The Iceman Cometh

Actually, it's the winter that cometh. It's freezing out there-and in here, too. Brrrr....this is playing havoc with my balance, and my vision-at least, that is my excuse, and I'm sticking to it.

I had this tap on my shoulder yesterday; I was in the supermarket, and I thought, oh dear, I have no place to hide (in case I have to hide). It was my physiotherapist, and she has been following the blog. At least it was someone friendly. And-she comes from Ireland, so anything I say about the Brits makes her laugh-so I'm safe there (so far).

She said that she is behind me in my crusade-but did I remember the old saying "hoist by one's own petard"? This, by the way, means being blown up by your own bomb, or doing something to someone else that will hurt you more than it will hurt them. I heard this saying years and years ago-It's worth remembering.

I really had to think about this-and very seriously. I considered every avenue before I began this campaign-even the fact that I might be forced to change hospitals and consultants-and, truthfully, I am still in a quandary.

I believe that everyone, regardless of background, or class, or money, or status-everyone-is entitled to decent medical treatment. That is why we have a national health system, even though it is being systematically destroyed by this current government; the NHS works in theory, but in practice it is imploding at warp speed. The Royal London has two shiny new (expensive) buildings, and Barts Hospital is being upgraded-but the nursing staff is being cut so badly that there are fewer nurses who are forced to work double shifts, do twice the work, and they are doing this for the same pay. It's either that, or quit. Some choice!

I'm doing this because the doctors who are responsible for this travesty need to be forced to be publicly accountable-and by publicly, I mean publicly. There is no point in doctors investigating doctors, because there will invariably be a whitewash, a cover-up. That is the way it works-not only here, but everywhere. So there needs to be public scrutiny involved-because I know this has happened to other people, and I don't want this to happen to anyone else-ever. And this could easily have been avoided if the doctors had any level of competence.

I also want gentamicin to be banned in this country-and in every other country. Gent. is 50 years old, and nobody can tell me that, with all the advances in medicine, there aren't other drugs that do the same (or better) -except, of course, they cost more. So the NHS is taking the easy way out: buy the cheapest drug, even if it is highly toxic and causes horrific damage. Ban it. Those who make the decisions can pay themselves a bit less; it's the patients that count.

I want to go elsewhere-but there is only the Royal Free, which happens to be around the corner. But I could be going from the frying pan straight into the fire, so I'm not sure I want to do that.

I do have a feeling that everyone at Barts will be treating me with a great deal of caution (in addition to the obvious hostility to which I have been subjected so far).

If someone wants justice-if someone wants to right a wrong that is very, very wrong indeed-if someone is so fed up with a system that desperately needs a thorough overhaul, and nobody else is doing anything about it-then one must take risks. And-if anything happens to me, we will all know who is responsible!!!!!! Accidental poisoning? Sure. Accidental poisoning, my backside!