Comments on: Santé sans (Euro) frontières peut-être?

By: michelle valentine

michelle valentine — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 08:33:07 +0000

This directive could be very benefiical to disabled people who often get a bad deal out of the NHS. The issue will be that if NHS trusts are not aware of th directive and how to properly implement it, then disabled peole will continue to miss out on opportunities for health treatment in other member states. Couple that with the added difficulty that a disabled person may face in terms of travel and access to information, then we believe that this directive will provide little improvement for disabled people.

By: Bloggers for health tourism? « Public Affairs 2.0

Bloggers for health tourism? « Public Affairs 2.0 — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 10:40:45 +0000

[...] Andrew Craig on public involvement sees the proposal as an EU development that no-one in their right mind would say no to. In particular he applauds the potential of the directive to help patients with rare or complex conditions. [...]

By: Colin Adamson

Colin Adamson — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:50:44 +0000

It will be interesting to see what ancillary systems and service approaches get developed here - cross border complaint handling has been worked on for some years in the goods and services private sector arena. Also in thinking about cultural differences as reflected in service styles and levels - Andrew made a point about the food - this development will make clear that much clinical and nursing practice is culturally defined. International service is easiest when there is a fairly simple product run by a global computer offering a standardised or at least controllable process based on other universal products e.g car rental and the major credit card networks. The communication needs here are simple compared to the nuances around responses to simple questions like “how are you feeling today?” “OK - not bad” may translate in the British stereotypical vernacular into “I believe I am at death’s door but do not want to cause a fuss by saying so.”
The transborder medical offer will be less easy to design and manage especially if those taking it up come from diverse backgrounds and ethnicity. Whether we be able to have porridge for breakfast will be the least of our worries.