GP Commissioning: dispatches from the frontline

More delightful rhetoric James:-)

Just, how is Merseyside actually doing in our venture to save money and protect against worsening services?

How is your liaison psychiatry service? Do they still go to A+E or are they busy else where? How about access to physio? I am sure there's plenty other sparkling services you would be happy to name.

When was the last time you sorted out one of our knotty Merseyside problems? Do I need to name them. And what about the North West?

Where would you like your patient to go for treatment of Upper GI cancer or someone who has an abdominal aortic aneurysm? Just which A+E do you send your patients to? Do you know which ones are safe and which ones are poor? Our A+E colleagues can surely tell us! Perhaps you know too.

Do please let us know from high up on that airy cloud of rhetoric, what in the mean time you would like us to do with our patients, you know the sick and vulnerable ones that we spend out time trying to take care of.

My fear James is that this is more about your ambition than about care of patients.
I found myself wondering if you had thought about becoming a politician? I am sure Andrew could offer some sound advice regarding your ideas, concerns and expectations.

Take Care.

You may have misheard your colleagues, I suspect they said they would like to influence clinical pathways and care, not run the entire shooting match; something they have neither the time, inclination or interest to do.

Anonymous and anonymous,
Do I detect some bile here? I'm not based in Merseyside so cannot comment on the individual points raised. But James did not paint a picture of a perfect world, he reminded us of the core principles of the bill, and for a change offered some encouragement. I'm sure most of us don't want to run the shooting match, but until this bill we were treated like mushrooms. Speak or yourself when you say none of have the time or inclination, there are increasing numbers coming forward with one other or both. Anonymous other healthcare professional, if you plan to post utterly useless statements as you have in your last two paragraphs, at least have the balls to put you real name to your musings.
Or maybe not.