Brit Reacts to American Visits British Hospital for the First Time

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American Visits British Hospital for the First Time Reaction!
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[@shanetait7388]

I'm in the US and there is a reason Canadians come here for medical care😂😂😂

[@mizsuzee]

I live in a border town and our hospital (and local clinics) are full of Canadians. Not only as patients, but a LOT of Canadians come across the border daily to WORK in our local hospital, doctors offices, and clinics. The pay here is much better. But yeah, plenty come for their health care!

[@SwarmerGaming]

​@@mizsuzeedown here in TX. Where I live not the state as a whole, only 1 in 5 doctors are US born GPs from Canada India and Mexico mainly and optometrist and dentists from Mexico and the UK mainly. It's kinda cool that our doctors here will even give reference to doctors across the border for the same level of care but significantly cheaper. If it's not a life threatening issue, like eczema or contacts or basic dental work. And they take us insurance because they pay wayyy more than the normal price

[@jjbud3124]

I live in an HOA with over half Canadians for half the year. My neighbors have to wait longer in Canada but they usually go back home, if it's not an emergency and if they have to have anything serious (expensive) done. They buy insurance while they're here, but they have a good sized out of pocket cost

[@emerald637]

Socialized Medicine totally sucks! Women in the UK and Canada may wait 1-2 years before they receive their first cancer treatment. Healthcare is costly in the USA; however, NO ONE is EVER turned away or is required to wait months before seeing a specialist, followed up by necessary diagnostic testing and procedures. Currently, the USA is paying for well over FIFTEEN MILLION ILLEGAL ALIEN INVADERS flooding through the wide open southern (and now northern) border at the hard-working American taxpayer's expense, and sending literally BILLION$ to many other nations while financing several ridiculous and totally preventable, proxy wars.

[@dianedeck9790]

@@emerald637 Not to mention that those who are on Medicaid whether they are low income or illegals almost all of the abuse the system. They go to the Emergency room for the least little thing. Stub their toe, go to the emergency room its ridiculous. I have insurance through work so I can go but I don't abuse it. They make me pay for what insurance doesnt pay. But the people who get free healthcare abuse the system. BIG TIME.

[@gailadams9294]

One of my neighbors was a doctor from the UK. He told me about his brother in Ireland with a heart problem. He said in America surgery would be within two weeks. It took over a year there. Luckily he was still alive.

[@JohnBarnard-pm1ns]

My brother dropped me off at the emergency room. The guard put me immediately in a wheelchair and took me to the sign in desk. I gave some vague symptoms of pain and loss of appetite. Said I just wasn't feeling too well. I told them I had no insurance. They took me immediately to the back and had me change into a hospital gown put me in a bed, brought me heated warming blankets and said they would get me something for the pain. Hooked me up to an iv and the pain meds came right away. Also worked right away. Within ten minutes I was given an MRI. Shortly after the surgeon and three of her associates were at my bedside, said it was appendicitis and they were going to take good care of me. The social worker came next and signed me up for Medicaid. The next thing I remember was waking up in ICU and three days had past. My appendix had burst and if I had come in an hour later I would not have lived. I was in the hospital for one month six days of which was in ICU. When I got home I needed home nursing. Medicaid paid 100% of the bill. Not one cent out of pocket. Oh - and when I first arrived and the whisked off to treatment, the nurse said they were so glad that I came in. Could not have asked for better treatment. Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan was incredible.

[@deescese]

Yup! That is my local hospital and they are like that.

[@amyadams656]

Beaumont is amazing!!

[@kimmy6639]

America can be really great with all of our programs to help those who have no insurance. My daughter was 22, working full time, college part time when hers went. Everything went great. They reduced the bill as low as they could, 8 grand total and told her if she had been pregnant or a single mom it would be free. I was pissed.

[@janfitzgerald3615]

I went to school there to get my CNA certification and then as an employee in the late sixties and early seventies! They’re an awesome hospital and excellent employer.

[@andycristiana1043]

​. Exactly!! That's what I say all the time.

[@johnpinkston6505]

Gotta have the right insurance. I had a Liver Transplant at the top Hospital in SoCal, I paid zero, squat, nadda, 1.5 million charged to the insurance company.

[@keekers]

We still pay for the insurance.

[@johnpinkston6505]

Yes, I pay for the insurance. Tricare for Life Military $346.00 a year!

[@PYC000]

Thank you for your service.​@@johnpinkston6505

[@JaneRumes-xc3ns]

God bless your donor and their family. Appreciate your miracle and God bless you as well 😊

[@posorgirl54]

OMG!!! Thank goodness you got help!! That amount is ridiculous!!

[@karlmarx3369]

I live in a state that borders Canada, our hospitals are filled with Canadians that dont want to wait months for their FREE treatments in Canada.

[@RBB52]

As a Canadian, I have never known any Canadian that has gone to the USA for health care. I and my family have nothing but praise for the Canadian healthcare system. Sure it is not perfect but it has provided great service to myself and many members of my extended family. I have family throughout most of southern Canada from coast to coast and our experience with the signal payer system has been very good. Although I spend a lot of time in the United States, their healthcare system terrifies me. Even with insurance, you never know how outrageous the bill will be beyond the insurance. I am so thankful that we have our single payer system in Canada. I have never paid a fee for needed healthcare and have always received excellent care from our health services.

[@kathenson606]

@@RBB52I lived in Michigan for 20 years and I also have met quite a few Canadians who came for health care. One needed a new hip and they told him 6 months. Come to the US and within a week he was feeling better. They might not tell you but it’s the wait time. They do love the NHS but sometimes you don’t want to wait

[@lauriewelsh8554]

My uncle had to go to a veterinarian in Canada to get his heart problems diagnosed. He and my aunt moved back to the States just so he could get health care he needed.

[@Lucinda_Jackson]

Yeah, sure. I lived just over the border in a city in New York State. Yep - lots of Canadians streaming over the border. I had family in Canada and they came over to the US, too, rather than wait months and months - for inferior care. I was on several FB groups for a medical condition and it was so sad to listen to the horror stories of Canadians. And the British members? It was absolutely abysmal.

[@abnerlookatthis]

​@@RBB52Well, you may not know any Canadians that cross the border for healthcare, but it doesn't mean it's not true. I too live in a border state, and there are more than enough Canadians crossing the border to get elective surgery.

[@KennethBond]

I had Stage IV Esophageal Cancer during the summer of '07. I was 57 years old. In America, you choose health insurance, or no insurance. I chose to have insurance. My place of work pays a percentage of the premiums, I pay the balance. In April of 2007, when I complained of complications, they sent me immediately to X-ray. X-ray sent me to CT Scan, CT Scan sent me to Endoscopy. They scheduled an operation to have a chemo port installed and started scheduling Chemo therapy and Radiation treatments that would last for the rest of summer. Long story short, I was in remission as of October of the same year, and now cancer free since then. I am so grateful that for the overpriced American system, my story would be much, much different if I were anywhere else. After insurance, my co-pays were about $9,000. They give me as long as necessary to pay it off, or they write it off if I cannot pay. I paid off everything off over time.

[@debralecuivre3366]

I am happy for you being cancer free.

[@dianethomas9384]

Esophageal cancer is so deadly! I am so glad you made it. I pray you stay cancer free. So glad you got the proper care. And appreciate the care you got.

[@johnbaldwin5825]

In America they would take appendicitis seriously and take you in ASAP.

[@TerriLynn714]

Yup

[@m2hmghb]

We do NOT fuck with appendicitis. Too big of a risk of something going bad causing sepsis.

[@Bradleehage]

USA health care takes forever just like United Kingdom

[@hkandm4s23]

Unless your a woman.... then they assume you're on your period and send you home.

[@Loki_Trickster]

@@Bradleehage Your spouting complete bullshit. I know for a fact every Emergency medical facility around me takes emergency cases very very seriously. US hospitals work on a 5 stage triage system, People higher on the scale get attention first always. If you think it takes forever its because your coming in with less life threatening medical cases. So maybe stop talking out your ass

[@lisabelter3041]

When I had my appendix out in the US, I went to the ER. I was so bad I was vomiting from the pain. They took me back in 20 minute. The doctor saw me and gave me pain medication in my IV. After another 30 minutes I had a CT scan that confirmed that my appendix was bad. I was taken to the operating room about 90 minutes after I arrived at the hospital. My bill for the ER, surgery and the night stay in the hospital was $300.

[@Goldun-nah]

With insurance?

