Great moments in UK health care

[Atencio 43]

As mentioned you can find scary medical stories in any health care system. This is nothing unique to UK Health Care.

[KaiserD 12]

I used to think waiting times for A+E were horrible, until I was pregnant and vomiting blood in the US and waited over 7 - 8 hours to see a doctor. Oh they were fun times. Most of that time I was in the waiting room, everyone looked terrified that they were gonna "catch" whatever I had.

My insurance tried to skip out on paying a whole bunch of pregnancy related claims, they kept claiming they hadn't received forms from my hospital/OB when their receptionist had told me they had already faxed required information several times. I was literally on the phone to them every week for one reason or another, which is no fun at all when you can't even keep water down. They even remembered who I was when I called.

I've had NHS related problems too, but the constant worry about money made me feel that much worse. I probably endangered our health in fact, because I was so dehydrated but I was scared to go to the ER for how much it cost - I only went twice and I should have gone many more times than that for fluids.

I'm also gonna change primary care doctor because my walk ins are always 1hr 30 mins + and a lot of the time they turn people away because they are too full. You have to wait at least a week for an appointment.

On the NHS we had to wait at least 2 days for an ordinary appointment, up to 3 weeks for my actual GP (he was in high demand) but of course if you're really sick and need care straight away, out of office hours e.t.c, they will come and see you.

[Gemmie 142]

I've had surgery on the NHS and had no problems at all. Was in and out within the day, sent home with a bunch of painkillers and information. And best of all: no bill for thousands of $!

Also had no problem with doctors or any other health care (except dentists in my area).

People in the US are horrified when I tell them that you wait about a week to see a GP for non-emergencies, but what's the problem? It's a non-emergency. You can get in within a day or two if necessary. If there's something wrong, they'll call the hospital and send you ASAP. When my mum got sick during the night, her doctor would come to our house and see her, of course free of charge.

When I went to see a GP in the US, I was waiting for 45 minutes and charged $75 just to even SEE him. My MIL has been left with debt she'll never pay off because of care given to her elderly parents.

A friend of my MIL recently had her 11 year old daughter go on a visit to the UK. She has a medical disorder but forgot to bring her medication, and when she in Scotland, her symptoms flared up. Her mother was asking me "what on earth do you Brits have for medication for cramps because hers isn't available over there" and going on about how she was sent away from the hospital and that wouldn't happen in America. What a load of cr@p. Not to mention, she was sent away because they had turned up and said that she had forgotten medication and needed it, so they told her to visit a GP. You don't go to A&E because you have a cramp in your leg. Anyway, she ended up going back to the hospital where within a couple of hours they had found a UK-equivalent to her medication, she was given the dosage for free and her symptoms went away. I wonder how her mother feels about it now, after she bitched about socialized health care.

Edited July 19, 2010 by Gemmie

[Peikko 1,575]

What kind of "deal" do you guys get for that health care? In other words, how much are you paying in taxes and are there any costs associated with treatments, medications, etc.?

I only ask because here in the US I don't have to pay for health care if I don't want to. I can simply "opt out" by not going to the hospital or doctor. You guys don't have that choice, do you?

I hear soon we're not going to have that choice either so I'm wondering what I'm looking forward to. Also, let's not forget the OP of this thread. Still denying that was the case?

Sure you can opt out Slim, you go man, what a guy!

[Empress of Groovy 373]

What kind of "deal" do you guys get for that health care? In other words, how much are you paying in taxes and are there any costs associated with treatments, medications, etc.?

I only ask because here in the US I don't have to pay for health care if I don't want to. I can simply "opt out" by not going to the hospital or doctor. You guys don't have that choice, do you?

I hear soon we're not going to have that choice either so I'm wondering what I'm looking forward to. Also, let's not forget the OP of this thread. Still denying that was the case?

Not exactly. Assuming you're paying taxes, you are paying for health care. Roughly half of U.S. health care expenditures are publicly funded (Medicare, Medicaid, VA, etc.), and you don't have a choice about contributing to these programs. And of course, unless you meet eligibility criteria, you can't access these programs even though you're contributing to them. Which doesn't seem fair.

[ValerieA 350]

There have been complaints about the bureaucracy in the NHS, but I can't imagine it is any better under the US system - especially when the patient is thrown right in the middle of it.

There may be bureaucracy in the Canadian system, but the patient never sees it. We present our card for every visit, the receptionist swipes it, the doctor takes care of us. We fill out a one page form if we have never seen that doctor before, for them to start a paper file with my signature. Otherwise, all paperwork is between the doctor/hospital/government, and I never needed to bother with it.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

There may be bureaucracy in the Canadian system, but the patient never sees it. We present our card for every visit, the receptionist swipes it, the doctor takes care of us. We fill out a one page form if we have never seen that doctor before, for them to start a paper file with my signature. Otherwise, all paperwork is between the doctor/hospital/government, and I never needed to bother with it.

That's more or less the same here. As far as it affects the patient you will be put on a waiting list if you need a non-urgent surgery (urgent procedures are always given precedence), but apart from that the patient doesn't have exposure to it - certainly not to the point where you get home and have to spend a whole morning arguing with your insurance company over a bill you received.

I was billed $800 for two blood tests that were incorrectly submitted to the wrong insurance company - I sorted it out easily enough, but it's still a hassle that you don't need to be dealing with.

[ValerieA 350]

That's more or less the same here. As far as it affects the patient you will be put on a waiting list if you need a non-urgent surgery (urgent procedures are always given precedence), but apart from that the patient doesn't have exposure to it - certainly not to the point where you get home and have to spend a whole morning arguing with your insurance company over a bill you received.

I was billed $800 for two blood tests that were incorrectly submitted to the wrong insurance company - I sorted it out easily enough, but it's still a hassle that you don't need to be dealing with.

Exactly. And yes, we have the triage system too - it doesn't matter how much money you have, it matters how urgent your care needs to be. Emergency cases go to the top of the list and are treated immediately.