Originally Posted by UKintheUSA

Doesn't sound like a good hospital or doctor you have. I broke my thumb, made and appt., they squeezed me in, had exrays at the office, got the results, walked out with a cast. All in under and hour! Sorry about your injury. Hope you feel better soon. So much for tickling!

Originally Posted by TRPardoe

Maybe you should do your tickling with something that won't break next time, or tie her down - whatever ;-)

Originally Posted by UKintheUSA

Doesn't sound like a good hospital or doctor you have. I broke my thumb, made and appt., they squeezed me in, had exrays at the office, got the results, walked out with a cast. All in under and hour! Sorry about your injury. Hope you feel better soon. So much for tickling!

Originally Posted by doctor scrumpy

Sunday night during a bit of horseplay ( I was tickling the Memsahib's exposed feet ) she managed to whack me with the heel I was not tickling and I ended up with a suspected fracture in the base of my thumb. We ring the doctors Monday at 7.50 am, and are eventually given an appointment at 1.45 pm.

See the doctor and time for an x-ray at the local hospital, where they will fax the results through to him asap. Still waiting to hear from the doctor whether I need to have a cast on it. He might ring me this morning ( Tuesday )

Now whilst the NHS was bad ( you could wait as long as 8 hours in Warrington ) at least they treated you. So much for health care in the US, it seems had we gone to the er we would have been charged as it is not a life threatening emergency. Although as it is my drinking hand, I consider it a real crisis.

Originally Posted by doctor scrumpy

I shall not begin to type what the Memsahib said when she read this reply LOL

Originally Posted by TRPardoe

More seriously, I think yanks hate the idea of socialised medicine because they are scared of it. Put off by right wing rhetoric.

If you are elderly, very young, an accident victim, unemployed, under-insured by your company, on lifetime meds - then the US system sucks and NHS is far superior.

If you are in work with good health insurance, almost never get sick, don't need any maintenance meds - then the US system is far superior.

If you fall into the 2nd category in the UK you can always top-up with BUPA, or whatever they have these days, but at least it is voluntary.

Canada has socialised medicine. You don't see hordes of Canadians dying in the street and you don't get busloads of them crossing into the US to buy drugs. It's a no brainer really.

Originally Posted by Ash UK/US

Personally I prefer the NHS over the US health system.

Last week I had to take my daughter for a routine check up and vaccinations (she just turned one) the doc wants her to have a blood test to check her blood count etc they only need to prick her finger (same way a diabetic does) however they will not do it at the doc's office I have to go across town to 'quest diognostics' so they can do it. When hubby went for his annual check up they did the same thing with him to test his blood sugar... WTF?

Ash

Originally Posted by UKintheUSA

What my hubby was so amazed at was when he came for a visit he had been on a waiting list back in the UK to have tubes put in his ears. He had been on a list for more than 6 months. The flight here did him in and the next day I called my Primary Care Physician. I told him Garry was here visiting, I explained he was in great pain from his ears. Within an hour we were in an Ear, Nose and Throat Doctors office for what we thought would be a "check out the ears and a you need to come in and have tubes put in, let's make you an appointment" visit. Within an hour a very smiling Garry walked out of the Dr's Office where he had just been seen and he put the tubes in his ears right then and there. All for $200.00! We were amazed and stunned. Not only at how cheap but how effecient. Garry does miss certain aspects of his old UK health care, but he says by and large it is much quicker here and you aren't sitting around in pain waiting!

how's the injury?

Originally Posted by Rockgurl

Sorry to hear about the thumb, although I would probably fracture someone's fingers if they tickled my feet!

I had a little run-in with the US healthcare system myself yesterday. I started my job on January 7th, but my healthcare doesn't kick in until March (ridiculous I know), and sod's law I got a toothache yesterday. I know my teeth well enough to know all I needed was some antibiotics so luckily I got one of the nurse practioners on my unit to write me a script for some, so off I toddled to Walgreens to get them. $104 for 28 green capsules!! $104! That would have cost me £6 in England so it peeved me ever so slightly. They really should write a prescription for something for the chest pain you experience when you get the bill. Ouch.

Originally Posted by RoB1833

You could have gone on COBRA after you left your last job, that's if you earn over about $100k to be able to afford it!