. The top heavy management of the NHS puts a huge strain on the portion that the NHS receives. Which means closed wards, less beds available and less medical staff.

May be I have read this wrong?  Being from England I have to wonder would I have been operated on to save my life considering the size and location of my AN  (5cm+) behind right ear pushing part of my brain over in to the left side and pressing against the spinal cord.

Below is a small extract from the NHS Direct web site:

There are several different treatment options for an acoustic neuroma. Which treatment you have will depend on a number of factors, including:

    * your age,
    * your overall health, and
    * the size and position of your tumour.


This is the link to the page for those who would like to read more about the types of treatment available to people in the UK with an AN. http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Acoustic-neuroma/Pages/Treatment.aspx?url=Pages/what-is-it.aspx

I have to say I have more confidence in the medical system already in place over here. Why? because my age, health, size and position of my AN didn't prevent me from a life saving operation.

Kit

[Jim Scott]

Kit:

I've looked at the UK health system and found it quite unappealing so I can appreciate your misgivings.  Unfortunately, many Americans seem to think socialized health care is a panacea because a portion of the U.S. population doesn't carry medical insurance.  Of course, part of that is due to the fact that health insurance is almost always tied to employment and if you are not employed, you often can't afford health insurance.  Not to mention that some Americans simply chose not to carry health insurance and pocket the money saved while some 'uninsured' are children whose parents don't buy or can't afford health insurance.  Of course, medical help is never denied to anyone in the U.S. due to lack of insurance and we generally have a wide array of options in choosing our doctor, specialist, hospital, etc, although our choices are not limitless.  The private insurance companies that Americans rely on can be a nightmare to deal with but in the final analysis, they pay almost all the medical bills (billions) every year and are probably not much harder to deal with than some unaccountable government bureaucracy.

I thank you for your comments and appreciation of the U.S. health care system.  We usually just read complaints about it so a Brit's perspective is both interesting and enlightening.   

Jim

[jazzfunkanne]

Hi there, yes you would have been operated on right away with a large AN, there are a few of us on the BANA (british AN) site who have had large tumours and the operations were done quickly.

[Kit W]

Forgive my being cynical about the NHS but I had a cousin die from a brain tumour.

[cathyW]

hello
 I would just like to give you my experience of the NHS, I went to my local doctor regarding hearing loss in my right ear in the November, he sent me to a ENT specialst who recommended a MRI, this was done in the December,the MRI came back showing the AN. I then went to see the surgeon early February to discuss options. I was operated on in August. The speed which I was diagnosed and the care I received was beyond all my expectations, as I have never had a operation or been to hospital before. I am very proud of our NHS.

[jazzfunkanne]

i agree with you cathy i owe my life to the nhs doctors, we have many gifted consultants in the uk and i am very grateful to them.

[Kit W]

I'm glad there are thos of you did get the right treatment from the NHS.

What I find difficult to understand is why my doctor didn't send me for an MRI or CAT scan when I showed severe dizzyness with vomiting and simply sent me away with a prescription for Antivert. Surely all problems involving the head and brain should be given the same level of concern and the patient be sent for an MRI or CAT scan

Kit

[jazzfunkanne]

Hi Kit, what size is your AN, i think alot of us go undiagnosed not just in the uk but all over the world, i myself went undiagnosed for about 20 + years, but once they found out the cause i was quickly dealth with.

[Kit W]

jazzfunkanne,

My AN was 5cm plus in size. I appriciate that some patients around the world do get overlooked because the symptoms are hard to detect. If someone like my self presents with severe dizzyness or even mild light headedness it ought to be an automatic response for the Dr to order an MRI or CAT scan as part of the screening to find the cause.

I had a seizure before anyone thought of doing a CT scan only then was mine found despite being continually dizzy and vomiting. As I've discovered by joining this website There are thousands of us out there who have or have had an AN. It's scary to think how many get missed.

Regards

Kit

[Crazycat]

State-sponsored insurance is what saved my hide!

[jazzfunkanne]

Kit, have you had your AN removed, crazycat i see you also had a large tumour how are you now.

[Crazycat]

Jazz funk (nice username...why didn't I think of that?)

I'm doing well, jogging every day and making a living playing bass guitar. I'm busy as hell this weekend!

Check out my other replys that I've recently posted......

http://anausa.org/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=806;sa=showPosts

I've turned in a lot of writing on this forum over the years ( as many of us have) and it's all archived......

Paul