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| Joined: | Mon Oct 30th, 2006 |
| Location: | Florida USA |
| Posts: | 1019 |
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Must relate what I heard a radio commentator mention. Seems that the English "system" claimed efficiency in that 50 percent of the cases were treated in a "timely manner." The commentator looked into what the system claimed was a timely manner. Ready? Eighteen weeks was considered timely! And just half were treated within that time!! Perhaps we're spoiled?
Ole
Here in South Florida where this is a large percentage of elderly population, doctor's offices are crowded with patients in our non-government run system. I care for my elderly mother and visit doctors and testing clinics and the emergency room with her on nearly a weekly basis. (Not the ER, thank God, but the other places.) Today I took her to get the results of some sonogram tests and the doctor's waiting room was standing room only. I finally left my Mom inside and I went out in the 90 degree heat to wait.
Timely care is not eighteen weeks for most care, but it is approaching and exceding that for certain specialists. Dermatologists, for example, because there is so much skin cancer here, can take six months to get an appointment. If you are a new patient, you may not even be that lucky, because popular dermatologists are not accepting new patients. Rheumatologists can take three or four months for new patients to see. When I tore my achilles tendon, the DPM that was recommended couldn't see me for two weeks. Then he wanted me to have an MRI, but the place he sent me to couldn't do it for over a week!
Even family practitioners can require a long wait period if you are new and they accept your particular insurance.
When my Mom gets really sick and I need to take her to the ER, the wait has been as long as six hours, but the usual wait is two or more hours. Then she gets into the "inner sanctum" and that can take hours of testing and what not---mostly waiting. Then they say they will admit her to the hospital, but it is often hours of waiting for a room because the hopsital is crowded. And my Mom has excellent insurance. I should be so lucky.
If a family doctor sends you out for tests, the tests can take days or more to schedule. When I hear that nationalized health programs have long waits, I don't see a lot that is worse than here or very much worse than here when it comes to waits for care.
Yes, I am absolutely certain nationalized free health care is rife with problems, but our own system is too. Our own system has failings, especially for the uninsured or poorly insured. But even the well insured in this country are facing health care hurdles, maybe not in areas with a younger population, but that will be changing as America "grays." We are in the forefront down here in FLorida.
Michael Moore doesn't deal with this topic in his movie "Sicko."