Had A Trip To The Hospital? I Got A Question...

I was longboarding like an idiot on flu medication,bailed and broke my collarbone. Now my summer's pretty much wrecked.

But I was talking to some people about their hospital experiences, some with broken collarbones, and it's making me damn angry at the state our hospital system is in up here in Canada.

I know, I know. "But we got free healthcare!" I can honestly say I would rather have paid a hefty price for the in-out of the hospital as opposed to being in the waiting room for 6 fucking hours in excrutiating pain, so they can X-Ray my shoulder for a minute, and send me home with some painkillers and a brace (and simple guidelines).

So, I ask you: Have you, or has someone close to you, been to the hospital recently? What was the experience like? How was the wait time? What happened to you?

I wanna know your story to see how well our overrated "free" healthcare system stands against having more (actual logical amounts of) hospital staff. I swear our country's retarded. It's not until I experienced it first-hand that I actually gave a shit about such matters.

What's your healthcare/hospital system like (no matter where you're from)?

(Typing with one hand blows.)

Uhh......I'd take 6 hours of waiting in the ER with free healthcare over 6 hours in the ER and a $3000 bill. I broke my leg without health insurance...and the damage was $3000...and I STILL had to sit with my broken leg in the ER for hours.

The truth is...the ER is a gamble. If they're busy....and you're not on the high priority list...you're waiting. If they have multiple traumas, cardiacs, or anybody who's got a good shot at dying...you're low priority.

I'm a firefighter/emt. I've brought patients into the ER screaming...with broken legs...and I've been told by the nurses "Put 'em in triage....we don't have any beds".

Some people think that because the fire department takes you to the hospital...you'll get treated quicker. That's just not true. You're treated in the order of priority.

Wanna trade?

agreed.

not to mention some people with insurance but nevertheless limited funds will forgo going to the ER because their particular plan causes it to be much more expensive than going through their primary care practitioner, who will just refer you to someone else who you'll have to make an appointment with. case in point, my husband who broke several ribs having to wait in total at least two full days to go through the whole process without paying a helluva lot more.

so... yeah. a six hour wait and free care, you've got it pretty damn good.

Oh no, you had to WAIT in a HOSPITAL?


SINKING SHIP!

I was in the hospital for about 3 weeks last year, and I was treated extremely well. I owe them about 40 grand (and that's with insurance), but that was going in at the request of a doctor. When I went back to the emergency room I did have to make a lot of noise to get some pain killers. If you weren't screaming your head off you got ignored.

I was at the hospital a year ago, and went under the knife. From the time I entered to the time I left was also 6 hours. Just 4 of those hours were me being drugged.

Maybe a shitty coincidence.

But still.

It's fucking ridiculous.

Shiiiiiiiit. I never thought it'd be that fuckin' bad.

I do got it good.

I've broken ribs several times and they always tell me to lay off 'em for a while. But never several.

What happened to you?

Yeah, 40 grand... I think I'd keep our system 'ere in Canada.

I never thought shit would be that pricey unless they saved your life, and then it'd be worth every penny.

But I'm curious, what happened to you to rack up 40k?

I know. You're 100% right. But fact of the matter is that you're in shitloads of pain, and you gotta wait six fucking hours...

Overlooking countries and health systems, that's just fucking ridiculous. It just sounds really, really stupid. Felt stupid too.

They had one effin' nurse. Now I'm no professional here by any means... But that's just not right.

There were only three of us in the place. One broken collarbone, one broken foot, and a bunch of broken ribs. I was the first to go in.

We were flat out told, "There are no nurses, you're going to have to wait."

Just... So stupid.

It's really frustrating.

i went to the ER a few months ago with really bad chest pains. turns out i had a pulled muscle in my chest that was aggravating a nerve in my shoulder that made my arm go numb. i really thought i was having a heart attack. apparently, saying you have chest pains is a great way to get seen right away, i didn't wait at all. i got an EKG, some bloodwork, a Valium, a chest x-ray, and a saline IV. i was there for about 3 and a half hours. my bill from the hospital was 3500, the separate doctor bill was 600, the bloodwork 20 and the x-rays were 37 bucks. i was told my anxitety level was very high, and it went higher when i got those bills

The moral of the story is: healthcare is a bitch no matter where you live.

yes indeed

Did you at least get a ride in the Waaaaaaaaaaaaahbulance?

damn you. i was going to ask that question.

Next time, just act really confused and keep asking why your head hurts so badly. You'll get in lickety split.

I only wish there was a trick like that for bartenders.

There is...you tip $20 on the first drink.

I know that one. It's that first drink I'm in a hurry to get.

so...flash the goods

What kind of girl do you think I am?

Actually I'll try that next time. And for good measure, I'll write "I tip well" on them.

An ex-girlfriend's $40,000 hospital bill came courtesy of an uninsured driver who hit her on her bicycle, breaking her ankle. She had a simple outpatient operation to put several pins in. She had no insurance, and the bill came to over $40,000 - and this was more than ten years ago - it would be more now.

Be happy you have what you have, since an episode like the above here can easily cost you your job, house and life savings especially now that the Republicans have made it much more difficult to get out of severe medical bills through bankruptcy.

In recent years,. over 50% of American bankruptcy filings were due to medical bills.

Wanna hear an entirely unrelated story? I broke my foot about six months back, and because I'm unisured, I didn't go to the hospital. Well, of course the foot didn't set right, so it's in pain 100% of the time.

Gotta love captialist health care. If it'd been free, i would have been treated.

Don't bet on it.

I was going blind from a severe head injury while waiting for four hours to be seen in a local hospital ER following an accident. While becoming increasingly confused and incoherent I asked to be seen six times, explaining that I had been hit by a tractor trailer and suffered a major head injury.

They finally paid attention when I collapsed at the window, striking my head again on the counter on the way down.

I shudder to think what the bill would have been if I hadn't had insurance.