Having a free NHS makes Brits too ‘lazy’ to fend for themselves, top pharmacy boss claims
Having an NHS that is free at the point of use is making the public too ‘lazy’ to fend for themselves, a leading pharmacy boss claimed.
Sam Patel, a director of one of the UK’s largest pharmacy chains, warned that the lack of fees means there is little disincentive to get sick.
It also encourages people to accept lower levels of care, he added.
Mr. Patel is a director of Day Lewis Pharmacy, which operates over 260 stores in the UK.
One of the company’s fellow directors was among the private healthcare leaders invited to a Downing Street health summit in January, which was led by Rishi Sunak and focused on clearing Covid backlogs.
Director of one of the UK’s largest pharmacy chains, Sam Patel, warned that the lack of fees means there is little disincentive to get sick and it also encourages people to accept lower levels of care (stock image)
Speaking at an event organized by strategic consultancy Global Counsel, Mr Patel said: ‘Having an NHS fundamentally makes too many people lazy to take care of their own health.
“Anything that’s free, we just accept a lower level of care.”
He said people should make sure they “take care of ourselves with vitamins, minerals, supplements, keep fit.”
“Many of you would have read a free newspaper on the subway or train on your way here, and we know they’re not as good as the ones you pay for, but we still read the free one because it’s free,” he said . added.
‘And it’s the same with the NHS, the danger of feeling sick isn’t so bad because you’re being looked after.
“In other countries, even in emerging markets like India, where my parents are originally from, people spend huge amounts of money to make sure they don’t get sick, because that entails danger.
“We have to change the mindset of the population to take care of themselves.”
His comments come after the British Social Attitudes Survey revealed last week that more people are dissatisfied than satisfied with the NHS for the first time, with dissatisfaction doubling in two years.
Figures show that a total of 51 per cent of those surveyed were dissatisfied with the NHS, but Mr Patel said a separate poll by Ipsos Mori found community pharmacists to have an approval rating of 91 per cent.
He said, “Pharmacy contractors need to provide great service because if they don’t, their financial security is at stake.”
Day Lewis’ director also complained about the difficulty of getting the NHS to incorporate innovative ideas.
He said that while the commercial sector took significant risks in being involved in projects with the NHS, the service suffered from a culture where people were not held accountable for delivery.