# UK dopers, what's the NHS like? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 28, 2005, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284 "2005-10-28T05:53:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/1 "2005-10-28T05:53:36Z")
What’s the National Health Service really like? Is the quality of care high? Is everthing really free? Can anybody turn up at any NHS physician or hospital and get free treatment or are you assigned one? In the US insurance companies issue cards that subscribers must present when getting care, does the NHS have an equivalent? ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/2 "2005-10-28T07:49:36Z")
You may find some of the responses from UK Dopers in [this recent IMHO thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=284896) helpful. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/3 "2005-10-28T07:58:09Z")
Firstly, it’s important to note that public and private healthcare services exist alongside each other in the UK. Probably the best way to sum it all up would be to say that it’s just a helthcare system that works pretty much like any other healthcare system, except it is funded by taxes instead of individual insurance contributions. Some of the details will differ, but that’s about the size of it. In order to see a doctor/general practitioner, it is usually necessary to register at your local clinic/surgery; often this will be accompanied by a general health check - this registration allows the practice to build (or retrieve and add to) a set of notes comprising your medical history. Emergency treatment is typically sought in the casualty department of whatever hospital is closest when the incident occurs; the identity of the patient is ascertained (where possible, which is most of the time) and this allows the treating hospital to add the details of the incident/treatment to the patient’s medical history notes. Non-emergency treatment (including non-illness related issues such as vasectomy) is sought by appointment with your assigned doctor at the practice where you are registered; you make an appointment, see the doc and he/she will perform intial diagnosis, prescribe medication, arrange for further tests and/or consultation as deemed necessary. Kind of a side note, but worth mentioning that the range of medicines available without prescription is much narrower in the UK than in the USA; antibiotics, for example - all of them, including topical ointments etc - are not available without prescription - this might seem draconian, but there are good reasons for it being this way. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/4 "2005-10-28T08:27:10Z")
I can only report my own experince as a guest. Soon after I went over there Igot a nasty bug Not surprising, new germs and all. Anyway I had been living with it and treating it OTC (although I shouldn’t say that as I thing over the counter there implies stolen) for about a week. Went inot the chemist’s for more cough medicine. He took one look at me and said I needed a doctor. Called for an apointment for me himself!!! Despite my protests that I had no insurance, no standing as a citizen, etc. Went to the doctor who was a short walk away. Filled out one (1) form with my name and the address where I was staying. Again protested that I had no insurance and no official standing in the country. Was told again it didn’t matter. Saw the doctor FOR FREE. Got a script for antibotics that came to 6 pounds. I have a hard time imagining that scenerio in the US. But seems a sensible way to deal with illness. So I think quite well of the NHS. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/5 "2005-10-28T08:32:08Z")
> [@betenoir](#): > > (although I shouldn’t say that as I thing over the counter there implies stolen) Not to my knowledge. _Under_ the counter implies _illicitly sold_, but as far as I’m aware, OTC means the same both sides of the pond. ---
**Author:** ![Small\_Clanger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@Small\_Clanger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Clanger)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/6 "2005-10-28T08:37:43Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > What’s the National Health Service really like? **Larry** ’s link should give you an idea. > [@](#): > > Is the quality of care high? I my experience absolutely doodily. > [@](#): > > Is everthing really free? Yup. You have to pay for some medicines. > [@](#): > > Can anybody turn up at any NHS physician or hospital and get free treatment or are you assigned one? Anyone can turn up at an ER, to see a GP you need to register. It doesn’t cost anything to do so. > [@](#): > > In the US insurance companies issue cards that subscribers must present when getting care, does the NHS have an equivalent? Nope. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 8:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/7 "2005-10-28T08:42:25Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Not to my knowledge. _Under_ the counter implies _illicitly sold_, but as far as I’m aware, OTC means the same both sides of the pond. Ah. Cheers. ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/8 "2005-10-28T08:50:46Z")
The dowwn side is that you probably have to wait longer for operations and appointments with specialists, the upside is that everyone gets the same level of care no matter their level of income. The chronically ill who require lots of medications don’t pay for them, and all pharmacological contraception (IUDs, pills, patches, Nuvarings etc) is free. You’ll usually go to your nearest hospital, and your GP will normally refer you to the specialists in their local area, BUT if you have a preference for a particular specialist doctor, there is nothing to prevent you getting a private appointment with them, or asking your GP to refer you to them. When we say “pay for some medicines” we mean that you pay a maximum charge, no matter what the cost of the medication atually is. Even if your drug costs thousands, you, the patient, only pays the standard prescription charge of £8 (about $15). ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/9 "2005-10-28T08:54:36Z")
I have heard about people being charged for calling out emergency ambulances (in some circumstances) in the UK, but I’ve never had to use one, so I can’t confirm if this this true. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/10 "2005-10-28T09:24:30Z")
> [@](#): > > Is the quality of care high? Depends where in the country you are from. My local hospital back home is crap (Wigan Royal Infirmary). There’s also a beds crisis in the NHS. My uncle dies from severe burns two weeks ago. He lives in Wigan, yet the nearest bed they could find for him was in Wakefield. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/11 "2005-10-28T09:29:13Z")
