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Dialogue:______read aloud in pairs
A: Would you ever consider taking out private health insurance?
B: I think it's a very sensible idea!
A: But you are already paying for the NHS through national insurance. Why should you have to insure yourself twice?
B: That's a very good question. The reality is that the NHS covers people in
major emergencies, but the service is under too much pressure to give adequate support.
A: Can you be a bit more specific?
B: Certainly. There're thousands of people who are in great pain. Some are
waiting for minor surgery while others are waiting for treatment at pain control clinics.
A: But under the patients' charter, hospitals are meant to treat you within a certain time.
B: Well, you know how they get round that one. They make you wait for months
before they put you on the waiting list.
A: I don't think it's as bad as you make out. According to government
statistics, waiting lists are coming down.
B: That may be true for certain operations such as hernias where you're
sometimes in and out of hospital within a day. They rush you through the system
because they're short of beds. Then they hand you over to some elderly relative with a
weak heart and expect them to look after you. They call it "care in the community".
A: But there're lots of back up departments such as Social Services and Occupational Therapy.
B: Have you ever tried contacting these departments and filling in their forms?
Getting them to take quick action is virtually impossible.