i need a prescription for antibiotics. basically, i need to see a doctor for all of 20 minutes. in a cost-efficient system, i would be able to arrange this. especially since i actually HAVE INSURANCE. yes, you read that correctly. i have health insurance. health insurance that i have NEVER used, incidentally. i called four different places, and they weren't taking new patients or they had no appointments available. i have a raging bacterial infection that needs attention NOW. i have a fever and i'm sick to my stomach NOW. i don't want to wait until i actually have a life-threatening staph infection in my bloodstream, thank you very much. want to know the best option given to me by these wonderful medical professionals working in The Greatest Bestest Health Care System In The World That Is So Much Better Than That Pinko Commies Nest Soviet Canuckistan?
go to the emergency room.
now, why didn't i think of that before? it's *such* a wise and efficient use of our health care resources, after all. isn't that what the emergency room is for? to lance boils and hand out prescriptions? clearly, it's not for treating heart attack and accident victims needing immediate attention. instead of costing my stupid ass insurance company a few hundred dollars for a quick office visit with a nurse, i'm supposed to go the emergency room where it will cost my insurance company thousands of dollars instead. for an easily treated, common condition --- a boil.
would some of you panglossian fucks step up to the plate and explain to me again why our system is Teh Leet? really, i want you to explain to me in detail why it is a shining pinnacle of capitalist efficiency. remember, dumbass -- i have health insurance. i am speaking from the position of someone who is COVERED.
Thursday, June 30, 2005
My Rant About America's Shitty Health Care System
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3 comments:
it is incredibly inefficient and run by monkeys. it's a bureaucratic mess with bottlenecks galore, where you need connections to get care. with that being said, tell me what you are eventually prescribed, and i'll see what i can do. if this problem comes up again, you can have a stash of antibiotics. :)
i guess the only thing that makes the canadian system worse is that even if you *have* money or connections or live in a city with posh hospitals (note: the sparser populated towns have the poshest hospitals - new york city has hospitals that are reminiscent of mental wards) you can't jump to the front of the line.
the last time i had a UTI i ended up dialing a bunch of my friends to see if they could prescribe stuff over the phone, and i got someone who did. sad huh?
i finally sucked it up and took the 40 minute subway ride to go to UMass health services. it was excruciating and i nearly vomited, but i made it. then two nurses took turns pulling my butt cheeks apart to look at my infected cyst. i walked away with a ten day supply of antibiotics and codeine for the pain. my ass hurts a lot less now.
all i needed was a prescription for antibiotics, and i didn't want to travel a long way to get it because it hurt to walk, sit, and not to be unconscious. i will be fine now that i've got something to combat the infection.
you're taking me too literally, btw. i was suffering, frustrated, and generally pissed off that i couldn't get medical care that didn't require an agonizing ride on the subway. so, of course, i'm going to bitch and moan.
to get more doctors, we're going to have to go through the AMA. they aren't eager to dilute the high earnings of doctors. hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans and years of schooling and training kinda figure into that, i guess.
alas, i cannot make it to yosemite this august. i already missed three days of work this week due to the pilonidal cyst problem. i can probably take a trip next year. this year, we are madly trying to finish development of a new instrument. they just got a major new account that's riding on it.
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