[richsadams]

Hi All :cool

I have to relate a story about New Zealand medicine that, as Americans, we found astounding!

A couple of days ago my wife and I were eating dinner. Sandy had made a nice quiche (yes, I'm a real man, and I ate it! :laugh ). Suddenly she stopped eating and politely spit out a bit...turned out to be a staple, the kind you use to in a paper stapler! How it got there we never figured out, but we think it might have come from a package of grated cheese.

We ate the rest carefully, like when you eat fish and search for those tiny bones before you swallow. Suddenly she gulped and said "I think I got another one...and I think it's stuck in my throat!"

Well, not ones to panic, we decided to get some sleep and see how things were in the morning. Sandy woke up very early and said she thought it was still lodged in her throat.

We've only lived here for a short time but we knew where the hospital was. We'd noticed a medical centre nearby and although we hadn't gotten insurance yet we decided to go there first to see if they could help.

Now here's where we, as Americans, were blown away. We went into the office (very nice) and the receptionist said "no worries". She had sandy fill out a brief form. We sat down and she was called in within about 10 minutes. A nurse saw her and then a doctor (also very nice). After a bit of checking the doctor gave her a referral to a radiologist for x-rays of her throat and stomach. Total charge? $24 NZD

The radiologist’s office was just a few minutes away. We went in and gave them the referral. She was called in for x-rays within 15 minutes. Luckily nothing was there and the doctor thought it might have been a bit of eggshell or something. Phew! Charge? $35 NZD

Bottom line: From the time we left our house we were able to see two doctors, have x-rays taken and get back home in less than 90 minutes. Total cost? Less than $60 NZD (about $40 U.S.)!

As anyone from the U.S. knows, the same thing there would have likely taken all day including a ton of paperwork with a diagnosis days later for a cost of four or five times as much (w/o insurance). :eek

We love this place!! :nice1

[SoCal Gal]

Hi Rich,
Boy, it is tales like this that give me a positive lift, keep 'em coming. I am so happy for you and Sandy, and this is really great. Here is a little bit of a different story, to show both sides. My husband went to a vascular specialist in Hamilton recently, he had a consultation for over 1 hour, only had to wait about 15 minutes in the reception area, everyone was nice, etc., but we were surprised by the cost....$250 NZ. You read that right. Now, to be fair, we did hear that he is one of the best in the country, and it took us 3 weeks to get an appt. with him, but shelling out that kind of dough was a bit hard to swallow. We see top doctors at UCLA for a $10 copay thanks to Blue Cross. So I guess I have to keep in mind location-location-location, and, it does depend on what you need. But still, great to hear that things went well for you! :cool

[Carol]

there are always two sides to stories......I wont even begin to tell you about some of the appalling experiences I have had with After Hours Medical and and Emergency Depts of local hospitals.
Enough to say - they were all at opposite ends of the spectrum to that story!

[richsadams]

Hi Allison and Carol :cool

Yup, there's always a different story to tell...no matter where you go to be sure. We were just amazed at how easy, fast and inexpensive this whole thing was.

<Insert old "Rant On" smiley here>

When I worked for a U.S. corporation our health insurance ran about $175 USD/mo. (it started at less than $50/mo. 6 years before!). When I stopped working for them our health insurance skyrocketed to over $500 USD/month. :eek So even seeing a doctor, a specialist in particular, for an hour at $250 NZD (about $175 U.S.) would have been a bargain without insurance I think.

The good news is you are covered for all accidents here and you can get additional health insurance (ours will run about $400/year...yes a year!) and that will give us immediate attention for elective surgery, co-pays, etc. So in our mind, no matter what happens, health coverage here is soooo much better than in the U.S. it's not funny.

A lot of people blame law suits, medical malpractice, etc. for the high cost of U.S. health care, but less than 4% of all health care results in legal action of any sort and less than 1% in those incredible payments to victims you read about. The actual burden is due to all of the administrative work that goes with health care today. :typing It’s all about CYA and “keeping costs down”. Ha! Over 64% of the cost of health care goes toward administration (mostly by HMO's). The rest goes to the incredibly high cost of pharmaceuticals (some of it half the price here for the same thing!) insurance companies and a relatively small amount to the real health care givers. It's very, very sad. :no Hopefully after this election that will change for the better.

But for us, the Kiwis have got it sorted out far better than the U.S.! :clap It’s probably no where near perfect, but let’s hope they never follow the U.S. model (at least as it is today)! :hopeso

<Insert old "Rant Off" smiley here>

Oh, and I forgot to mention...the doctor that Sandy saw was a woman from...you guessed it, America...Los Angeles to be exact! Small world. :laugh