Hello, Canadians of Lemmy! Down in the USA there is a lot of conflicting information regarding the efficacy of y’alls healthcare systems. Without revealing my personal bias, I was hoping for some anecdotes or summaries from those whom actually live there.
I’m in Sweden which I think has a very similar situation. Trying to get an appointment is a pain and they always seem to have too much to do. Getting help can drag on for years.
But then you end up in an emergency and suddenly you witness a well-oiled machine where everybody knows their role yet everybody prioritizes the big picture. It follows procedure when possible but it’s always pragmatic.
It is beautiful competence porn, and costs $30 for the patient.
That’s awesome that you can say “well oiled machine” for your healthcare. Canada is like an old manual pick-up truck. It’s not as fast or efficient but it’s reliable.
Can you explain your last sentence. I miss the meaning I think.
“Competence porn” is the satisfaction of seeing skilled people carrying out difficult tasks with great aptitude. I’d say it’s especially satisfying when it’s a group of people collaborating well. When stakes are high, that’s what I typically see the Swedish healthcare doing. And in the end, the patient fee for all of this is $30.
It happened to me once when I came in with a heart problem. Within a couple of hours I had met with specialists, performing EKG at rest and under exertion, multiple other tests, blood samples, and been given a long-term EKG to carry with me for a day. And all I paid was $20 (the standard fee was less then, they’ve raised it to $30 now).
Once they figured out that it wasn’t an emergency, they put me back in the regular low-priority group and it took a six months before they eventually gave me some medication. I’ve since realized on my own that they made the wrong call with the meds - they gave me beta blockers but what I really need is magnesium and vitamin D.