The true villans of the pandemic ?

[crystal ball]

Doctors are paid too much. There has long been a problem with doctors working only part-time. Why do a full week when you don't have to? Now they don't even have to go out to work for that part-week.

This phoney pandemic has given a lot of people the excuse to take things easy. "Working" from home is the chief symptom of this, and one of the many reasons for the continuation of restrictions. Why bother getting dressed and going out in the morning any more when you don't have to?

The true villains of the scamdemic are those who have accepted the restrictions; the lazy work-from-homers; those who have taken the tests and the vaccines; all the businesses and employers that have not opposed the government and the "opposition" politicians who have not opposed the government; but most of all: the vaccine billionaires.

Kerching for everybody concerned! (Unless you are a manual worker).

I had my best year ever 20/21, mainly Covid related work

 

[gas112]

Locums getting paid 1000 quid a day to take phone calls at home now there is a case for outsourcing to india for a tenth of the cost

 

[motorbiking]

That's fine for slightly tech savvy people, but we're always going to need a fall-back system for the dinosaurs.

Me? I didn't mention gasbanni.

You raise a valid point.. My GP will not arrange over the phone appointments, you have to use the website. The benefit, is you avoid the grumpy receptionist who thinks they are qualified to triage your appointment without any accountability.

 

[crystal ball]

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[Deleted member 292770]

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[BlueLoo]

Doctors are paid too much. There has long been a problem with doctors working only part-time. Why do a full week when you don't have to? Now they don't even have to go out to work for that part-week.

This phoney pandemic has given a lot of people the excuse to take things easy. "Working" from home is the chief symptom of this, and one of the many reasons for the continuation of restrictions. Why bother getting dressed and going out in the morning any more when you don't have to?

The true villains of the scamdemic are those who have accepted the restrictions; the lazy work-from-homers; those who have taken the tests and the vaccines; all the businesses and employers that have not opposed the government and the "opposition" politicians who have not opposed the government; but most of all: the vaccine billionaires.

Kerching for everybody concerned! (Unless you are a manual worker).

Your comment on WFH culture is a good example of bad absolutism.

Whilst some sectors may be less productive WFH, the reality is the opposite.
The reality is that WFH is more productive, both in efficiency and in time on the job.

 

[diy_fun_uk]

General practice isn't viewed as attractively as it once was for those considering medical career options.
Lots of GPs are taking early retirement.
Because of this and other factors, primary care transformation had commenced long before covid came along, introduction of MDTs (multi-disciplinary teams) etc as first points of care. Covid accelerated plans/strategy.
It's supply and demand. GPs can pick and choose, sometimes leading to practices offering more incentives and/or higher salaries to secure them.
People complained (and still do) about having to 'see a foreign doctor.' As always, the underlying problem is home grown, however it's easier to blame those plugging the gaps.
GP role is changing to that of a specialist. Patients triaged to other teams where possible and relevant to ease burden on GPs.
The Dr Finlay's Casebook model (Doc Martin) has gone and isn't coming back.
Playing devils advocate, let's say GPs had continued with 100% face to face. Then, due to that approach, a high percentage ended up on sick leave or worse due to contracting covid. What benefit would that have served? It's about finding a balance.
There's an argument that, starting two or three decades ago, there should have been a more concerted effort to move away from the GP independent contractor model. If all GPs were salaried, health boards would have more clout over things like percentage of face to face etc.
Whether you choose to believe it or not, for many GPs the work continues once they get home, GP admin tasks, reviewing lab results, planning for groups/committees they sit on etc. They're not just working when physically in the surgery.

If you were a GP and not a partner in a practice, can you honestly say you wouldn't go where the best money is? If you could survive financially by working less hours, you wouldn't be tempted to do it i.e. change to locum work? Yes you can argue there's a moral side to all this, however as with many things in life, if the system lets the individual do it, blame the system not the individual.

 

[Deleted member 292770]

You raise a valid point.. My GP will not arrange over the phone appointments, you have to use the website. The benefit, is you avoid the grumpy receptionist who thinks they are qualified to triage your appointment without any accountability.[.

 

[JP_]

Hmm I wonder are doctors Gp's he villans of the pandemic ?

No. They are not.

 

[Lower]

Your comment on WFH culture is a good example of bad absolutism.

Whilst some sectors may be less productive WFH, the reality is the opposite.
The reality is that WFH is more productive, both in efficiency and in time on the job.