[@JJVPYOU]

This is my experience in ths US. A few years ago, I woke up in the middle of the night with a sharp pain in my stomach. I went to the bathroom thinking it was just needing to go, but the pain did not go away. Finally, in the morning, I asked my wife to take me to the ER. This was Christmas day. She dropped me off at the front of thd ER and went to park the car. By the time she came in, 2-3 minutes later I was already in an examining room being seen by a Dr. I was given medication and setup with an IV. Within 10-15 minutes I was being wheeled to get an MRI. didn't take long for the results of the MRI to show I had kidney stones. I was prescribed pain medication and medication that relaxes you "plumbing " to make it easier to pass the stones. In a couple of days, it was over. My insurance paid most of the ER bill, except my deductible, which was around $100. This year I had a nasty fall off a ladder and was in a lot of pain. Thinking I had broken ribs and a broken foot, again my wife took me to the same ER. My experience was almost identical. X-Rays showed I had no broken ribs or foot, so it was just bruising. Again I was sent home with several prescriptions to help me with the pain. Again, out of pocket was around $100. I have more examples of other medical treatments, including open hearth surgery for my son. I have never have had to wait hours to see a Dr. in an emergency. And if you have insurance, other than co-pays or deductibles, all medical bills have been covered. Years ago I worked in Canada for almost 9 months. I remember tales from some of my co-worker's telling me wait times of weeks and sometimes months, just to get an MRI. As far as I'm concerned, they can keep their "free" health care. You get what you pay for.

[@SeaBrzJo2]

I’m American, but had a Canadian coworker who was in a horrible car accident and suffered significant spinal damage. His surgery kept getting postponed month after month and he became addicted to pain killers. He finally got the surgery, but couldn’t stop the pain pills, and eventually lost his job. Sad.

[@mizsuzee]

My husband is a Canadian but is now an American after we got married. He had a known heart issue and in Canada they told him he could not get the heart operation he needed until his heart began to show signs of damage. At that point they would put him on "the list". After he moved here, we went to the heart doctor here and they did all the testing and determined that YES, he had a heart valve problem and needed a surgery. No his heart wasn't damaged YET, so let's do the surgery BEFORE it is! He had the operation two weeks later! (yes, we had decent insurance which covered most of this) This was 16 years ago. We both agree, coming here to our USA health system saved his heart from damage, and therefore prolonged his life! Their "free" system is just NOT GOOD. His son still lives in Canada and hurt his shoulder - he had to wait FIVE MONTHS just to get an MRI to determine the problem! INSANE!

[@charlayned]

@@mizsuzee Yeah, my husband got an aortic valve replacement in 2011. He was 55 and started to have trouble breathing. Our GP saw us, told us it was Pulmonary and called a doctor he knew that treated that. We went straight to him, he told it wasn't lungs, it was heart and HE called a friend who is a cardiologist. They knew it was the valve and we were going to wait six months to see if the med took care of it but one day he was just bad. We went to the cardiologist's office, he checked him out and sent us straight to Methodist in the Houston Medical Center. We got through ER quick because he called and told them which doctors to call in on the case. The surgeon was the one who did First Lady Barbara Bush's transplant. He's probably the best, studied under Michael DeBakey. The surgery took about 5 hours and he said when he took the valve out, it crumbled in his hand because it was so calcified. He would have died in a few days if we hadn't come back in when we did. He ticks like a watch now (literally, he's got a titanium valve) and other than taking warfarin for clots, he's in great shape. We have hernia surgery coming up but it's not an emergency (yet) so we're trying to get things paid for first. Hope your husband's surgery helped him out, I agree that the American system is a good one.

[@axisavani3186]

Only 100 deductible?! That’s incredible insurance!

[@mizsuzee]

@@charlayned Yes, my husband "ticks" as well!! His valve is plastic I believe and yep, he's on warfarin for life. He's doing great with his aortic valve replacement and a quadruple bypass at the same time!

[@helencantimagine]

My husband was diagnosed with leukemia in June 2006. He went through chemo several times. Leukemia came back 4 times (chemo all those times). He was in the hospital one time for 3 weeks and went into remission. He then went to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, MD, and was there in the hospital for 4 months. He had a bone marrow transplant (one of his sisters was a donor). He died in May 2007. The total cost of his medical bills was nearly $400,000.00. Our out-of-pocket cost was about $900.00. Thank goodness for the great insurance his job provided. Thanks to all his friends who raised money for our (me and the youngest 2 children) apartment in Baltimore.

[@sunnykat2762]

So sorry for your great loss!

[@helencantimagine]

@@sunnykat2762 Thank you, Sunny. You're so kind.

[@sunnykat2762]

@@helencantimagine Helen you’re very welcome.

[@merlinathrawes746]

With all the problems the US health care system has there's one thing to remember. You cannot be denied medical care based on your ability or inability to pay. That is a federal law.

[@poppyshoessp]

🎯

[@Matt-yg8ub]

Which is a good thing if you are a citizen, but it’s a bad thing if you are a citizen because you end up paying for it and half of the third world comes to America for medical treatment on your dime

[@travisworks1791]

Yes, there are plenty of non-citizens who come to the US for healthcare that the rest of us end up paying for, but that reinforces how good our system is. Some of those third-world people might be paying a year's salary to violent criminals to sneak them into the country illegally, and they still think it's a risk worth taking. People can complain all they want about the rich being able to afford better care, but when the care you can get as an unemployed, homeless, illegal alien is literally worth some people risking their lives for, that really says something!

[@louisesmith4251]

My husband was taken to the ER as a 'john doe' (he had no identification) they did everything to stabilize him, then transferred him to a specialist hospital ICU. He received extraordinary care , everything you can possibly do, Still as an unknown. We do have insurance, but they did not know that. People complain about doctors incomes and the cost of medical care in the US but I have always appreciated them being paid well for their knowledge and skill. (besides, socialist medicine is not 'free' , you just pay for it from your other pocket))

[@starling4629]

We have excellent doctors here in the US, but also have to pay a lot each month for health insurance. He's right, you have to pay a certain percentage & many times if you have to go to the hospital, you'll end up paying thousands out of pocket. Yes, the hospitals are more than happy to set up a payment plan for you. It may still take YEARS to pay it off!

[@CountryKindOfCrazy]

In Southern Kentucky our wait time at a hospital is 15 minutes tops. P.S. An appendices is considered an EMERGENCY in the United States. They will literally bump you up on a surgery list, and take you in 1st.

[@marilynleveque2497]

In the USA he would have had an X-ray and Ultra Sound or MRI of his abdominal section to rule out anything while in Emergency.

[@kenslaughter00]

Yup. I went in with a lot of pain, but wasn't quite low enough on the abdomen to be the appendix. Within 15 minutes of me arriving to the ER they did a CT Scan, and it showed a massive gall bladder infection with a large abscess. Was in the hospital for 5 days. They put tubes in to drain the infection and 6 weeks later I had the gall bladder removed. I didn't have insurance, it was $45,000, but they settled for $900.

[@johnediger7820]

This is often not true. Getting any tests like CT's or MRI's are dependent on the persons level of insurance. Doctors can't just order these tests whenever they think it necessary. They have guidelines published by the insurance companies for when they can and can't order tests. For those of us that have crappy high deductible insurance, the chances of getting a test like that are slim to none, even when the problem could be potentially life-threatening. I have seen this happen and not just once.

[@kenslaughter00]

@@johnediger7820 Maybe because I didn't have any insurance at all. Or because I was in so much pain. Another time I was in a car accident. Someone pulled out in front of me and hit the right front of the car. Air bags didn't deploy, we were both only going about 25 MPH. I had pain in my chest, but thought it was just from the seatbelt. 3 hours later when the pain kept getting markedly worse I went to the ER. Maybe 30 minutes later I got an MRI that showed 3 broken ribs and a cracked sternum. If course the other driver's insurance paid for that, but they didn't know that at the hospital.

[@donrainesoh]

@@johnediger7820an primary care this would be true, in an emergency room they will do any test the doctor orders no matter your insurance level.

[@Matt-yg8ub]

@@johnediger7820 not necessarily, you can have the tests done, but they’ll warn you they’re not covered. Believe it or not, the doc isn’t always a complete dick who’s just looking to run the bill up unnecessarily

[@ericrussell1999]

There is a tv show about an english emergency room. My girlfriend, who is a nurse, was amazed. She said not to go there, she's amazed they don't kill more people.😂

[@cathybryant5119]

I am an American who has just moved back to the US after 3 years living in the UK. In the UK I never met my GP (primary care physician) in person and spoke to him exactly twice on the phone in the 3 years I lived there. I have several health issues. My UK GP referred me to a specialty clinic. It took exactly 2 years from the time of the referral (August 2021) until I had my first appointment with the specialist (August 2023). I got back to US a month ago and signed up with a new primary care physician. My American doctor (whom I saw in person) referred me to 3 different specialists. One the them was the same speciality I was referred to in the UK. The big difference is that I had an appointment with the American specialist within 2 weeks compared to 2 years in the UK! I also saw the second specialist within 2 weeks of the referral and have an appointment in a couple of months with the 3rd specialist (I could have gotten in sooner had it been urgent).

[@maxjaeger40]

Yup and they pay about double in taxes for that 2 year wait. They have no idea. "We have free healthcare wooo!"

[@kennethcole2280]

I have had two British doctors in American clinics. Was very impressed by their manner in caring for me. Both left the UK because they couldn't give the same level of attention to their patients under that system.

[@claregale9011]

They maybe so but you will never see anyone in the uk bankrupt or in debt over healthcare , yes we have long waiting lists for non urgent ops but our emergency healthcare is excellent . No bill no stress straight in get treated get home and that's it .

