I think averagejoe remarked that it helped if you knew where the excellent doctors were. It is always helpful to know how to manipulate a system. I bet there is better care in big cities where there are research hospitals, and in leafy affluent suburbs, than in sparsely populated areas.
Of course I don't know what was wrong with your son, but the British health care system is pretty good for injury care and urgent care. It is less good for heart surgeries and hip replacements. The wait can be so long for hip replacements that the elderly patients weaken and then die of other causes in the months they are waiting. We may end up living in Northern Ireland at some point, so the British system is of great interest to me.
The Irish Republic has an interesting system, where you pay a yearly premium for health care to a private company, but everyone is on it, so the costs are relatively low and the risk is spread out, of course. The very poor get their care from the state. Ireland's population is relatively quite young and healthy compared to that of the rest of Europe, which I think keeps costs down. The nice thing is that if you think you will need specialized care during the year, or you have the money and just want the very best, you can choose a deluxe version including the Black Rock Clinic, which is where Ireland's best specialists practice. Or you can go for the cheaper version, which doesn't include that but offers fine basic care. The plans have alphabet letters, like the old ride system at Disneyland. |
