If the Brits had any sense they would find an American Lawyer and sue the bastards....the American Doctors of course, since they are obviously overcharging.

it is just this kind of incompetence that caused my wife and i to leave that misbegotten island. shame really, it used to be a nice place until socialism reached its terminal phase somewhere in the mid 1990's. and the private practices are no better.

nothing makes you appreciate america like living somewhere else for a spell...

Why? Because the same inner hobgoblin that told them the state could mine coal effectively tells them the state can handle the far more difficult task of controlling healthcare.

The mystery isn't solved as far as I can tell. Did, in fact, food go in to Tilly's lungs when she was young, or not? If so, why did it stop? If not, why did the doctors say it did?

And not to defend the British NHS, but you could find anecdotal horror stories like this in the USA as well. The real problem is that, unlike the USA, it's so much harder in the UK to get around such problems.

aog: i am not quite sure what your point is, but if its to say that bad things happen in both places so they must be roughly equivalent then i disagree, strongly. do you know who the most prolific serial killer is in british history ? an nhs doctor. only a nation of sheep (which at heart, the british are) would tolerate the malfeasance that is the *hallmark* of the nhs. it recently came to light that they were doing something very nasty with the bodies of children that had died in care, without parental permission or notification (can't remember the particulars). but if you don't believe me its easy enough to go over there for a little first hand experience, the next time you or a loved one are seriously unwell.

Yes, the typical adolescent viewpoint: it should all be free, the caregivers should all be perfect and omniscient, there should be no waiting, for any outcome there should be someone to sue even if everyone did their very best under the circumstances, and they should be sued in any case because they are all greedy bastards.

When will you begin to understand that your selfish attitude and lack of basic respect need far more repair than the caring people who are there to help you?

If I were that girl, I'd spend some of that $20k having the American docs take the valve out of my stomach, rather than have the Brits screw me up again.

cjm;

My point is that bad things happen in both places, so you can't use a single data point like this to make judgements on the relative capabilities of the two systems. I.e., it's unreasonable to say "because this happened, NHS sucks". Now, as it happens there in fact plenty of other evidence in that regard but Rudy points out, it's utopian to think that any system can eliminate this kind of thing.

One can, however, note that the American system provides a better alternative in the face of such errors of judgement. This is no small thing because, as just noted, screw ups will happen.

i assumed rudy was talking to himself.

the nhs is broken, it is cruel bordering on evil. is that clear enough ? it exists to employ beuraucrats, and if any one gets better it is an accident. the american system is flawed but overall gives the best care in the world. think i am wrong ? when was the last time you heard about some ill celebrity going overseas for treatment ? the only two times i can think of are rock hudson and steve mcqueen -- with the predictable results in both cases.

"your selfish attitude and lack of basic respect" (said rudy)

Is there some sort of hypersensitive hotline referring people to this site?

An uncle of mine in Winnipeg was being treated for something (I'm unclear on the details) and he nearly died. He decided to gather together $29,000 and head down to Mao clinic. They diagnosed and treated him over the weekend and sent him home.

I think he had an ulcer and the medication the Canadian doctors were giving him nearly killed him. He lost a year recovering from their "treatment".

What's really funny is the Manitoba government refused to reimburse him -- that is what we are talking about, rudy. You know, the basic selfishness of expecting someone to take responsibility for their actions. Something governments *never* do.