Slow to implement, slow to accept change, and hopelessely inefficient. Thats the NHS, socialism in action. They eeded a LAW to make their own departments across the country to finally do what stevens head of NHS told them to do years ago. In a private system they would have been fired for not doing what they were told by the boss, and we would have been able to choose a different company or service provider.
Anyway it shows that being stubborn, telling them and showing them that the wheelchair services were not fit for purpose a decade ago worked. Refual to accept the status quo. Twice I was told that "the NHS is an institution. you cant change it".
Once in the spinal injuries unit when I stopped newpapers being delivered to the whole geeral hospital, by the seller shouting loudly into each ward in turn startng at 5.30AM and waking all the recovering patients. I tried the polite discussion way with the newsagent, and the hospital administrator. And was told thats the way it was done, and it could not be changed. After a month I gave up as they wouldnt listen. And did it my way... You dont want to know. But needless to say the company delivering stopped. The delivery guy doing the early morning ignorant yelling, did not want one putting where I told him I would shove it, and refused to come back. Until they made a better arrangement. Wasnt hard, a simple list at the nurses station. Along with the money, the day before. Right across the northern general hospital. Silence! Aparrently that was not possible till it suddenly was. Yes it wasnt his fault, but he was the face of the problem, and had to go back and explain to the boss. To explain why he wasnt delivering papers that way any longer. Suddenly, a simple solution.
And the same with wheelchair services. In that later case I embarassed them in front of their bosses by SHOWING them the problems, and showing them I could do better, with less money MY WAY, the health department, and various high up meetings at the hospital and in my garden in the sun. In the end they saw the light. £££$$$ in place of incompetance, delays, restrictions and inability. So I could build my own/buy whatever I want. We agreed an amount based on my assessement and a 3 year time frame for $ replacement budget.