[@sherryford667]

Sounds great, if you survive. 😊

[@maxjaeger40]

In America we should just print the money and give ourselves anything we want really. I agree. Let the rest of the world suffer. Instead of its leaders.

[@delisamarchetti5926]

The thing that is great about American ER's is that most of them have a pretty good triage unit, and they send people back according to the severity of their symptoms.

[@marilynleveque2497]

I worked with British RNs in California. All liked our system.

[@ticiamillermccloud561]

Dual citizen here. UK and US when I discovered I had cancer, I stayed stateside. Absolutely no way I would deal with the British healthcare system if I had a choice of opting out. With that said it's been extremely expensive. But I'm happy with my choice.

[@claregale9011]

Never heard of anyone in the uk struggling to pay for healthcare no one . Its for all from cradle to grave and don't forget its over 7 yrs old now our NHS so its change dramatically since just after the war . More people to treat people are living longer so yes it's over stretched but if your in need of emergency treatment , major surgery , cancer treatment its excellent and no out of pocket payments . We love our NHS and are greatful for it

[@MsMuffetsTuffet]

@@claregale9011 Liar. One half of your income is taken to pay for health care whether you use it or not. The system is crap, I've never heard a real UK citizen say they loved their government healthcare system.

[@claregale9011]

@@MsMuffetsTuffet one half ?? Where did you get that from . Lots in the US hate your system especially those who can't get descent insurance or are in debt beacause of it . Your talking rubbish and you know it .

[@NB-oy7fq]

My local hospital ER (NY) takes you to triage almost immediately and you're in an exam room being seen by a nurse within 10 minutes. My BF is English and he was very impressed with how quickly he was seen to. The nurse's uniforms were weird to him. They wore colored scrubs instead of the white uniforms. Also was surprised hospital and ambulances are privately owned not government.

[@Bls0456]

My hospital experience in London made me change my position on a national health system for the US. It started with a severe cough and trouble breathing. I was taken by ambulance to a hospital ER, where the doctor thought I might have a blood clot because I had just flown for 8 hours. I was given a shot in my stomach and sent upstairs to a room with 5 other people, including a near death patient on what must have been a machine to help her breathe. (It was so noisy that no one could sleep.) I was on oxygen in the ER that had been unhooked to take me upstairs. After being there for about 35 minutes, I went to the nurses station and said I thought I was to be on oxygen. The nurse said “oh, that’s right”, and went back with me to hook it up. I was told that I was going to have a scan early (I was sent upstairs about 3 am) in the morning. I was told that it was needed because I might have a life threatening problem (the clot). I waited all day and at about 3 pm again went to the nurses station and asked why … if there was a possible life threatening problem ….I was not taken for the scan. Fifteen minutes later I was taken to radiology. I said “you must have been really busy today” and the tech said “no, we have had only a couple patients all day”. The scan was ok so it was decided that I just had a mild infection and a doctor came in and gave me two kinds of antibiotics. I asked the doctor if it was ok for me to fly because my daughter and I had tickets to fly to Venice in a couple days , and I was told it was fine… I could fly. So I was discharged and went back to my daughter’s flat and rested for a bit. We fly to Venice and by the time we arrived, I could hardly breathe. I spent 3 days in bed in the hotel. When we arrived back in London, we found an envelope with the medical report of my hospital stay. It listed PNEUMONIA as my diagnosis. I should have been treated for that and never been cleared to fly anywhere. The bottom line is that I provided my own care and was lucky I was alive. So my position on national health care is NO WAY. My daughter is British and I’m scared to death that she might get sick and need the NHS.

[@Goldun-nah]

My cousin, in Georgia, was uninsured and bc of the crushing debt of medical bill she just incurred from surgery, she waited with her sickness a bit too long bc she wanted it to clear on its own bc she couldn’t afford any more medical debt without going bankrupt.. and only went in when it was an emergency … she ended up having pneumonia but it was too late. It gotten too bad… She died from it. Only 38 years old. 77,000 people die every year in America from being underinsured/uninsured. 26 million people are uninsured in America and 127 million are underinsured. The problem is bigger than you may know or care to understand. 77,000 people in the UK do not die from waiting to be seen or from waiting out their illnesses in fear of crushing debt and then die

[@Bls0456]

@@Goldun-nah Wow, where to begin. First, there are about 67 million people in the UK; there are 334 million in the US , in other words the UK is 1/5 the size of the US. The US might have 77,000 people who die while waiting for care (I question the number, but let’s go with it) which is about .02 to .03% of the population. The UK has about 14,000 according to your Country’s own figures. That is about …..oh, look at this…. .02 to .03% of the population. Just another way our countries are alike. Also, about a quarter of the UK citizens have opted for private insurance. Oops. Why would that be? There are a multitude of problems with both systems and I would prefer to see the US with Medicare for all. I also would love to see people who pontificate on these forums check the figures first, and second, don’t try to suggest that the person who actually did is someone who doesn’t understand the problem or possible solutions. I am a former CEO of a health organization, have a Masters in Legislation, worked on a health related committee on Capitol Hill, and lobbied health issues in the US Congress. Finally, anyone who ignores a serious condition in the US needs to be educated. You can go to any ER and they need to care regardless of your ability to pay. Not the ideal solution at all, but better than dying. Fortunately, the majority of people in the US are insured, and hundreds of thousands of those who are not are either very young; (the population that doesn’t believe they will ever get sick), people who can afford insurance but just don’t bother, or people poor enough to qualify for a government funded system.

[@AliciaGilbert180]

I've had insurance and not had insurance. I've waited like 8 hours before in emergency. Numerous times. I've had to declare bankruptcy because the hospital started garnishing my husband's wages leaving us barely enough to live on. I'm chronically ill. Trying to keep up with medical expenses is horrible.

[@jordanparker5949]

@@Goldun-nah Fear of debt seems to be the problem, not the health care system. People made their choices. Personal responsibility should not turned over to the gov't.

[@martinknoerr8037]

Here in Dallas my brother who hates the hospital, and doctors visits was in such pain, he called me and I was at work, and he said he's driving himself to the hospital. I said what!! So he told me what hospital he was at, and I took off from work, and when I got there he already was in surgery. Emergency appendectomy. His appendix were about to rupture, and started leaking in his system. Everything went well, and they kept him there for 2 days on heavy antibiotics to fight that infection. Of course here in the States we have no national health care. Thank goodness he has private insurance.

[@SeaBrzJo2]

Actually we DO have National Health care providers (Medicaid, Medicare, VA) for those that qualify.

[@poppyshoessp]

We do have it. It's called Medicaid.

[@MsMuffetsTuffet]

@@SeaBrzJo2 The Government ruins everything.

[@ChocoBabiChan]

So in America, we have ERs and Urgent Care's. Urgent Cares are for minor sicknesses and injuries. That alone cuts down on the wait times for ER's. Most big city hospitals now post their ER wait times online so you can judge where to go, but they will always triage everyone based on need. Depending on the day of the week, and time of day or night, sometimes you wait hours, and sometimes it's only minutes. Also, the most expensive medical procedures in the US is child birth and cancer treatments.

[@AureeyaElsinaen]

When I had appendicitis, I was in within 15 minutes when pain meds were administered. I am in America. This is insane. In any hospital I have been to, this would not happen. ERs will take this seriously.

[@davidcharlesfisher5692]

As a doctor I can confirm to you that when the on call surgeon gets called at 2 AM for acute appendicitis who was in the ER just 12 hours or less prior when they could've taken out his appendix during the afternoon or early evening rather than at 2 AM he or she is not a happy camper...not because of the patient but because the ER doctor just prolonged the patient's suffering and now the surgeon is going to be dragging all day that day from no sleep!

[@PieXP]

Crazy how this dude waited 5 hours when he could've been dying, didn't even find out what he had, and still shits on the US healthcare system and says that the NHS is great...

[@citrussage378]

Amen!

[@PYROHIAN89]

american healthcare is amazing, the cost, and the walls built to keep poor people from getting proper health care is disgusting, im homeless perm disabled, ive had medicaid free for 8 years, i get most things covered but they blanket deny anything that's not emergency, like a lot of my therapy for CPTSD, any tests they deem not necessary are a struggle for months and years for approvals, but the care i do get is mostly amazing the problem is our healthcare is a business and people are greedy, but lives should come first, america is divided more than ever and the sense of community is all but gone

[@Icantbelievethisshit2]

​@@PYROHIAN89I'm sorry you're in that situation. You are absolutely correct though. My Hubs and I were "underhoused?" for awhile; waiting for his disability to be approved (had to appeal etc). We were in a rural area so getting anywhere was difficult. The area food bank wasn't good but the volunteer medical staff at the church clinic were wonderful. Getting help is hard sometimes. They've basically criminalized being poor 😡

[@Icantbelievethisshit2]

I didn't think he shit on us but pointed out the obvious! He said the differences. Yeah it's faster here but it's gonna cost you.

[@donrainesoh]

@@PYROHIAN89what treatment for cptsd are they denying? Are you trying to get recreational drugs with it or something? I used Medicaid for my ptsd treatment while waiting for my VA claim and I never paid a dime and all testing and treatments were covered.

