Today I finally experienced 3rd world medicine first hand. I fell on my ankle this morning and twisted it while playing soccer. I had to be carried off the court and after resting for an hour and my ankle tripling in size, I had to be carried back to the house as well. In general I hate going to the doctor but I've never had a leg injury, couldn't even hop on one foot and my ankle looked pretty scary, so I gave in and went.Highlights of the Peruvian Medical System:
- It's a la carte. You tell them if you need an x-ray, what kind of doctor you need and if you want the cast now.
- Pay as you go. X-ray, doctor visit, materials, cast - each paid for seperately throughout the process.
- Go with the least common denominator. I'm not really sure I needed a cast and the doctor didn't examine me for more than 10 seconds. He touched my ankle till it hurt, said it was broken, looked at the x-ray and said it wasn't broken but that I "compromised the ligament" which I'm not real sure what that means. But there's no harm in a cast so why not go for it.
- Multitask whenever possible. While Hannah was buying the cast and materials (including the doctor's rubber gloves) another patient entered the room with a needle and medicine, took off his shirt and the doctor administered a shot right in front of me.
The cost of medical care:
- x-ray $3
- doctor visit $5 (I think we paid for this twice by accident)
- putting on the cast $8
- cast and materials $7
- prescription medicine $2.50
The whole time I felt I was in the DMV getting my licensed renewed and in the end, the process took only 45 min and cost a little over $25. We still have to rent/buy crutches which are only available at one particular hospital. I'm not in much pain and I'm improving my hopping skills by the minute. I have to wear the cast for 15-20 days and can either take it off myself or return for another $5 doctor visit.
A la carte . . . how marvelous! I'm really so, so pleased to find your experience was cheap, efficient, and self-directed. The last adjective makes me really gleeful. I wonder how a surgery would go . . .
I tried out medical care in Dublin and found it to be efficient, personal, and moderately priced, for a place where gas is $7.00 a gallon. It was not an a la carte service, though.
Looking forward to plastered, part II.
Tara
Bubba's jealous! He said he'd love for this to happen to him?!?!!!!! Go figure. Glad you're okay, Tim. Thanks for the great story :)
crazy! hope you heal quickly!