Medical care in the PI VS US

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

I have had the upper respiratory crud for a week. I finally gave in and went to the Doctor. My Brother in law took me to the top private hospital in Cebu. We walked in to the office of a Internationally accredited internal medicine/pulmonologist. We were seen withing 30 mins, no appointment.

Total cost for 20 min office visit---8.00 US Then off to get 3 prescriptions filled- 18.00 US. Amazing!

In the US, it would have been a 4 month wait and the visit would have been 2 or 300

[lostinblue 1,989]

How much do the grunt workers make over there. ... Say a truck driver? Would that be a few days wages for him ?

$25-30 total cost for your visit.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

How much do the grunt workers make over there. ... Say a truck driver? Would that be a few days wages for him ?

$25-30 total cost for your visit.

Probably a little more

However as good as out healthcare system is, the cost blows the bell curve up like a bomb. Our costs are out of control. Obamacare, is not helping.

My simple take. Way to few people making money providing care and way too many making money not providing care.

Edited September 24, 2014 by The Nature Boy

[Teddy B 17,252]

I have had the upper respiratory crud for a week. I finally gave in and went to the Doctor. My Brother in law took me to the top private hospital in Cebu. We walked in to the office of a Internationally accredited internal medicine/pulmonologist. We were seen withing 30 mins, no appointment.

Total cost for 20 min office visit---8.00 US Then off to get 3 prescriptions filled- 18.00 US. Amazing!

In the US, it would have been a 4 month wait and the visit would have been 2 or 300

A 4 month wait? I've never had a problem getting in to see my Dr the same day if I told the receptionist I was sick and needed to get in asap.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

My US health experiences also involve multiple weeks to months waits. Before I changed primary care providers my former doctor - who was part of a large clinic - needed at least a 4 to 6 month lead time to get an appointment to see him. For the last 3 years I was at that practice I only saw my actual doctor once. The rest of the time I took whoever was available for the next appointment which was usually about 3 or 4 days minimum (yes, this is when I was in immediate need of medical treatment) and would always involve a minimum of a 2 to 4 hour wait in the waiting room first. My first appointment with my endocrinologist took a 3 month wait until there was a vacancy. If I had an emergency or medical need, I went to the Emergency Department at the hospital because that was the only way I could see a medical provider that day.

My current medical provider is, I must admit, much better, and I should have switched out of the former practice years ago but all of the research I had done about other providers in the area indicated patients experienced similar waits and difficulties in scheduling appointments. I have since found that there is as wide a chasm between waiting times and doctors as there is between the quality of medical care available. You really need to educate yourself and do a lot of research to make sure you can find decent medical care here in the US because you are just as likely to get an atrociously bad doctor as you are an excellent one. The costs, however, yeah, they are definitely out of control and have little correlation to the quality of medical care you receive. The main difference between the US and other first world countries medical costs? The US has a big profit margin built in for the middle man - the for profit insurance companies who are more interested in making sure they get rich than in making sure patients receive the appropriate medical care they need.

[lostinblue 1,989]

You are entering a situation with kenyan kare where you have International Code of Diseases 10 th edition.

Doctors are complaining about about not having enough time for both the patient and the computer...A Dr will have will have about 70,000 medical diagnostic codes versus about 15,000 in ICD-9.... You might have 10 different codes for a simple splinter. All have to be entered including where it happened. Bathroom vs kitchen ... It all takes away from time with their "customer". .. I guess it is good if they want to know who you are. Perhaps a bit 1984?

http://www.behavioral.net/blogs/lisette-wright/icd-10-and-dsm-5-history-education-and-culture for further reading

[Teddy B 17,252]

"Kenyan Kare" aka Romney Care has been in Mass for almost 10 years now. With approx. 98% of Mass residents covered, no one has gone broke paying for healthcare and everyone gets the care they need. Things are going pretty well here with Kenyan Kare. The scare tactics have been proven to be just that.

[Dakine10 5,452]

You are entering a situation with kenyan kare where you have International Code of Diseases 10 th edition.

Doctors are complaining about about not having enough time for both the patient and the computer...A Dr will have will have about 70,000 medical diagnostic codes versus about 15,000 in ICD-9.... You might have 10 different codes for a simple splinter. All have to be entered including where it happened. Bathroom vs kitchen ... It all takes away from time with their "customer". .. I guess it is good if they want to know who you are. Perhaps a bit 1984?

http://www.behavioral.net/blogs/lisette-wright/icd-10-and-dsm-5-history-education-and-culture for further reading

Sorry there, captain Tangent. ICD-10 has nothing to do with Obamacare. The "international" part should give it away.