[@Marcus-p5i5s]

I took my daughter to the hospital in the USA and they immediately took her to radiology, found a blockage in the intestine and started treatment in 30 minutes. She had a private room with en-suite bathroom, shower and bath tub. A day bed for a parent (one of us stayed with her around the clock), TV, wi-fi and games. Great meals and whatever she wanted at the press of a button.

[@OkiePeg411]

In the 90s, my husband (who was a police officer in a large metro city) had a very bad abdominal pain. We went to his primary doctor, who just gave him a bottle of liquid medication. He got even worse and was in excruciating pain. I called our insurance nurse and demanded something to be done NOW. They told me to take him to a bigger city hospital. He didn't have to wait at all to be seen and was in surgery very quickly for appendicitis. I was angry at his primary doctor for not diagnosing him correctly and risking his life. The surgery was completely covered by our insurance. And, of course, a lot of money comes out of your paycheck for good insurance. Doctors/ hospitals will get their money one way or any other!!!

[@Catbgone]

Tummy trainers jumpers. Lol

[@Ohcin_Clowder_Father]

my local hospital is a level 5 trauma center and teaching hospital, so it's massive. If you're low income they will just pay your bill for you. Over the course of about 15 years my mom had 5 heart attacks, a stent put in, 5 bypass open heart surgery, and countless appointments with doctors and she never paid a dime. She had a lot of health issues and unfortunately she passed of congestive hear failure in 2014, but thanks to the excellent care she received at our hospital she got about 10 years more to enjoy life than was expected. When i was out of work and really sick with C-diff I was able to see multiple doctors and they paid my bill for me. Very grateful for the healthcare we have in the US.

[@tracyd3522]

All of that pain and frustration and he still didn’t get any answers?! US healthcare does have its problems, but what happened to him is outrageous. My longest wait in the ER, 15-20 minutes, left each time with a diagnosis. Was given proper pain treatment, and mostly a decent experience. If the ER is very busy, you're triaged. Still you’re not sitting for hours.

[@merlinathrawes746]

You must be in a rural area that doesn't have much traffic in it's ER. I'm in a relatively small city in Missouri and ER waits for anything other than serious injury can be hours.

[@tiffanymichaels2429]

I've had to wait hours.

[@BTinSF]

I should admit that when I got my gall bladder inflamed, the first ER visit in the US produced the same kind of uncertainty as in this case. The correct diagnosis happened on the second visit. And that often happens. Some conditions can be vague in their early stages and gradually become more classic in their presentation.

[@blakeclem1217]

We must live in different America's

[@marymeyer8185]

We’ve waited many hours. I dread the ER

[@donaldinnewmexico]

Lewis, the last time I went to the hospital, I went to the emergency room in extreme pain. I had gotten a Mersa infection after a wisdom tooth extraction. My face felt like it was in a vice. I had to wait 6 hours to be seen. It was horrible. I then spent 3 weeks in the hospital and had to have two surgeries to remove infected bone from my jaw. I spent three days in intensive care, waking only a couple of times, thinking I was very close to dying. It was my worst hospital experience.

[@cbirdman]

In the US or Britain?

[@rosiebarker6285]

That sounds like a nightmare 😢

[@johns7283]

I had gall stones which is extreme pain, and it took 4 hours I. Emergency waiting area before they brought me into back - and got hospitalized…I even stopped paying my post surgery bills, and let that fall off after 7 years

[@muguly4591]

Welp guess I'll die

[@alisummers7984]

I walked into my hospital ER with excruciating stomach pain - they took me back immediately- It ended up being a gallbladder attack and I was admitted for emergency surgery. That er experience of his sounds like a nightmare-

[@michelewood925]

Same here same issue

[@PrettyDeadThings]

I live in a city with a population of around 250,000. We have five major hospitals, and if I go to the ER, the wait is typically about 10 minutes. For something serious like appendicitis, I’d be seen immediately. When my brother broke his hand, he only waited 8 minutes. In contrast, my best friend lives in British Columbia, Canada. She hasn’t had a primary doctor in three years and is on a waiting list to get one. She only gets to see a nurse, who doesn’t provide much help. When she had bronchitis, she was given a three-week wait for a video call with the nurse, so she ended up treating herself at home. Her mom broke her foot over a year ago and is still waiting to see a specialist. The delay caused the bone to heal incorrectly, and now she walks with a limp. Universal healthcare isn’t free; it's funded by taxes and often falls short. I prefer paying a bit more out of pocket to see a doctor within 24-48 hours and spend only $5-15 on medications. I once had major back surgery that cost over $60,000, but I never saw a bill. From the time I saw my primary care physician, it took just one week to get scheduled for surgery. My husband and I pay $124 a week for our insurance through his job.

[@AurenGlytterkat]

Every time I’ve been to the ER, the wait has been minimum four hours… including when I had a severe kidney infection and kidney stones and I was literally vomiting and crying in pain in the waiting room…. Your experience is not universal…

[@jeanettegarrod-williams9150]

I have personally waited many hours in the ER. I had a friend over 30 years ago bleeding out of both ends and they still took hours before they finally saw her. I was literally screaming that she might be bleeding to death and she still had to wait.

[@michelewood925]

I went to the ER here in the US for stomach pain. Took me straight back and gave me pain meds then did an ultrasound and said you have to have your gallbladder out. I was in surgery in an hour.

[@MsMuffetsTuffet]

Most gallbladder surgeries are unnecessary. There are treatments to correct the problem. You got screwed by the industrial "health" complex.

[@RJFP67]

I’ve had two recent hospital stays. I was treated very well. I had private rooms both times and it makes a world of difference for you and your guests. I was seen in the emergency room within 15 minutes after registration . I was seen by the doctors within 5-10 minutes. Tests and X-rays followed right after. I am low income , but I do not qualify for Medicaid which is free healthcare for the poor. Medicare has worked out well for me with low fees and copays that I can easily afford. There are many levels to the American healthcare system with a lot of options for most people.

[@ShawtyzBack777]

Wait times in Chicago are HOURS! No matter what time of day or night. Since I moved to a suburb of Charleston, SC. I've never had to wait more than 10-15 mins. Granted it's mostly at night that pain is worse and I force myself to go but it's always been quick. Super grateful for that.

[@Actually_Ashley00]

I can confirm that the pain from a ruptured appendix is pretty intense. My daughter caught the flu back at the end of October. A few days later she wasn’t getting any better.. then we took her to the hospital… after tests they sent us home. Then next day she was in excruciating pain. I called her pediatrician and got her seen. Her pediatrician sent us to another hospital! We stayed there several hours.. with them doing more tests… turns out her appendix had ruptured. They then said they didn’t have a pediatric surgeon there so we had to be transported by ambulance at night to yet another hospital in the nearby city. I stayed there for several more days after she had surgery. They told me that usually they just give you meds and it usually fixes on it’s on. But, with her just getting over the flu and it being ruptured they took it out. So, over the course of a week and a half and 3 hospitals later she was finally fine. It, she had all those Same symptoms. It was rough!

[@carolcraig9008]

There are organizations that will pay for your operation if you are unable. My adult son had two emergency eye operations without health insurance. The hospital arranged with these specific organizations that paid for his operations that saved his eye.

[@marianncadmus9572]

Yes. Philanthropic organizations.

[@nathan8812]

So i jist looked it up a person making 63,000 USD in england is paying 25,100 in a year in "free" health care. Dont go to the hospital for 10 years, well you payed 250,100 in free health care. Enjoy.

[@Goldun-nah]

I know someone who doesn’t have healthcare and almost died during Covid and was hospitalized for weeks, underwent surgery for blood clots and suffered a heart attack and had to have triple bypass surgery their bill was over 900,000.

[@imperialknight3942]

​@@Goldun-nah you seem to know alot of people... on everyones post you mention you know some other person who got massive debt. Crazy how you k ow so many people that have these wild no insurance stories.

[@angietreiner-williams]

American hospitals take you by how serious the patient is. I have waited 6 hours to be seen and was admitted for a blood clot in my lung.

[@katS787]

Nurses don’t give diagnosis here in America, only the doctor can give a definite diagnosis and most of the time doctors are right the first time.

[@donrainesoh]

A nurse practitioner can diagnose and write prescriptions.

[@lauriemyers8510]

In the US our walk in clinics usually have triage within 5 minutes of walking in. Once done a decision is made on case by case basis. A person who can't breathe comes first, or someone having a heart attack. After that it goes according to the time you checked in.

[@dalemu1944]

There are many different health insurance policies you can get here in the USA, they are NOT all the same. Last year I had two surgeries. One was back/spinal surgery and the other was a prostate surgery. My insurance paid ALL the expenses 100%, I paid nothing out of pocket. Co-incidentally, I have a neighbor who had the exact same surgeries but different insurance from what I had and he ended up paying nearly $18,000 Co-pay out of pocket. He even had the same doctors I did. The total costs for both my surgeries was just a little over $50,000, again fully paid for by my insurance. By the way, the difference in the cost of his insurance policy from mine was $10 a month but he went with the cheaper policy because he thought he was saving money. The problem here is that a lot of people simply don't buy insurance or they buy the cheapest policy they can find.

