Non-Americans, what's it like when you're sick and need to go to the doctor?
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Canada
Wait 7 years to get a family doctor. Wait 3 months to get an actual appointment. Lose family doctor. Rinse and repeat.
I think this is why they went the urgent care route now after closing clinics.
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It's immensely expensive!
I went to the doctor and he charged me 1 euro.
The imaging in the hospital and the orthopedist only cost 2.8 euro.
So they're really leeching it.But seriously it's difficult to get an appointment and nowhere do they take new patients.
Smart government decided on a numerus clausus and now there aren't enough doctors.
The ones that are there lately don't want to work fulltime, so even less availability.You forgot to mention the region this is for
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Norway, I book online if it's not urgent and wait a few weeks. If it's urgent I call them and get it same day. Costs about ~250 NOK or ~20 USD I think.
Public doctors are always at least 45 minutes late (unless you are late if course, then they call you on time)I also had a non-urgent matter, but felt like wait time was too long (holiday season) so I went to a private clinic, got appointment same day and paid about 700 NOK I think.
I go there, tell my story, if they need to take some samples they can usually do them on site right away for no additional charge.
If I need some medicine they prescribe that and tell me to come back in x weeks if it's not getting better.
If they can't help me I get a referral. It could take a long time to get certain procedures, especially if they are not urgent/very important, but most of the time it's been a few weeks for my issues.
Do you need to pay for any prescription medicine?
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Yeah but you need to go there once a quartal to give them your insurance card. So if you are sick less than that you still need to go every time.
I've heard there should be another option, iirc bringing the card in later when you're not sick/infectious anymore (better for everyone methinks), but that this takes extra administration on their side and so they mostly refuse to acknowledge you have this legal option. Or so a colleague mentioned some months ago, I probably mix up some details
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Which country are you in and what's a typical doctor visit like? How much? Wait time? Etc
wrote last edited by [email protected]Germany
Had 3 surgeries (wisedom teeth, nose bone correction and a refilling tooth surgery), an X-Ray, MRI, and i think 4 doctor visits plus all 3 months a psychiatrist to get my adhd medication.
The only thing i had to pay was 50€ for a none concret filling on my tooth, and 30€ for 6 days in hospital.
Hospital food was better than i expected and always heared about.
Had to wait a year for that surgery but the other specialist appointments were really quick in only a few months. Especially the wisdomtooth was in 2 weeks after the call for an appointment
Wait time was only a few minutes.
But had an appointment at a dermitologist and there i waited 3 hours!! Almost walked out. And i wanted was more info about my skin type and laser hair removal.
Everything is covered by the insurance though it needs a huge reforms. There is a two class system and government workers dont pay into it at all but get the Premium benefits.
And that the insurance companys are covering less and less with dental now only 1 check up every half year.Yes i am outrages that only concret to fill holes or build up a tooth is free. Fucking concret!! It is an outrage!
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Do you need to pay for any prescription medicine?
Yes, at the pharmacy, but it's not very much, I pay maybe 200 NOK for my two allergy medicines combined, they both lasts me about 3 months.
I just checked and there's a maximum payment of 520 NOK for 3 months worth of medicine for chronic illness, it's more complicated if there's more than one illness and multiple medications, but the norm is maximum 520 NOK for the months.
Amd ylthe cost I pay for prescription drugs for one time prescription have always been so small that it almost don't register.
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French here. when sick, I use an app to book a appointment to a medical center I have that's like 5 minutes away by foot ( not typical for all french residents but I am quite lucky with where I live). I usually have an appointment in the next 2 to 4 hours tops. Depending on what it is, I walk away with a prescription and certificate for work stating how many sicks days I have. This costs me nothing, appart from the occasional optional medication that is not reimbursed.
This feels like a joke.
Like, just name all the shit that is wrong with the US and flip it joke.
Comparison, my wife wasn't feeling well and insisted on going to the Dr. The closest appointment was over a week away, and the Dr. told her to go to the ER instead. Took a 25 minute drive to the nearest ER in the city, got her vitals in a few minutes and then waited hours to see a Dr who basically gave her 2 cups of coffee and some Tylenol and then had us go home. We won't get the bill for months, but it's usually in the 800 dollar range, and that is with insurance.
I'm in the US if that wasn't obvious.
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Which country are you in and what's a typical doctor visit like? How much? Wait time? Etc
wrote last edited by [email protected]UK.
