The Silly Season

It's 5am .......2 hours to go on a Saturday nightshift. "Silly Season" is in full swing and every year it seems to get worse.
People just don't seem to know when enough is enough where alcohol is concerned.
If l had a pound for everyone who has allegedly had their drink spiked, Bill Gates would be coming to me for a loan.

What people don't realise however is that there are consequences to their actions, maybe if they were aware that there are only a certain amount of Ambulances available particularly during the night and that when my colleagues and I are "babysitting" people who are intoxicated we can't be with the genuinely ill.

Maybe the only way this would sink in would be if their family needed an Ambulance and none were available.

Christmas parties are a great idea, we all work hard and deserve a night out with friends. .......but let's be a bit more careful and take responsibility for your own wellbeing because do you really want to waken up in hospital with a hangover and start wondering who suffered because of your stupidity.

FGC

Hope for the Commonwealth Games

Along with a colleague I have covered the World Youth Netball Championships for the past 10 days and I have to say I have been pleasantly surprised.
The event organisers have been some of the most professional people I have worked with and it has got me thinking that as the same team will be involved in the organisation of the 2014 Commonwealth games then perhaps this great event may be a huge success.
It may just be the 17 years on the road that has bred my cynicism, but I had real concerns about whether we could pull it off.
I recently went through the accreditation process to allow me to work at the games and was considering whether I was doing the right thing, but now having experienced this I would urge all my colleagues to give some thought to signing up and talking in a once in a lifetime chance to be part of such a major event.

NHS 24 draining emergency services

NHS 24 is it the single biggest drain on emergency ambulances and A&E departments when it was put in place to reduce the pressure on emergency services.
In my humble opinion YES it is!
Telephone diagnosis is never going to work when we live in a world of no win no fee solicitors.
Call takers, nurses and physicians are always going to cover their arse if there is a sliver of doubt.
It amazes me however how skillfully they can talk people into "chest pain" no matter what the original complaint they call in with was.
In the years since its introduction I have never gone to an NHS 24 call for chest pain that actually turned out to be of cardiac origin and I believe I have cracked the reason for this.
If you are having genuine cardiac chest pain the last thing you are going to do is call NHS 24. No way would you wait for ages for the call to be answered,  go thru all the questions,   and then wait for someone to call you back. No you would dial 999 immediately.
So there I have solved the problem for NHS 24 .....If someone goes through all the hassle involved with calling them then really it can't be an emergency !

My thoughts only and not representative of any NHS organisations.

Would love to hear your comments

FGC