BRITAIN OLDEST NURSE REMEMBERS

Aileen Coomber, 81, was 11 years when the NHS was established. She still has scares on her knees where she fell but her mother could not afford to take her to the doctor. Her younger sister had pneumonia and her mother had to nurse her through it because they didn’t have the money to pay for treatment.

This is not an isolated case but how it was generally and make no mistake it will be like that again. Already it was heralded that a doctor’s appointment could cost £20 or £40 or £60 all depending on the age, time to diagnose and then they will take their time.

Many make the mistake and thinking of safeguarding themselves with private insurance, but they want to make a sky-high profit and charge accordingly. Then it will be the case if you have enough money in the account for the treatment or not which is decisive whether to get the treatment now or having to wait till the money builds up.

Aileen had a 66-year career as a mental health nurse and fears now that Tories’ privatisation putting her beloved NHS in danger and it will the more privatisation is added. It must break Aileen’s heart to see it go and so will be all.

These corporations are not interesting in building a long-term NHS; they are only after profit the bigger the better. A few have already pulled out of their contracts because the big profit was not there. Even Branson was complaining but he is a different kettle of fish. He receives bail-outs like in his railways.

Branson also has the despicable nerve to sue NHS for £2bn because he didn’t get some contracts. To sue the NHS which is in such financial trouble takes a very ruthless, uncaring person. Already people dying at home because ambulances are not available because they are stuck outside hospitals because there is no place in corridors being filled with patience on trolleys because there are no more beds available.

Recently, a 46 year old nurse was having a heart attack and lying on a trolley in the corridor waiting for a doctor. The relative asked whether they could have a doctor urgently because of the seriousness of her medical condition. They were told that there is a queue of 40 urgent cases and they couldn’t possibly asked to jump the queue. As a result, she died before a doctor could attend to her.

Every day the newspapers are writing about such tragedies to high-light the urgency for more funding but to no avail. Nurses are so badly paid that they even have to go to food banks, yet they are so dedicated they are even treat people in the carpark to eliminate the pressure. Some nurses and doctors add unpaid hours to help patients.

Branson certainly shows what character he is to sue NHS which is facing such a critical situation where people dying on trolleys, which has never happened before. May will not bend to Jeremy Corbyn’s demand for more funding. Yet, she does not hesitate to give bankrupt Carillion another £100m which does nothing, but money wasted. It would have been a lifesaver for the NHS.

There are now reports that the NHS is to be sold to the USA. Especially the USA which has been known for decades for their diabolical health care.  Jeremy Hunt, who brought the NHS down to this state and still denies it, was already in NY in talk with Trump. Over 60,000 people demonstrated in London, but will it have an impact on May and the Tories to change their minds? The only real hope people have is on 22 May, 2018 the council election. If Labour wins a greater majority of seats, it would cut May’s power. At the moment, May acts like a dictator and is determined to destroy NHS and the Welfare State at all cost.

Therefore, think about it that the cross you put on your election paper has never been a bigger impact on life and death. It is no exaggeration as you can see people already dying unnecessary and if the Tories win it will the end of NHS as we know it. The same goes for the Welfare State.

BOOK REVIEW TENKO

Tenko, a name given to the most infamous Prisoner-of-War camps in the Second World War. It was in Japan and Margot Turner was imprisoned there with many other women. Tenko means a "roll call" and the prisoners had to stand there bowed all the time during the counting.

Margot Turner was 21-years old and a theatre sister in Singapore. The Japanese forces were overrunning Singapore in February 1942. Margot and 350 other people tried to escape. They boarded a cargo ship in Keppel harbour. The ship was hit by a shell. Military personnel and civilians swam to a nearby island. After few days Margot boarded a cargo ship again which was heading for Batavia. There she got torpedoed again. She was fighting for her life in shark-infested water constantly fighting dangerous currents. Margot and another nurse put a sort of a raft together. All the others on the raft died either from wounds or sun or dehydration.

Although she burned black and had blisters Margot survived by eating seaweed and drinking rainwater collected in her powder compact. She stated afterwards that she had always the feeling that a higher power was watching over her.

One day she was picked up by a Japanese destroyer. This started a three-and-a-half years of being a prisoner-of-war and lived and worked in Japanese camps. Although, her experiences were often incredible she kept morale high. She managed to keep the humour going which help a lot.

She remembered that they kept irritating the Japanese because we laughed a lot. The Japanese didn't know what we were laughing about.

In spite of the poor nourishment, hard labour, and lack of water the malaria-carrying mosquitoes and diseases, they kept going. The other irritating spontaneous call was "tenko". They had to bow very low in front of a Japanese guard. They had to line-up every time the Japanese shouted "tenko"

Margot got one day irritated because she realized that these guards were not very educated. She thought that after all she is a British officer and a British Army nurse. After all she wasn't Japanese. She decided to stand upright and did not bow. She was hit so hard that it knocked a tooth out. After a hard lesson learned she was bowing again. Another torment they had to suffer if the Japanese saw something they didn't agree with, they stood the women in the sun. When women died they buried them. She remembered to have made three cemeteries.

The only thing they were able to endure and survive plus achieve many thing, it was friendship, comradeship and caring for each other. Despite the hostile environment and tropical climate they managed to build from nothing, schools, hospitals, social clubs and religious concerts which were planned and organised.

To show their defiance to their captors they developed a determination not to live a docile and obedient live.

A book was written called "Surviving Tenko" by Penny Starns. Also a TV series was produced but with so many untrue situations shown that Margot was disgusted. They even were so disrespectful and portrait her as a lesbian which was completely untrue. She had many admirers but was not interested in marriage and having children. Margot just liked the life she was leading which would not have been possible if she married.

Margot Turner became a matron-in-chief and director of Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps after the war. She died in 1993 at the age of 83.