Until recently, if I wanted an appointment I had to phone the GP surgery the moment it opened at 8:30 in the morning, wait in a phone queue for ten minutes or so before I got to speak to a receptionist who'd give me an appointment with which ever GP had some free time that day. It wasn't usually possible to book an appointment several days in advance.
A couple of months back they switched to an app which gives much more flexibility, allows you to choose which doctor you want to see and allows you to book appointments in advance. I do worry that they're going to push everyone to use that since old gippers are likely to struggle with the app unless they're semi-tech savvy. Also, it's obvious to me that they're setting this up to use AI to triage requests if they're not already doing that.
Appointments always used to be face to face but since covid they're increasingly phone consultations especially for follow-ups. If it's a first, diagnostic appointment it's still likely to be face to face though.
For face to face, the wait time is generally less than half an hour from the point I get to the GP surgery.
Obv. it's free at the point of use. I've paid my taxes.
Edit to add: if you're on low income, or are a child, old, etc you get your prescriptions free. Otherwise you have to pay for them at £9.90 per 2 month prescription. I'm on a shitload of medication and that would normally cost me well over £500 a year, but I get a prepayment certificate which costs me £114.50 a year and covers all medication.
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United Kingdom (Bristol.)
Used to be pretty decent, but now the NHS is chronically overbooked and underfunded. Ambulances can take hours to come.
Only way to get a GP appointment is to literally call my practice at 8AM on the dot, wait in the queue and hope you're lucky to have your call answered before all the appointments are gone. There is no online booking system, and if you call at any other time, they won't be able to book you in advance unless you're willing to wait months.
My dad (80 years old) has had to go to hospital a few times in the past few years for various reasons, and the longest he's had to wait to be admitted into a ward was 13 hours. He had a hip replacement operation two years ago where he was on an 18 month waiting list.
My GP surgery was the same (except 8:30 not 8:00), but moved to an app a couple of months ago. Given that I suspect the point of it is to allow an AI to triage appointment requests I wouldn't be surprised if yours 'upgrades' as well.
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Which country are you in and what's a typical doctor visit like? How much? Wait time? Etc
That's depressing, I can only imagine what it's like to ponder wether or not to get checked because you can't afford it...
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This feels like a joke.
Like, just name all the shit that is wrong with the US and flip it joke.
Comparison, my wife wasn't feeling well and insisted on going to the Dr. The closest appointment was over a week away, and the Dr. told her to go to the ER instead. Took a 25 minute drive to the nearest ER in the city, got her vitals in a few minutes and then waited hours to see a Dr who basically gave her 2 cups of coffee and some Tylenol and then had us go home. We won't get the bill for months, but it's usually in the 800 dollar range, and that is with insurance.
I'm in the US if that wasn't obvious.
That's depressing, I can only imagine what it's like to ponder wether or not to get checked because you can't afford it...
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That's depressing, I can only imagine what it's like to ponder wether or not to get checked because you can't afford it...
wrote last edited by [email protected]My general rule of thumb, if there isn't a significant risk to life, limb, or senses in the next 24 hrs, I'm not going to the ER.
I don't go to a GP ever. They stole my blood and piss, and then told me to come back in 6 months and did it again. The headache of setting up the appointments, rescheduling work, travel, and copays means it just isn't worth it.
Finally, if I have an injury, and it's still affecting my daily life 3 days later, then I go to urgent care, and sometimes that even feels like a waste of money. Cost 180 bucks for me to get a pinched nerve in my shoulder diagnosed (couldn't sleep for 3 days) and they prescribed me maximum strength acetaminophen and some steroids which blew my heart rate up to unsafe levels so I stopped taking them. Pain finally went away about 4 days later on its own.
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Which country are you in and what's a typical doctor visit like? How much? Wait time? Etc
Canadian here.
This one time 10 years ago I drove to my family doctor's office without an appointment and got lucky that it was a walk in day.
I saw my doctor within an hour of arriving and it cost me nothing.
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Which country are you in and what's a typical doctor visit like? How much? Wait time? Etc
I'm in France in a small village but I'm quite lucky with the doctor situation.
If I'm sick I go online, see what shot is available for my doctor and book it, usually in the best few days. If it's urgent I can call or go there and I'll usually get an appointment during the day with my doctor or one of the other two doctors working there.
Then I walk there since it's 400m away.