[@dead-claudia]

yeah people don't realize a $10 difference in health insurance is almost a rounding error. also the cheapest plan is usually an absolute ripoff

[@suziet6176]

The UK “free” medical system sounds scary AF. My husband had several instances where he was suffering from immense pain (in 2 separate US states). He was seen very quickly and admitted to an overnight unit for monitoring. By the morning, the doctor will reevaluate the prognosis after all the necessary tests are completed (blood, urine, x-ray, ultrasound, MRI, etc, depending on the condition). If further attention is needed, they are admitted to another part of the hospital. Which my husband was for 3 days under 24-hour care. The nurses checked on him every couple hours and took his blood pressure, administered medications, got him ice and juice, etc. In one instance, insurance covered everything, but even without insurance, the hospitals will work with you to put together a payment program (with most of the costs reduced to an affordable total). Unless you’re having major surgery, most emergency situations are covered by insurance or affordable and some states offer free healthcare for low income people. I rather have peace of mind knowing I could go to any hospital and be seen immediately in an emergency. And yes, you can decide what hospital you want to go to. The U.S. has the best healthcare system (hospitals, doctors, specialists, nurses, etc) across the globe. It’s sad that the UK citizens don’t even know what “good healthcare” encompasses. At the end of the day, “free” can come at a heftier price.

[@TheEpicSpire]

this sounds like a horror story. i have never experienced that here in America. My dad had an appendicitis a few years ago, he is a tough bastard and drove himself to the hospital, they told him "oh shit, emergency surgery it is about to rupture" he had his surgery that night and went home 4 days later. The bill was pretty high but he paid it off in low monthly payments. as long as you make an effort to pay they can not do anything against you. but if you owe them money and try to go tot hospital for a NON EMERGENCY, they can tell you that you have to pay off what you owe or at least make a larger co pay/ down payment. but if it is an Emergency, then they can not refuse to help you so yeah, you can make installments and even qualify to have the payment picked up by other charitable donations. hospitals get a lot of donations and funding, but really only dip into those fund when the person with the bill is in real need. if you make 75k a year you are less likely to get an 11k bill forgiven. but if you make 23k a year and have a 11k bill you can get away with paying 20 to 50 a month for like 3 years and then the hospital will just eat the rest. it's honestly sad that this guy says he is from America and thinks a 3,000 medical bill would bankrupt him. Medical Bills are tax deductible and you do not have to pay it all at once. and the amount of Tax that i hear the UK has to pay in order to get that free healthcare, would be similar to just getting basic insurance. it baffles me that a country the size of the US is even being compared to the UK. the amount of money we would have to put into the healthcare system... that tax alone would bankrupt. we have state funded insurance for low income.. maybe not all states, but Tennessee has TennCare. it is not Great.. but it is something and if you qualify for that then you qualify to have what you can't pay to get eaten up by the hospital's denotations and stuff. and many churches offer to help pay and fund raisers exist.. it is no where near as bad as people make it out - in general

[@BTinSF]

Doctor here. I once ran an Emergency Room and have worked in several. I'm proud to say the folks who said it "was just a bug" back when he had something similar in the US may well have been right. I might as well say that when he described the initial pain as crampy and moving around, I pretty much discarded the notion of appendicitis in my own mind. Appendicitis is a pretty steady pain localized to the right lower quadrant of your "tummy'. OK, now on to the controversial. First of all, saying you're "a free-lancer and therefore don't have health insurance" is ridiculous. Fortunately only about 8% of Americans have made this awful choice. The beauty of a national health care system like Britain isn't that it's "free". It isn't. You pay in taxes and the beauty is they don't give you a choice about whether to pay those taxes so stupid people who wouldn't buy health insurance can't exercise their stupidity. As for insurance in the US: It has a number of magical qualities. It not only pays your bill but it almost always cuts that bill from the ridiculous amount the provider tries to charge to something a lot more reasonable. I like to say that some plans, including the US government's Medicare (which I'm now on) can cut that bill by up to 90%. Yes, that's right. When I had my gall bladder out, the hosptial billed something like $30,000 and Medicare "allowed" a charge of around $3000 and paid their standard 80% of that, leaving $600 which, in my case, my Medicare supplement policy paid. So wonder of wonders: It was just like in the UK--I paid nothing for this episode. My conclusion is that I like the idea of "Medicare for All" or some similar form of government-run health insurance but NOT government owned and run healthcare like in the UK. And it should be mandatory and paid along with your income taxes. As Obamacare originally promised and as the program the government runs for its own employees (including your Congressman) does, it could offer a number of plans all having the same coverage baselines but with some extras that you could pay additionally for (like Medicare Advantage). But doctors, hospitals and so on would still be privately owned and run and compete for your "business" based on quality, various aspects of their service (including, for example, ER waiting times as well as things like food and the pleasantness of the staff).

[@dead-claudia]

or at least a system where people have a default option unless they pay for insurance elsewhere or, money permitting, can self-insure (in which insurance and out-of-pocket expenses should be a tax write-off). medicare is notoriously a hit or miss, so many medicare-eligible people still go for private insurance anyways

[@BTinSF]

@@dead-claudia I've never heard of a "medicare-eligible person" going for "private insurance". Possibly you are referring to Medicare Advantage plans which are part of the Medicare system in which Medicare pays for insurance from one of the private companies which may offer some extra benefits like coverage for glasses or even a gym membership, but often with restrictions such limitation to use of "preferred providers" or certain contracted hospitals. Medicare beneficiaries have the option of choosing one of these plans, but like I said: I'm a doctor and when I'm really sick I want to be able to go to any provider anywhere without limitations so I chose "traditional Medicare". Here's how the Wall Street Journal put the future for these plans, ". . . the gold rush is over for investors, at least for now. After years of reports, lawsuits and whistleblower accounts accusing big insurers of gaming the system and overcharging the government, the Biden administration has made a series of policy changes that have negatively affected what the plans get paid." Let's face it--just as somebody is paying for medical care, if you add the overhead and profit of a private insurer on top of the cost of actual medical care, something's got to lose. I truly believe in this case both the government and the patient loses and the private insurance company has, until now, been winning.

[@jjbud3124]

I agree with you. I worked for doctors and hospitals most of my life and have watched the takeover of medical care by corporations. They buy out hospitals, insurance companies, private practices - everything. They make huge profits, which profits go into executives' and shareholders pockets and never into patient care. That is NOT the way to run medical care. The same thing is happening to veterinarians. Both these branches of medical care are a huge drain on patients' wallets. You are lucky enough to have the funds to buy your supplemental policy. Many folks on Social Security cannot afford a supplemental. They have to go for Medicare Advantage and take the risk of being denied care and have to deal with referrals and longer wait times and fewer doctors to choose from. If they go for Medicare alone, paying 20% co-pays s not easy for them. The care in the US, if you have the money, is second to none, but we have high infant mortality, and lower lifespans than other countries because not everyone can afford insurance and deductibles and co-pays. The system is great for those who can afford it, but our overall outcome for the entire population is shameful when compared to other wealthy countries. This has gotten worse over the years. Our health care system should not be owned by corporations for their profit. When I was young, in the 1950's and 1960's, insurance and medical costs were much lower in comparison to what they are now. I was hospitalized once for a few days as a young married person with no insurance. We were able to fairly easily pay that hospital bill over the next year, an impossible task today. The UK's system was once better, but it is underfunded. There are other countries with outcomes that put the US to shame. The United States is SIXTY-NINTH in the world for health outcomes, just behind Armenia. The UK is 34th. The US rates 47th in life expectancy, the UK 30th. Something is wrong with our system and theirs. It is corporate greed and lack of access in the US and underfunding in the UK. If you are a poor person and you have a $1000 deductible, you're not going to get medical care unless you're deathly ill. If you have Medicaid, the care doesn't compare in quality to what the fully insured get. The United States per person out of pocket expenses for medical care is TRIPLE the cost of the countries with the best outcomes $12000 a year vs. $4000. That says it all. One reason for this is American greed and the feeling of many that they want NONE of their tax money going to help others. I always wonder if they can get it through their heads that THEIR own costs would go down tremendously in a tax-based system with corporate profit removed from the system. It's depressing.

[@jjbud3124]

@@BTinSF She must be thinking of supplemental insurance.

[@mariaburchette4205]

Our healthcare and insurance is so high because of the people who use the emergency room as a doctor’s office and have no way to pay. Mainly illegal immigrants.

[@quirkyviper]

I've never been to the HOSPITAL and waited less than 2hrs to be seen. This comes with caveats - 1) They do triage you while you're waiting. So they can prioritize ppl who might have a bullet wound or in life or death situations. 2) I've visited other ppl in other towns where the wait is much shorter or longer. So it varies from hospital to hospital. 3) Urgent Care and Walk In Clinics are significantly faster, and you can make a last-minute appointment online in some. They'll even show you your place "in line" so you know when to arrive with less wait, but there are fewer treatments they can do there. Sometimes, they have to just send you to the hospital anyways. At this point, if it's not a life or death situation, I have my routine of quickly grabbing my blanket, headphones, charger, Switch, and snacks down pat.