I should add though that I’d take the NHS over fully privatised health care anyday. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/12 "2005-10-28T10:23:28Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Kind of a side note, but worth mentioning that the range of medicines available without prescription is much narrower in the UK than in the USA; antibiotics, for example - all of them, including topical ointments etc - are not available without prescription - this might seem draconian, but there are good reasons for it being this way. Is that really the case? I only use one with any regularity - Zovirax for cold sores - but I buy that on my trips to the UK as it is prescription-only in the US. I also believe that codeine is prescription-only in the US but is OTC in the UK. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/13 "2005-10-28T10:28:12Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > Is that really the case? I only use one with any regularity - Zovirax for cold sores - but I buy that on my trips to the UK as it is prescription-only in the US. I also believe that codeine is prescription-only in the US but is OTC in the UK. Zovirax isn’t an antibiotic, it’s an antiviral and AFAIK, it’s available OTC here. Codeine is available OTC in certain dosages/formulations, usually in combination with paracetemol(acetaminophen) and (I believe) manufactured in such a way as to deliberately make it hard to separate out. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/14 "2005-10-28T10:37:08Z")
Codeine is subject to heavy restrictions in many countries, and is illegal in some, due to its addictiveness. A few other points for the OP: As others say, the expectation is that everyone is registered with a doctor, and in practice most people are. Even if you are not, you can get emergency treatment from any GP (which would include, say, turning up with a does of flu). Also, if you’re away from home, you can visit any GP, and there’s a simple form to fill out to give the details of your usual doctor, and all the notes from the visit are sent on. **Dominic Mullgian** is right that there’s severe problems in some parts of the NHS, and some hospitals are badly run. But part of the situation is that our expectation is so high - we get angry about waiting lists, while taking for granted the fact that we are all entitled to receive the treatment we need. ---
**Author:** ![Busy\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@Busy\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Busy_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/15 "2005-10-28T10:48:18Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > What’s the National Health Service really like? Is the quality of care high? Is everthing really free? Can anybody turn up at any NHS physician or hospital and get free treatment or are you assigned one? In the US insurance companies issue cards that subscribers must present when getting care, does the NHS have an equivalent? You’re going to get a lot of anecdotal responses here. I’ll give you my own, which is that the NHS is excellent at both ends of the spectrum; minor ailments and very serious problems. It falls down in providing care in the middle. I’ve broken my wrist mountain biking in the morning, gone into the A&E and been seen within the hour. X-rayed, attended to by a doctor, and left with a cast on in short order. No money changes hands, service cannot be beaten. I’ve mercifully never suffered serious illness, but having gone through it with friends and family the NHS was superb. The strain on the system is evident when you have a semi-serious problem, say you needed a knee ligament operation for a sports injury that was causing low level pain, for example. You could be faced with a lengthy waiting list to get this operation. ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/16 "2005-10-28T10:49:34Z")
Codeine is OTC as co-codamol and co-codafen i.e. in combination with paracetamol (acetominphen) and ibuprofen. The most well kown brand-names are Solpadeine for the former and Nurofen Plus for the latter. They are commonly used for migraine, toothache and period pain, and are absolutely appropriate as self-medication for such short, self-limiting pain. It’s impossible to buy more than 24 tablets (soluble tablets are available in larger pack sizes) from one shop, and all packets have a warning that the tablets shoud’t be taken for more than 5 days without seeking advice from a doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Mk\_VII](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mk\_VII](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mk_VII)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/17 "2005-10-28T10:51:22Z")
after a fall in May 04 I damaged my knee, after giving it several months it still didn’t feel right. In October I decided to get the NHS to do something about it. I saw the GP quickly enough, but it was January before I saw the consultant, who viewed X-rays taken that day (with some difficulty, because the software wasn’t working properly). Then an MRI scan was ordered, this didn’t happen until June. It was August 29th when I attended the private hospital which the NHS has contracted out the operation to (in a drive to cut waiting lists) for a preliminary consultation. I had the arthroscopy on October 12th (I asked if they could delay it until after Sept 24th as I wanted to go to Northern Ireland). All this cost me nothing, but you had to wait a long time for this elective non-life-threatening surgery. ---
**Author:** ![Fridgemagnet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/22d042/32.png) [@Fridgemagnet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fridgemagnet)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/18 "2005-10-28T11:32:41Z")
> [@amarone](#): > > I also believe that codeine is prescription-only in the US but is OTC in the UK. The OTC codeine products are low-strength, and are always in a combination with another drug like ibuprofen or paracetamol, so taking lots to get high would instantly destroy your stomach lining and liver respectively. High codeine doses are only avaialble on prescription from a doctor. There were some unfortunate incidents a few years ago when Greece made codeine very very illegal, and lots of tourists were getting arrested at customs for a few OTC painkillers. > [@Mangetout](#): > > I have heard about people being charged for calling out emergency ambulances (in some circumstances) in the UK, but I’ve never had to use one, so I can’t confirm if this this true. Ambulances are normally free, but they do charge a small fee (£25 or so) for treating certain car accident victims. As do hospital casualty wards sometimes. Likewise the fire brigade charge a Stupid Tax for putting out chimney fires. I had an emergency ambulance ride to hospital after a spontaneous medical happenstance; totally free. In a separate incident I was involved in a car rollover in which someone called an ambulance. I was OK, but they gave me a thorough checkover to make sure. I had a small graze on my shin (from the steering column I guess), but I kept quiet about that, because if they had stuck so much as a plaster on it they would have had to charge me £25. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/19 "2005-10-28T11:37:15Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Zovirax isn’t an antibiotic, it’s an antiviral and AFAIK, it’s available OTC here. That’s what I said. I buy it OTC in the UK. It is prescription in the US. I was addressing your general statement > [@](#): > > the range of medicines available without prescription is much narrower in the UK than in the USA by saying that my (very limited) experience suggested the opposite. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2005, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284/20 "2005-10-28T12:07:43Z")
> [@Fridgemagnet](#): > > Ambulances are normally free, but they do charge a small fee (£25 or so) for treating certain car accident victims. The charge is generally expected to be covered by the insurance of the liable party in the accident. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-dopers-whats-the-nhs-like/328284.md?page=2)