Same Mistakes
With our health system deteriorating, should MPs have private medical insurance?
Or else we'll play, play, play all the same old games
And we wait, wait, wait for the end to change
And we take, take, take it for granted that we'll be the same
But we're making all the same mistakes
Songwriters: Steve Robinson, Wayne Hector, Harry Styles, Liam Payne, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson.
None of us want to see our government fail, except to see the ineptitude brought to an end as soon as possible.
We want the things they promise: more people receiving medical treatment sooner, more police on the beat, a lower cost of living, and helping families with expenses like childcare.
But they aren’t delivering, and that’s putting it politely.
It’s the same old promises, the same half-hearted effort that sees dismal results against the rhetoric, and whoever you voted for, you deserve better.
For a government that’s all about KPIs and laser-focused effort, the level of failure is breathtaking. Today I want to talk about health, because nothing is more important than that.
Waiting until the curable are incurable.
Last night, something highly unusual happened when 1 News broadcast an item that resembled journalism, rather than a party political broadcast on behalf of the coalition.
One comment in particular struck me, Dr Suzanne Beuker, a Urologist, saying, “I’ve seen patients that I believe their disease has gone from curable to incurable during that waiting time.”
Beuker also said, “Patients weren't making it onto her department's waiting list unless they had a cancer or life-threatening condition.”
I felt sick thinking about it. This isn’t a missed KPI; this is people dying from things that they could be cured of if they received timely care.
It was hard not to think of the medical professionals who have committed their lives to helping people, having to ration healthcare and inevitably seeing people die who wouldn’t if they had the resources to do their jobs.
This situation didn’t arrive overnight. I’m not going to suggest that the state of our healthcare system is entirely due to the coalition, as many of the problems have built up over time.
But they’re the ones in charge now, and they need to take action. Like right now.
I posted:
That report on Nelson Hospital with patients going from curable to incurable due to insufficient staffing is a disgrace. Simeon “Dr Death” Brown should resign - now!
Sandy commented: “Living in Nelson, this is a scary read. The second last paragraph of the report states, ‘The review panel acknowledges that many of the challenges and solutions identified will require significant resources and will take time to address.’ So unless there is political will and funding, nothing will change, especially with Brown in charge.
The final paragraph states, ‘Many of the challenges and opportunities identified are common across New Zealand’s hospitals and districts.’ So Nelson's problems are system-wide. Even more funding and staffing required, but dream on if you think this government will provide it.”
It’s a big problem, but the question is, do we want to fix our health system, maybe even as a priority over tax cuts for landlords or building ever more roads, or are we happy for it to continue to degrade?
Leaving a reality where those who can afford health insurance opt out of the public system and those who remain face long, possibly deadly, delays in receiving the treatment they need.
A group of health workers believes that it might focus the attention of our politicians if they didn’t have the option of opting out of the public system they’re responsible for.
Some of their own medicine.
This morning, RNZ ran the following report:
What a bloody great idea. If politicians were dependent on the public system, it could prompt them to sharpen their efforts to raise staffing levels to safe levels and bring the care offered up to the level they want for themselves and their families.
From RNZ:
A group of health workers - including specialists, GPs, nurses and paramedics - have signed an open letter to MPs asking them to waive private healthcare during their time in office.
Politicians making critical decisions about the public health system - to cut funding, defer maintenance, or implement restructures - should not be allowed to "insulate" themselves against the consequences, they write.
Spokesperson, Northland cardiologist Marcus Lee, said, “Essentially, we want fair and transparent leadership with integrity. We want people who have skin in the game. If it's good for them, it's good for us. If it's not good enough for them, it shouldn't be good enough for anyone.”
The letter asked politicians to consider:
"Would I be comfortable with my child waiting six months for this procedure?"
"Is this emergency department adequate for my elderly parent?"
"Are these staffing levels sufficient for my family's safety?"
Good news, though: Prime Minister Luxon did not believe that having private health insurance meant he was out of touch with the problems besetting the public system.
Cool story, Mr Wealthy and Sorted.
Does that also mean that you being rich doesn’t mean you’re out of touch with those struggling, that despite your numerous houses you’re not out of touch with the homeless, or because you have no idea what groceries cost you’re not out of touch with those having to put items back at the checkout because they can’t afford the food they need?
The man has no idea what life is like for many New Zealanders.
Luxon added, “We now need a high-performing Health NZ, and that's what we're fixated on.”
What a crock. The people in our health system are performing their asses off. What we need is a properly funded system that you would be happy to have your own family rely on.
Green MP Ricardo Menéndez March: “That is why we are really concerned with the government's flirtation with privatising more of our public healthcare system, which will ultimately see our poorest less able to access basic healthcare."
Labour MP Carmel Sepuloni: “I believe as politicians if we're going to be working to ensure the healthcare system works for everyone, we should be reliant on it too.”
What do you think? Should we spend whatever is necessary to fund our public health system for the same level of service as that offered in the private system?
Would you be willing to pay a bit more tax so that you don’t need private medical insurance, yet still receive the treatment you need when you need it?
If you agree with the call for MPs to opt out of private care, you can read more and sign the petition here.
Ngā mihi,
Nick.
I keep much of my writing open to all, as I don’t want cost to stop people reading. However, if you are in a position where a subscription is affordable, I’d love to have your support at either my original price ($8 per month or $80 for a year) or the gold card rate ($7 per month or $70 for a year) below. Thanks for your consideration. 🙂
To end today, a lovely cover of One Direction’s Same Mistakes by Lisa Bakker:
Yes yes yes to MPs forgoing private health care, and private education, and maybe make them use public transport too. It is a no-brainer that health has to be properly funded, and I mean properly - not some scam to hide the numbers or enrich the already wealthy. Long term, underfunding costs so much more!
All we need is a capital gains tax to fund the health system properly. They're very straightforward to operate and we're one of the very few developed countries without that tax.