[@dead-claudia]

yeah it seems one part of how the nhs could improve their systems is by triaging in-person before the wait, so they can better route people to where they need (and also get better results for certain tests) also this triage info can be shared with other doctors to save time and avoid duplicate diagnostic checks. also, us hospitals make abundantly certain to call up other hospitals and get necessary data transferred the moment they hear a diagnosis like appendicitis was made elsewhere, so they can avoid time-consuming re-testing - we have a various networks (some public some private) operated specifically to speed that process up as well. if nhs people lack a system, it needs set up, and if the nhs people didn't think to check it, they need trained to.

[@5avan10]

It really does depend on what city (or part of the city) your hospital is located. It also makes a big difference what day and time you go in. On weekends and in the evenings they are jam packed. You don't want to have to go to the ER at 10PM on a Saturday. But if you go in on a Tuesday at 5AM, you will probably have much less of a wait.

[@Meshee64]

My husband and I went on vacation. When we were there, we decided to go on a tour. As my husband was getting into a van (Note, he is blind), there was a wobbly step, he ends up hitting his head on the van entrance and gets gash on his head. we go to the hospital and they immediately take him into a room which then it took a little over 6 HOURS! of waiting. The doctor was in and out to order tests and close the bash (8 staples).

[@garyi.1360]

My brother missed stepping onto a boat leaving the isle of Capri. He fell onto the edge of the boat then into the Med. We were three days from leaving Italy. He took one day to try some recovery then resumed the planned activities because he actually felt better to walk than sitting or laying. After a train trip to Naples, a flight to Rome, a flight to Los Angeles, and a third flight home he returned to work the next day and the day after that he decided to visit the emergency room of the local hospital when what he thought was bruising wasn't making much progress in healing. He did have a lot of bruising, X-rays and exams showed 6 broken ribs and a partially collapsed lung. There's not really much they can do for ribs and the lung was restoring itself. He could just have follow up to confirm the healing which took about 6-7 weeks. Capri was beautiful but I don't think he's got the best feeling for it. The US hospital was fine. They got him right in and did all the exams and X-rays that day within a few hours all told. He paid not much for the visit and such. He later checked on what it would have cost in Italy for the same exams and X-rays. It would have been ridiculously expensive there. And still there's not really anything to be done for his injuries. He says he had the cost of foreign care in his mind when declining to go to a hospital in Italy. The US hospital didn't believe him at first when he said he'd traveled from Italy with the injuries.

[@Genxxxxx]

I've waited 4 to 5 hours in the E R

[@AZHITW]

@@Genxxxxx My husband passed out in the waiting room at the ER with a kidney stone after waiting for hours, but we live in a large city and the accident victims, gunshot and stabbing victims have priority over kidney stones no matter how much it hurts.

[@shannonwilson1314]

My hubby had severe pain. Went to ER. Urin & blood samples, ultrasound, saw dr couple times, had nurse checking regularly. In and out in 3 hours. About $5000 as self pay (no insurance). But had good quick care. Worth it. In Canada my BiL had stroke and was sent home 3 times in 24 hours.

[@mitchellguerrerio]

If I need to go to the ER, I’m prepared to wait unless it’s clearly serious then they generally admit you right away. Otherwise, you make an appointment to see your doctor

[@ThatBabeThomasFamilyVlogs]

I had to take my husband to the ER because he had internal bleeding due to cancer. We waited in the ER for over 4 hours before we were even taken to the back to be seen. I also went to A different ER when I suffered a gallbladder attack. I waited 6 hours before getting admitted. This all happened in Upstate NY.

[@XRP2020]

Is healthcare actually free?? Don't y'all pay absurd taxes yearly?

[@sandpiperr]

Yeah imagine your tax dollars going to healthcare instead of tax cuts for billionaires. Wild.

[@johnl5316]

@@sandpiperr The top 10% of income earners pay more than 60% of all federal taxes& 76% of all income taxes... The bottom 20% pay no income tax in the USA.

[@OmahaGirl]

@@johnl5316Omg Fox News has you embarrassing yourself on social media 😂

[@XRP2020]

@@johnl5316 Thank you for stating reality. Everybody shames high earners & demand we pay more. Wish everybody knew how much tax high earners pay yrly.

[@XRP2020]

@@sandpiperr Pay over $400k yrly so understand tax cuts for billionaires

[@cbirdman]

According to the CDC the national average ER wait time is 1 hour in the US. Even if you can’t afford it, there are plenty of options from Medicare to financing that can pay for most if not all of the costs.

[@merlinathrawes746]

I have two children that work in our area's largest hospital, neither are medical staff. My daughter is in EVS (janitorial) and the other is in patient placement. He's the guy that finds a bed for the patient once medical staff decides to admit someone to the hospital. The biggest problem for that is a shortage of nurses and aides which limits how many patients can be cared for.

[@jscott1115]

My husband here in America, went to the ER with a Blood Clot after his knee Replacement and they took him right back and they admitted him. My son also went with stomach pains, sweating, slight fever, they admittedly told him he needed his Appendix needed to come out!

[@enjoydride1083]

In an American hospital they have a triage nurse who takes down your symptoms and history them puts you in order of emergency status. So a critical patient is instant care, ricky next, it can wait or see your general doctor last. So if you just have a cold or a minor cut don't waste your time going you will heal before being seen and be charged a huge amount on top of it.

[@marksmith4892]

but that's how it should be frankly. if you have the sniffles you shouldn't be burdening the emergency room ffs. take some vitamin C and cold medication and get over it because guess what the doctor is going to hand you a box of kleenex and some tylenol and say go home and sleep, drink some juice, eat something if you can. Well it's different if you're elderly 'cause then simple things can become life threatening but if you're just a healthy young adult don't call an ambulance 'cause you have a runny nose.

[@nerdgir1]

​@@marksmith4892 lol and they will charge you $375 for the box of tissues and $700 for the Tylenol if you get it at the ER 😅

[@kv6826]

One would think this is how it works. However this is NOT actually how it truly works now is it? Tell the truth! The medical profession doesn’t “Get it right” all the time. • Example: Patient A arrives with “normal” vital signs Patient B arrives vomiting 🤮 that rattles the whole of the waiting area. Patient B is taken to a room away from the waiting area nearly immediately. Patient A is in a corner quietly vomiting bl00d 🤮 in a bag & in fact has been internally bleeding for over 24hrs, has actually LOST 1/2 their bl00d volume (which needs a transfusion), is near d€@th; BUT their vitals just so happen to be “normal” according to the staff during their 8hr wait in the hospital waiting area….. • Now again the US “healthcare” system that is on a triage basis welllll…. I would have to ask again are they really? Because I have witnessed time, and time, and time again just how much it’s NOT. ****Note**** The individual had GREAT healthcare coverage. The hospital 🤬 Welllll….

[@patrickcox8990]

@@kv6826 i didnt know bots could have mental breakdowns

[@kv6826]

@@patrickcox8990 in today’s world day seems everyone is at risk. Folks just aren’t the same anymore

[@JJ_ExMachina]

Years ago, I worked in Germany. Got injured on the job, tore the right distal tendon off the bone and my right bicep retracted up my arm. A trailer tongue caster wheel collapsed and snatched my arm. Went to the Emergency room, where they proceeded to tell me that I needed to pay $5k since I didn't qualify for the NHS. SO yeah paid the $5k got the MRI and than since I was paying out of pocket they would do the "updated" procedure. Ended up costing me roughly $20k. Recently I got injured at work, and our workers compensation system took care of everything. I have not had to pay anything for the treatment and surgery. They even provided an 80% wage compensation for the time I was off work. My experience in the USA was far better than my experience in Germany.

[@ctom1985]

We have urgent care facilities here in Texas that you can make an appointment online and wait at home. They ask for the estimated time if will take you to get to their facility. They call you to come in. You go in and they take you right in. Healthcare is better of you have health insurance. Some health insurance is better than others. Never get a HMO insurance. Always try to get a PPO insurance policy.

[@dead-claudia]

ppo > anything else for almost everyone

[@valoriemurray2688]

So very thankful for our American healthcare system even my very worst time was a million times better than this

[@snoopywoodstock7246]

In America, if you have to go the the hospital unexpectedly, the ER like he did, the experiences can be the same. This is especially if you are in city or busy area. It doesn’t matter if you have health insurance or not. It all depends on how busy the ER is.

[@alisonflaxman1566]

Never ever had to wait that long.

[@alisonflaxman1566]

Never ever had to wait that long.

[@ravenm6443]

Absolutely! I’ve experienced this.

[@snoopywoodstock7246]

@@alisonflaxman1566 I had to go to the ER while on vacation in Seattle. I had to wait a couple of hours and when I was finally brought into a room, I had to wait even longer, on and off. This was at a hospital on the outskirts of Seattle.