ICD-9 is outdated and incomplete. It's also way too ambiguous for an industry that demands specifics.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

A 4 month wait? I've never had a problem getting in to see my Dr the same day if I told the receptionist I was sick and needed to get in asap.

I was referring to the long wait many times to see a specialist. My Gp yes we have history he sees me if I am sick

[Teddy B 17,252]

I was referring to the long wait many times to see a specialist. My Gp yes we have history he sees me if I am sick

Yeah, we can have some wait times for specialists here too. All depends on what type of Dr and where you want to go to see him/her. The Dr's in Boston always have a longer wait time than the Dr's outside of Boston.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

Yeah, we can have some wait times for specialists here too. All depends on what type of Dr and where you want to go to see him/her. The Dr's in Boston always have a longer wait time than the Dr's outside of Boston.

This lady was a Pulmonologist. Did I mention she was hawt beyond measure .

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

My US health experiences also involve multiple weeks to months waits. Before I changed primary care providers my former doctor - who was part of a large clinic - needed at least a 4 to 6 month lead time to get an appointment to see him. For the last 3 years I was at that practice I only saw my actual doctor once. The rest of the time I took whoever was available for the next appointment which was usually about 3 or 4 days minimum (yes, this is when I was in immediate need of medical treatment) and would always involve a minimum of a 2 to 4 hour wait in the waiting room first. My first appointment with my endocrinologist took a 3 month wait until there was a vacancy. If I had an emergency or medical need, I went to the Emergency Department at the hospital because that was the only way I could see a medical provider that day.

My current medical provider is, I must admit, much better, and I should have switched out of the former practice years ago but all of the research I had done about other providers in the area indicated patients experienced similar waits and difficulties in scheduling appointments. I have since found that there is as wide a chasm between waiting times and doctors as there is between the quality of medical care available. You really need to educate yourself and do a lot of research to make sure you can find decent medical care here in the US because you are just as likely to get an atrociously bad doctor as you are an excellent one. The costs, however, yeah, they are definitely out of control and have little correlation to the quality of medical care you receive. The main difference between the US and other first world countries medical costs? The US has a big profit margin built in for the middle man - the for profit insurance companies who are more interested in making sure they get rich than in making sure patients receive the appropriate medical care they need.

My heart still skips a beat when I see you post Ms. Kathryn. I am like. Uh-oh what did I do this time. Like when my mom use to call me by my whole name.

A wait that long to see your GP is totally unaceptable. We have got to fix healthcare in this country, and I think the only way is going to be, to fix it so that the profit (corporate) angle is taken out. Not sure how you do that, because if the Govt runs it, it will be the VA in 5 years. That's scary. Heck I may be for socialized medicine by the time I get back

[Dan and Judy 614]

I have had the upper respiratory crud for a week. I finally gave in and went to the Doctor. My Brother in law took me to the top private hospital in Cebu. We walked in to the office of a Internationally accredited internal medicine/pulmonologist. We were seen withing 30 mins, no appointment.

Total cost for 20 min office visit---8.00 US Then off to get 3 prescriptions filled- 18.00 US. Amazing!

In the US, it would have been a 4 month wait and the visit would have been 2 or 300

The reason you were seen so fast is obvious. The average Filipino can't afford $8. They will never see a pulmonologist. They don't have to worry about the wait time. They just die.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

My heart still skips a beat when I see you post Ms. Kathryn. I am like. Uh-oh what did I do this time. Like when my mom use to call me by my whole name.

A wait that long to see your GP is totally unaceptable. We have got to fix healthcare in this country, and I think the only way is going to be, to fix it so that the profit (corporate) angle is taken out. Not sure how you do that, because if the Govt runs it, it will be the VA in 5 years. That's scary. Heck I may be for socialized medicine by the time I get back

You don't need to socialize the health care delivery to reign in cost. Medicare has shown to be able to keep a lid on cost on a per patient basis better than private insurers have. Opening Medicare to all for basic medical needs would be a huge step forward in terms of cost control. You'd retain private doctors practices who could shift their focus (and staffing) from mostly administration to mostly care. More time for patients and less time for paperwork. That saves money, too.

[Póg mo 1,749]

You don't need to socialize the health care delivery to reign in cost. Medicare has shown to be able to keep a lid on cost on a per patient basis better than private insurers have. Opening Medicare to all for basic medical needs would be a huge step forward in terms of cost control. You'd retain private doctors practices who could shift their focus (and staffing) from mostly administration to mostly care. More time for patients and less time for paperwork. That saves money, too.

Employers don't want that. They want compliant workers who won't complain or quit their jobs, because of the fear of loosing health benefits.