a day at the V&A

Jody, Lydia & I met for lunch at the V&A. The last photo is the cafeteria. Amazing!

I had an "only in London" experience at work the other day. My patient was from Kosovo. Once the parents heard my accent, they asked where I was from. You would have thought I was a celebrity! They love us! It's nice to be liked for being American for once! The father went on & on how he loved Bill Clinton, how there is a huge picture of him in their town square, how his brother met him & shook his hand. Next thing you know, he is off to Tesco (think Safeway) & comes back with a huge bag of chocolate & bottles of water (the only thing I would agree to let him buy me!) for half the staff! They were truly grateful. While I'm on this subject...that's one very noticeable difference between the NHS & private pay. The gratefulness. Instead of paying for a service & expecting 5 star treatment, families & patients are so thankful for what they get for free. They appreciate things so much more.

However...the business aspect of US healthcare creates a competitiveness, which yields quality. You have to be the best to get business. While the UK government is trying to audit & create quality healthcare, it is also trying to save money in the process. Yes, healthcare is free here, but the drive to be the best or become better is lacking, and frankly, care (not so much at the tertiary centers like GOSH which also has good funding from its own charity work), can be appalling in the outer clinics & hospitals.