[@Augrills]

During COVID it was like that but seems to be returning to normal

[@AmandaWard-r9z]

I've been to the emergency room 4 times. 1 time stroke symptoms... they took me straight to help when I walked in, once for breathing problems... asthma... they took me straight in for help. Once for a ruptured appendix, immediate help. Blood clot... they met me outside with a wheelchair and took me right in. Zero wait on any of those. I did not have a job for the ruptured appendix and blood clots... each resulted in a week in the hospital with no insurance or money. They wrote off 100% of the costs and saved my life each time. Funny story for the ruptured appendix. I didn't know I had an exploded organ so I was toughing it out for 4 days. When I finally gave in and went to the hospital, I had gangrene in my intestines. The ER doctor gave me the news.... I said it could be worse to which he replied... " yes, you could be in the Amazon rainforest with a shaman shaking a chicken foot over your head! Lol My personal experiences have been positive but I have also heard horror stories about what other people have experienced.

[@johnl5316]

No health care is free.

[@RyanHughes-y2l]

And those longs wait times are one of the direct results of the system.

[@jamesleyda365]

Damn right about that!

[@OmahaGirl]

Yeah we know. Let it go 🙄

[@OmahaGirl]

@@RyanHughes-y2lThem explain the 8-12 hour wait times in the ER I work at in the US?

[@kimmy6639]

Right, I don't think he realizes that's why thier income is half of ours.

[@fivegingers7329]

I had unbelievable pain during my labour with 3 three babies, which lasted for weeks on end, and I found myself screaming, which helped elevate the pain. So, I tell others to loudly cry if it makes them feel better when in anguish.

[@johnl5316]

here in FLORIDA I have been to walk-in clinics (urgent care clinic) and waited maybe 15 minutes

[@zubygirlmbrigm5947]

I'm glad that the hospital kicked you out quickly if they were not going to help you. It's worse if they took your money and didn't help you at all. To get rid of kidney stones, eat raw beets. Rinse the greens of the raw beets over and over to get all the dirt off. Put the greens in a blender with 2 cups of water and drink the juice. If you have any kidney stones left in your kidney, the raw beets will help wash it out.

[@gerrywilliams3462]

Really? Last time I went (FL) I waited 3 hours. Time before that at least 2. It depends on what time you go and what urgent care

[@ms.krueger2660]

Urgent care sucks. They won’t do anything for you. I am In Mobile Alabama.

[@sdandrea8171]

Went to a walk in clinic after my elderly cat panicked and bit me instead of the care giver. I waited maybe 10 minutes to be seen, got an antibiotic and filled out the necessary county info on animal bites. WHEN you go is important. I arrived minutes before closing at 8 PM.

[@jamesmessina436]

America has the best hospitals ever

[@MyTexasLife]

I actually negotiated the price to have my son at a private hospital because I was cash pay. Got it cheaper than the public hospital.

[@cindyknudson2715]

You can go VERY wrong with FREE. The elderly mother of my friend in the UK fell in her home. My friend, her daughter, couldn't get to her and they called an ambulance. *11 HOURS* later the ambulance got there. 11 hours. She'd cracked and broken ribs, etc. Hospitalized. I believe she lasted a couple of weeks before she passed away.

[@carrielawooto9933]

My SIL was visiting the UK and saw a very elderly woman fall and hit her head. The ambulance came 2 hours later! My SIL said the lady was probably dead. Her dad, who lived in the UK, would tell her "if you're not a producer (have a job and making money), you're not a priority". He told her all the elderly knew it.

[@kenbrown2808]

in the worst case, in my town, during COVID, they had patients waiting in the ambulance for up to 4 hours waiting for room to wait some more in the hospital.

[@StevenBeckerman]

I went to the ER and spent 7 hours waiting. By the time they saw me, I had vomited several times, and explosive diarrhea several times. They put me on antibiotics and sent me home, and I received a bill for over $700, and insurance picked up over $2,000. All to see a doctor for about 15 minutes.

[@KellyJelly9976]

I remember hearing this story and thinking if free healthcare is like this then I am glad I pay for mine. American hospitals (the ones I have been to) are absolutely NOT like this. I think the horrifying part for me is that WHAT IF IT WAS APPENDICITIS? He could've died. The wait is scary. Is it because not enough nurses not enough staff? Its nice that when all is said and done you don't pay much, but the initial screening and even sitting in the hospital with them not knowing if he was silently dying is worrisome.

[@grandpoobahful]

"The dead cost nothing" Edward Longshanks

[@OkiePeg411]

Years ago, it was in the news that there was such a shortage of doctors and dentists in Europe that the US was having to send doctors and dentists s over there.

[@BTinSF]

One more time: THERE IS NO FREE HEALTHCARE. You pay through taxes or you pay through voluntary insurance of your choice or you pay (often a LOT more) when you are uninsured and the hospital bills you.

[@claregale9011]

They were obviously aware it was not appendicitis

[@carolcraig9008]

My British boss brought his mother in England to The U. S.. for a knee replacement surgery because she was in so much pain . She couldn’t walk because the severity of pain plus she was on a waiting list of longer than 6 months!

[@CatTastic65]

If you went to the ER in the US and were told you had appendicitis they would have admitted you and set you up for surgery immediately. If your appendix bursts you could die before you got back to the hospital. That is terrible. Pay for your healthcare. And in the US...can you say lawsuit. This would not happen in my experience. If you are not really an emergency and others are, you will wait. Otherwise you go to an urgent care center and no it is NOT expensive if you have insurance. And since everyone is supposed to have insurance, there you go. If you had a copay of 11000 (thank you for screwing up the healthcare system Obomination) you can make monthly payments of what you can afford. Before Obomination, I would have paid a max of $500 with my insurance for hospitalization regardless of the total costs. But Obomination (that was a prior president in case you do not know) screwed up the healthcare system...why? because he could).

[@MsMuffetsTuffet]

The evils of Socialism. Theft is what it is. 0bamination "care" is right!

[@Sobergirl_]

We have billboards along the street that tell you how long of a wait the ER has for a particular hospital. It usually ranges between 10-20 minutes, depending on the time of day. Once you get to your bed or room, now that is a different story. The average total time in an ER visit is probably around 2-3 hours for a minor emergency with no overnight stay. Here in Indiana at least.

[@marilynleveque2497]

Yes we wait in the USA even if private or insured. All have Insurance in California. If poor they have Medi-Cal or CenCal and as an RN they are all treated the same. We only wait if Emergency is busy. Most go to walk in CHCs (Community Health Centers) and Emergency room only if serious.

[@alisonflaxman1566]

In Michigan I've never had to wait hours in ER.

[@noahg4369]

you've waited 5 hours in ER? with 0 tests made on you?

[@ThriftedSpirit]

My son was in a car wreck, to the hospital for 6 hours, one MRI, 24000 and he's military, no other insurance. I had cancer, a hysterectomy for 100k, all paid by insurance. I had heart problems, probably because of the cancer not that they could figure that out, but every time I walked into an ER I had a doctor almost immediate. When my son at one sliced his hand open we waiting in the hospital for hours. Other patients were mad they wouldn't take him back, but by this point he didn't care and was happily playing vs the guy a few rows down that had caught his wedding ring on something and looked like he might lose his finger and in major pain. It's a worst case goes first.

[@mr.squeaky8394]

I'm 65 and I've lived in various areas in the U.S. I don't recall ever waiting more than 15 minutes except once when visiting an ER for a non-life threatening problem surrounded by people in worse shape than me. I've had surgeries scheduled a week out (except for Covid lockdown period when I had to wait).

[@JOYFULLYME]

Having worked in the ER in a hospital wait time depends on a few things. One, the level of trauma that you are having, if you are having symptoms of heart attack, stroke, bleeding out etc you are seen immediately, if your coughing then you can wait a while to be seen. Most the time though, most the wait was about 30minutes to 1 hour worst case is when we get ambulances in the back with high level trauma, which puts things on hold. During early morning its usually busy, and after lunch until dinner time. Then evenings usually is slower and you can be seen almost immediately. So depends on time of day and level of trauma will be how fast you are seen.

[@pinktastic6159]

My Canadian friend had to move across Canada to get the surgery she needed in a time frame so she could be able to keep walking. In her province it was going to be over a year. She moved and got it in three months. America: immediate Also America: Ohhh look at all the 3rd world countries! Let's pay for all their basic medicine and help with their health care!

[@MsMuffetsTuffet]

Other countries should pay for their own people. I'm tired of being robbed of my labor to pay for moochers.

[@dawnd7593]

Usually, an emergency room wait time can be 4 - 5 hours or more depending on how busy that particular hospital is (regardless of what type of insurance you have). But, usually after each visit, you get an "discharge summary" document that shows which doctor treated you, what treatments you received and the diagnosis for that visit. That documentation can help and be used to show the next hospital if you need to come back such as, if symptoms get worse, etc. Also, obviously we don't have a govt NHS here except that there is usually state government insurance available to people who qualify who are usually low-income or un-employed. Otherwise, people generally have to pay for private medical insurance.