So you've accused the previous poster of bad absolutism, and then you do the same in saying that WFH is more productive....

My experience of WFH in my company is that individual tasks get done effectively, but the easy communication that people sitting in the same office use to grease the wheels of tasks that aren't simple tick box exercises disappears, so overall productivity reduces. The extra effort of having to call someone to ask a question means that people often park their questions for a later call, which holds up the task, or they struggle on on their own, which also holds up the task.

I have been on the direct receiving end of inefficiency on the part of HMRC and a number of financial institutions, where the work from home directive has caused all sorts of problems that they appear to unable to resolve. Anecdotally, i have heard of lot of companies having major medium and long term issues caused by working from home.

My personal view is that work from home is effective for certain industries and tasks, but it won't take long for companies to ask people to return to the office once they are allowed to do so for productivity, social and welfare reasons. I think there is a big work from home car crash about to happen for lots of companies.

Some people love being able to work from home and tell the world how great it is for productivity, even when it isn't. However, there is also a significant percentage of those currently being asked to work from home who hate it and can't wait for the current WFH guidance to end.

 

[charliegolf]

Only yesterday there was a report that since doctors appointments were relaxed this year, they were typically clogged up by the same people again with their issues that should not require an appointment.

Video appointments are useful in many instances, and some private medical policies touted them as a benefit even before the pandemic.

Yep, this! My Doc is a single handed surgery. It is in an area where there is an ageing population. In normal times the surgery is a feckin' social club for the oldies. That said, I can see the Doc any day (normal times), on the day. In these times, you ring, say what the problem is, Doc rings back. "I'm worried about a growth on my back that seems this that or the other." Doc, "Can you come down right now/this time/etc". Everything is closed off on the day.

 

[BlueLoo]

So you've accused the previous poster of bad absolutism, and then you do the same in saying that WFH is more productive....

My experience of WFH in my company is that individual tasks get done effectively, but the easy communication that people sitting in the same office use to grease the wheels of tasks that aren't simple tick box exercises disappears, so overall productivity reduces. The extra effort of having to call someone to ask a question means that people often park their questions for a later call, which holds up the task, or they struggle on on their own, which also holds up the task.

I have been on the direct receiving end of inefficiency on the part of HMRC and a number of financial institutions, where the work from home directive has caused all sorts of problems that they appear to unable to resolve. Anecdotally, i have heard of lot of companies having major medium and long term issues caused by working from home.

My personal view is that work from home is effective for certain industries and tasks, but it won't take long for companies to ask people to return to the office once they are allowed to do so for productivity, social and welfare reasons. I think there is a big work from home car crash about to happen for lots of companies.

Some people love being able to work from home and tell the world how great it is for productivity, even when it isn't. However, there is also a significant percentage of those currently being asked to work from home who hate it and can't wait for the current WFH guidance to end.

Stop trying to use old methods with new tools.

If you don't figure it out, someone else will.
Doesn't matter in the public sector as thats a closed shop stuck in the Victorian era with no competition.

In the private sector, you need to figure this out pronto because you will be left behind quickly.

The key point is resource. WFH removes the final significant barrier to employment (location).

You don't tell the market what to do, it tells you.

 

[Deleted member 18243]

I had my best year ever 20/21, mainly Covid related work

One of the conspiracy theories about covid is that it is a scheme to shovel money from millions of the less well-off into the hands of the wealthy few.

Whether it was a conspiracy or not, it has actually happened.

 

[Munroast]

Pandemic could be over by this time next week if history repeats itself

" .... prompted the Soviets to invade the country on the night of December 24, 1979, sending in some 30,000 troops and toppling ..."
https://www.britannica.com/event/Soviet-invasion-of-Afghanistan

With the media focused on Ukraine 24 hours per day the pandemic will have been forgot about by next year.

 

[Lower]

Stop trying to use old methods with new tools.

If you don't figure it out, someone else will.
Doesn't matter in the public sector as thats a closed shop stuck in the Victorian era with no competition.

In the private sector, you need to figure this out pronto because you will be left behind quickly.

The key point is resource. WFH removes the final significant barrier to employment (location).

You don't tell the market what to do, it tells you.

I've heard those arguments, but people have been trying to get video conferencing etc to work for years. Yet there is still a reason why people find meeting face to face more productive.

Secondly, changing methods doesn't address the social side of work which many people enjoy,