public system bars you from also working in a private capacity. The other thing I don't understand is the idea that 'a bureaucrat will make decisions for you'. In my case the 'bureaucrat' is either the local doctor at the surgery who knows all about me, or a specialist at the hospital, you know, the kind of people who you WANT to make decisions for you. As for it being 'inefficient' here's what happened last time I had a problem. 1) Have pain and swelling in my testes and neck. 2) Pain doesn't go away after a few days, so make an appointment to see my local General Practitioner(GP), have to wait TWO days for appointment. 3) Spend about 30 mins with Doctor who has all my medical information to hand on a centralised computer system. Decide that I need Blood and Urine samples to test for any infection(s), my Doctor also says that she would like me to have a Chest X-ray, just to be on the safe side. She prints out a referral letter (size A5) for me to take to the local hospitals X-ray department. 4) I go back to the reception and make an appointment for the blood tests the next morning at 8.30 am. (I can have the blood tests done by the resident nurse.) 5) The next day, I take in my urine sample and give my blood samples. 6) For my X-ray, I can wander in at ANY TIME I find convenient between