[@thealphaak822]

I had to go the hospital a few years ago here in Georgia, and because I didn't have insurance they offered a settlement payment which took off 95% of the bill. The visit itself didn't take, but maybe 2 hours at most, and I only waited for like 5 minutes. I'd still rather have this than free healthcare. I don't care what anyone says, objectively American healthcare is amazing.

[@GoddessFourWinds]

Most people end up having to declare bankruptcy because of healthcare costs.

[@bishop1]

​@@GoddessFourWinds No one declares bankruptcy over medical bills in the United States 😂

[@Anna-B]

@@GoddessFourWindswhere did you get that from? Most people have insurance. And those who don’t won’t necessarily loose so much money they need to declare bankruptcy

[@balmylobster5261]

I had my pay garnished for medical bills. I Almost ended up homeless because of if. I didn't have the money for that let alone the money to go bankrupt. If I did have the money I would have filed.

[@bishop1]

@@balmylobster5261 They can't take your money without your permission, that's not how it works in the United States. It's clear that you're British because that's against the law in the United States, and regardless how much you owe in medical bills hospitals still have to treat you. It's hilarious when British people try to pretend that they're American 😂 you people are easy to spot.

[@iflick7235]

I just did a stint in "Hospital" as I've heard them say in the UK. I have excellent health insurance. Private room, cable television, post care recovery, my meals were served on linen tablecloths with linen napkins.

[@Spooklilly-Latina4Freedom]

Innovations in medicine typically come from the US because it's a profit system. It makes sense that if you're getting more money for a better service you'll work toward improving that service. The reason drugs (usually US made drugs) are cheaper in other countries is also because we subsidize that. The system isn't perfect & definitely needs reworking to INCREASE competition (of healthcare companies were allowed to compete cross country we'd get cheaper rates, but gov/Corp collusion prob) but a gov run healthcare will always be lower quality & could easily demand things of u like getting jabs. I dunno about anybody else but I've noticed gov run things usually suck, don't want them running my healthcare like the DMV 😂

[@lyleandrew6891]

I worked in the ER almost 8 years in the US and never saw anything like this. What i did see was recidivism from people who were on government Healthcare plans, coming in with mosquito bites but claiming they were snake bites; returning for a pregnancy test every 4 or 5 days while they try to get more free money from the state; coming to the ER by ambulance, then leaving to go grocery shopping before being triaged... Yep, it was fun.

[@VanScott69]

In Reno, NV, you'll sit in the waiting room of the emergency room for 4-12 hours. Unless you go in an ambulance on deaths door, yer screwed. And you'll go into debt over it...

[@donrainesoh]

There are hospitals just like this in the uk.

[@posorgirl54]

I am from America, and yes we have long wait times as well. My daughter's tongue was swelling up and waited in the Emergency Room for at least 2-3 hours before they took her to be checked. Then another 3-4 hours to do pretty much nothing and prescribed meds. And said to do a follow up appt.

[@spyrus_4359]

Some of these stories are weird. I walked into a clinic with a swollen jaw (infection), and they were ready to see me almost before I finished the paperwork. Edit***this was in northern Utah

[@spyrus_4359]

That being said, the drugs they prescribed worked on the infection, but caused other issues for me for a LONG time. I'm still dealing with them 1 1/2 years later. And I paid over $2k for all of that (with insurance) So? What does that mean? Is the US medical system better? Maybe. And then again maybe not.

[@LillySmith09]

Where I live, in North Central FL, the closest hospital is 1 hour away. There isn't a long wait, never more than an hour here. It's nothing like that here. THANK GOD! I've had a few surgeries this year and my highest part I had to pay on 1 was $6500. $1400 on another and $3600 on the 3rd.

[@Amyscosas]

I think he would have had an ultrasound if they suspect appendicitis - I spent 21 hours in the emergency room waiting for a procedure for my heart I had heart monitor on but it can be really crazy

[@dead-claudia]

the heart monitor was probably so they could know right away if you became an imminent emergency and for the delay, you likely needed a specialist that normally has everything planned out for weeks in advance - some of them might only see a few emergencies a month. the specialists might have just either not been there or had their hands full already (and the us has long been short on heart surgeons)

[@cindydee8475]

I've been on both ends of severity at the ER, one after a head on collision (was unconscious upon arriving by ambulance) and another time with pneumonia. The long wait he described sounds somewhat similar to the county hospitals in Souther California, depending on the day and time of day. However, they immediately do try and assess how critical your condition is in by taking your vitals, and information the moment you walk thru the doors.

[@johnl5316]

At my regular MDs office I wait maybe 15 min or get in early

[@shaunalea823]

If you get a bill from the hospital you can make payments no matter how small they can’t do anything to you. Also a lot of hospitals have charity care so if you are with it’s a certain threshold you can get most of the bill forgiven.

[@wishingb5859]

Well, I currently don’t have a job in the USA and had to go to the hospital and if you have zero income, health care is free in the USA. You can’t go to every single specialist that you want but there are specialists who will take you. I spent 5 nights in the hospital and had a procedure and didn’t get charged even one penny.

[@OkiePeg411]

Same for me with a t I rn retina. Specialist didn't cost anything.

[@Augrills]

People don’t understand this about the US healthcare. If you don’t answer the calls, they can’t take your money lol. They can’t deny you medical care, you just might not get the best medical care

[@dianedeck9790]

yes if you have medicaid or are indigent the hospital will write it off. Make no mistake it wasn't free they get that money back by charging outrageous prices to people who do have a job.

[@wishingb5859]

@@dianedeck9790 Yes. This is the first year that I didn’t have a job. So this was the first year I found out that these options existed at all.

[@wishingb5859]

@@dianedeck9790 I am not on Medicaid. I am on free State medical and I am so grateful because I suddenly didn’t have an income and needed to spend 5 nights in the hospital.

[@cheezy_tater]

Our ED can take 7+ hours depending on what's going on, but wait times/late times for scheduled appointments RARELY exceed 30mins at the private clinic/hospital where I work. Payment plans are available for most patients as long as they pay on time, and for some, charity care is an option.

[@nydiawoods532]

This guy is sooo funny 😂

[@jeslamfers]

I am an American and I haven't waited more than an hour in the ER... majority of the time it's a thirty minute wait. If I had my kids in pain crying and they had to wait hours I would loose my mind. I also have a cousin who is an RN and she said unfortunately the cost of our health care has gone up because they have to pay for so much insurance because people try to sue the medical staff and hospitals all the time. Also illegal immigrants come in and use the hospital system and don't pay their bills majority of the time which makes cost go up as well.

[@jennb7974]

So March of 2023, my husband had stomach pains at 3 o'clock in the afternoon on a Sunday, we decided to wait it out. At about 7 the pain hadn't gone away and it was actually starting to get worse, so I took him to the ER. We got in a room at 9, they gave him pain meds at 10:30, a CT scan and strep test at 10:45. Was diagnosed with appendicitis and strep throat at 11:30 and was scheduled for surgerythe next day. They were short staffed and didn't have a room for him in the surgery wing so stayed in the ED until 4 am and was transferred to a room there at the hospital. He had surgery at 1pm Monday and was brought back to the room where he was until Tuesday at 5 pm. In total, our insurance was billed over $68,000 and we had to pay $2700 out of pocket (and we still have 1900 left to pay). The hospital staff was great, they were helpful and considerate of his pain, but the cost of Healthcare in America is just incredibly debilitating, especially to those without insurance.

[@sallyperrie3007]

I had an appendicitis attack 5 years ago. When they told me in the ER they wanted to admit right then at 11pm with surgery at 9am. I told them I had to leave for a couple hours, I had to sign an AMA to get out (against medical advise) with the understanding that my appendix could burst at any time and I could die. I just googled the bit about an appendix resolving itself 70% of the time and that appears to be way false. I can’t believe they sent you away from the hospital

[@charlieb9502]

In the states, they will never give you meds in the waiting room. And the wait will be can be 4 hours or more unless you have a life threatening condition. And his visit in the USA would have costed over $15k

[@dianethomas9384]

Medical care costs the same around the world depending on the economy, the difference is who pays for it. I choose to pay for super great insurance and accept for an inhaler which over the counter casts $1,500!, and for which I pay $28.00, I pay nothing out of pocjet!

[@TedBronson1918]

I've never had anything close to a 4 hour wait at a hospital. Once, on a very busy day, I had a wait of 45 minutes, but that was because a couple of emergencies rolled in. In my experience, when I've seen someone experiencing significant pain in the waiting room, that person usually got moved to the head of the line. Most of my experience has been in VA hospitals, though I've been getting some care at a local civilian hospital lately.

[@sharidocherty3995]

My father in law born and raised in Scotland, did 20 yrs in the royal navy, then came to the atates and joined us. Navy did 30 years. Stayed in the U.S. for 30 years, then moved back to Scotland. Went to the doctor and was told he had heart problems and was given an appointment 6 months out so my mother in law sent him back to the states we got him an appointment at the VA( military doctors), they came out 15 minutes later saying they sent him to hospital he had no heart problems but pancreatic cancer and lost 2/3 of body's blood had surgery that day. If they had waited for an appointment with NHS, he would have died