[A]The motorist rang 999 on his mobile, but he was put on hold for a couple of minutes. When the ambulance came the crew explained that accidental 999 calls from people who didn't lock their keypads had clogged up the system.
[B]At the hospital casualty department Jamie was seen straight away. This was because he was an emergency. However this meant that some people waiting with smaller injuries had to wait even longer. It took hours for many to be seen. Really the hospital needed to enlarge the accident and emergency department.
[C]Jamie was taken for an X-ray, there was a bit of a shortage of nurses because younger nurses couldn't afford to rent flats near the hospital. There were some cheap flats that the hospital owned, but not enough to meet the demand.
[D]There was also a shortage of beds. A lot of the beds were taken up by the many older people who lived in Jamie's area. They got ill more often than young people. It looked like they needed an area just to themselves.
[E]Like most people Jamie got a bed but had to share a ward with some older people. He would have felt happier on a special childrens' ward but that was full of younger children.
[F]When he had time to look around he noticed the building looked a bit tatty. It was over 100 years old and it could hardly house all the new machines the staff needed.
[G]The staff were very friendly but the doctor looked a bit stressed. The nurse explained that the health service needed more doctors as a lot left to get more money in private hospitals.
2) Main activity
Plan the hospital budget
Read some comments from
Worksheet: Hospital manager's shopping list
Your comments on hospitals
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