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Overnight stay at a hospital here in the US is at least $3,000 / £2.196 / €2.552
When you don't have health insurance, I'd assume? Because the tax system is basically the UK health insurance so I'm not sure if it's a fair comparison in that case (the amount you pay through taxes or to a private insurance company might be very different though, but then that'd imo be the number to compare)
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Nope. I had Magen-Darm at home and there was no way I'd go anywhere outside. They accepted that TK service to send them my proof of insurance via Fax or Email.
You can do the same with my doctor but usually I have the energy to go by there quickly anyway. Dont need to see the doc to get the note. Just go to the reception
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Sweden.
A few alternatives:
- I could book an appointment at the local health center. I would probably get a time at the earliest next week, and it would cost me $30. Health center doctors are generally quite overworked, and can sometimes be a bit dismissive of your issues in my experience, but they will help you. If you need specialist care, they will give you a referral, which could take several months depending on the priority of the case and the type of specialist.
- I could use an app to get access to a video call with a doctor, after having described my symptoms in the app. I would get a video call the same day and it would cost me $30. Given the remote nature of this kind of contact, they can be a bit limited in what they can do for you, but will try to help you regardless. If your case requires in-person examination, they will ask you to go to a health center instead. If you need specialist care, they will give you a referral and you'll have to wait the same amount of time as for a referral in the health center scenario.
- I am lucky enough to have a private health insurance plan through my employer. If I have any problems, I'll submit them to this private health insurer, and they put a human on the case and connects me with a specialist right away if the problem warrants one. Typically this happens the same or the next day. This costs me nothing, apart from what I pay in benefit taxes to be on the private health insurance plan.
All in all, things work fairly well in Sweden, but having gotten private health insurance has definitely jaded me a bit on account of how much better the experience is when you have that. If only the public system wasn't systematically underfunded and run by the dumbest politicians on offer in the country, then maybe everyone could have great patient experience.
What sort of money does one need to spend in Sweden to get private health insurance? Can you stop paying the government one if you have that?
(In Germany, I'm publicly insured so idk private prices, but you pay either one and not both, it's not like normal taxes that you always pay) -
Very much this.
If you live in the UK download the fucking app.
If all the ppl. bitching about the phone lines just used the app. then the ppl that actually HAVE to use the phone lines (digitally excluded ppl) wouldn't have so long to wait \ phone back every day.
Every time I've needed to contact the gp for something I've done it through the app and then I've either been contacted back with advice \ an appt or an onward referral within 24 hours.
If you need help quicker than 24 hours it's an emergency, if you think it's an emergency but don't want to go to a and e it's not a fucking emergency.
wrote last edited by [email protected]If all the ppl. bitching about the phone lines just used the app. then the ppl that actually HAVE to use the phone lines (digitally excluded ppl) wouldn't have so long to wait \ phone back every day.
Is the app free of trackers and does it run on open operating systems like google-less Android? As in, no attempts at root detection, trying to use Google Play Services, etc.
I probably don't have to explain this viewpoint on Lemmy as much as to the general public but not everyone who could use a nice locked-down big tech phone that phones home to facebook wants to carry that around all day, nor buy two phones when the govt could also just make it a website that runs on any OS and any device because it's made of open standards
(If this sounds outlandish: this is pretty much what the government-funded public transport app for Germany is like. Want to buy a ticket? Better hope the algorithm likes your payment method, takes your money, and that you can run their software to display your ticket)
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If all the ppl. bitching about the phone lines just used the app. then the ppl that actually HAVE to use the phone lines (digitally excluded ppl) wouldn't have so long to wait \ phone back every day.
Is the app free of trackers and does it run on open operating systems like google-less Android? As in, no attempts at root detection, trying to use Google Play Services, etc.
I probably don't have to explain this viewpoint on Lemmy as much as to the general public but not everyone who could use a nice locked-down big tech phone that phones home to facebook wants to carry that around all day, nor buy two phones when the govt could also just make it a website that runs on any OS and any device because it's made of open standards
(If this sounds outlandish: this is pretty much what the government-funded public transport app for Germany is like. Want to buy a ticket? Better hope the algorithm likes your payment method, takes your money, and that you can run their software to display your ticket)
You can use the website instead of using the app.
Same login.
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Don't you think if this was an issue we'd have addressed it by now?
Global warming, inequality, bodily autonomy (euthanasia, abortion), healthcare accessibility, pay gaps... sitting in a room with sick people is not even the first trivially solvable issue on this list but it's definitely among them
. Wouldn't be the first time someone catches long covid from sitting at the doctor's where the other patient wasn't aware they were infected/infectious yet
