Long time no post.

It has been a while since I lost blog posted. There is no shortage of things happening worldwide that have, in one way or another, annoyed me and not being able to write about them here was somewhat frustrating. The reason for the long delay is that I fell downstairs and broke my left arm. Well, fractured a bone more like but apparently it was a bad fracture. I also managed to break several little bones in my left hand and very badly sprained my right wrist. These things stopped me typing. Breaking my right leg is a bit of a bugger as my left one is knackered because of the disability anyway which basically means if I need or want to go anywhere I need to sit in a wheelchair until the left leg is mended and is srong enough to support me as i stand, walk etc. That alone could be a blog post as there is a lot of prejudice against people in wheelchairs, in this country at least.

So, with a plaster cast on my right leg, left arm and hand and heavy bandages on my right wrist and hand plus the bandages around my head I look like something of a disaster zone.

The bandages are off my right hand and wrist now and I am once again at home.

This unfortunate turn of events gave me my first taste of our wonderful N.H.S for many years. Sure, my disability means I go to hospital every now and again as an out-patient but actually being sat in a hospital for a week or so meant I got first hand experience of what the state of play is now compared to the previous time I stayed for several days. That previous time was some 22 years ago. A lot has changed within our N.H.S. in those 22 years and especially in my local hospital.

The first thing that struck you was how different the ward is. It is the same structure internally but it somehow seemed brighter, more cheerful. I was put in a side ward which is a one person ward rather than be put in the general ward which has several beds screened from each other with curtains. The side ward appeared to be well stocked with medical stuff and had a TV, DVD player, radio and the usual in the wall stuff available to the patient. As long as there is no technical stuff being used in there you are allowed the use of your mobile phone. All of these things where impossible to use for me due to the fact I had both hands either plastered up or bandaged up. Still, apart from the wall radio these things were not available 22 years ago. A significant improvement from the patients point of view.

One thing that has not changed on iota is the skill and dedication of the nurses. The nurses I had to deal with were firm but polite and knew what they were doing. This may sound an obvious thing but it is not. Having been unfortunate enough to have been in hospitals abroad I can testify first hand that our nurses here in the U.K. beat their foreign counterparts in skills. Their dedication is outstanding. Even in the face of abuse they carry on regardless.

There is a general undertone which comes out when you talk with the nurses and doctors. This undertone is one of disgruntlement amongst them about how the Government is destroying the N.H.S. with all the changes they are making. Pay also comes into it as does the long hours they work. Overall though the nurses are bright and cheerful only slipping into discontentment when questioned.

Well, this is a blog post with not a lot of substance but I basically wanted to let you all know my absence was because of something happening and was not because I had become bored with the whole blog scene. The posts will not be frequent until the bandages and plaster casts are off both my arms, wrists and hands but I will try to post something every few days or so.