Which country are you in and what’s a typical doctor visit like? How much? Wait time? Etc

  • Constant Pain@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    11
    ·
    4 hours ago

    Brazil:

    Call an Uber, go to the hospital, grab a ticket, pass thru triage, called by name, show my id, triage decide which specialist to see, go to specialist waiting room and wait to be called by name.

    Doctor examines me, ask for exams, maybe prescribe medication, do the exams, wait for result.

    Back to doctor, prescribe medication, hospital provides medication (unless is something very uncommon, if so go to the pharmacy and buy it).

    Call Uber, go home.

    Total cost: Uber fare, usually about 6 dollars total.

  • bent@feddit.dk
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    8
    ·
    5 hours ago

    Norway, I book online if it’s not urgent and wait a few weeks. If it’s urgent I call them and get it same day. Costs about ~250 NOK or ~20 USD I think. Public doctors are always at least 45 minutes late (unless you are late if course, then they call you on time)

    I also had a non-urgent matter, but felt like wait time was too long (holiday season) so I went to a private clinic, got appointment same day and paid about 700 NOK I think.

    I go there, tell my story, if they need to take some samples they can usually do them on site right away for no additional charge.

    If I need some medicine they prescribe that and tell me to come back in x weeks if it’s not getting better.

    If they can’t help me I get a referral. It could take a long time to get certain procedures, especially if they are not urgent/very important, but most of the time it’s been a few weeks for my issues.

    • theherk@lemmy.world
      cake
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      4 hours ago

      Also in Norway. Can generally see my FL in one or two days. He is always on time and takes good care of me. I can also just send a message for many things. Legavakt is nearby if something major comes up. My daughter’s experience is closer to yours and she too has seen private a few times. Good to have options.

  • Lord Wiggle@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    11
    ·
    6 hours ago

    The Netherlands

    I call my doctor, make an appointment the same day, go there, tell my story, get referred to a specialist or get meds or whatever, all covered by insurance.

    Specialist: sometimes appointment within a week or 2, sometimes it takes a month. It’s covered by insurance, but there’s an own risk budget each year of 380 euros. So all costs up to that budget are paid by yourself, the rest is covered. But since I’m getting mental health care, I pay 380 each januari and the rest for the entire year is all covered. This year I’ve had a broken collarbone repaired with a metal plate with all the photos before and after, I had 2 bladder infections which needed antibiotics and I had food poisoning on holiday and intestand infection, which was all covered at home and abroad.

    Insurance

    I pay 180 a month. It includes dental and some extras like 9 physical therapist appointments.

  • FellowEnt@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    7
    ·
    5 hours ago

    UK. Phone local GP, no appointments available for ~3 weeks, maybe get a call back appointment in 2 weeks if I’m lucky. Alternative is to phone every morning between 0830-0900 and either not get through or be told there are still no appointments available.

    I have found walk in pharmacists to be well educated (better than many GPs?!) and available without appointment so they’re usually my first port of call.

    • feddup@feddit.uk
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      3
      ·
      4 hours ago

      Wow you get to phone yours? We get an awful convoluted website where you have to type in all your details every time, including pointing on a diagram of a person where it hurts and explaining the problem. It takes forever to fill out and you submit it and then wait however long they want to triage you. Tbf if it’s fairly urgent they are fairly quick but it’s the worst experience when you’re sick.

      Then maybe you get a phone call with a doctor who basically just tells you to wait and maybe they prescribe something which then the local pharmacy won’t have in stock. Contact your doctor again to get it changed to something else? Good luck! Many days later you get your prescription after you finish needing it.

  • cally [he/they]@pawb.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    edit-2
    5 hours ago

    Brazil, urban area, with a health plan (private healthcare)

    I go to the doctor, grab a little paper with a number on it, wait for the number to be displayed on the monitor, go to the reception desk, give them my health plan card and my ID, they give those back to me, I sit back down and wait for the same number to be displayed on a different monitor. Once it’s displayed, I go to the room number shown on the monitor and from there, I discuss what problem I have with an adequate specialist.

    For an unplanned visit, the wait time is usually 5–30 minutes, depending on the hour and season (there are a lot of tourists during summer, meaning longer wait times and more people at the hospital).

    I don’t know about pricing (my parents pay for it), but it’s probably not too expensive since we’ve never had financial problems due to health issues (as far as I’m aware).

    I’ve never not went to the doctor for financial reasons, only for health concerns (worrying about getting sick with something else, specially if the waiting room is full or almost full). Sometimes prescribed medicine can be pretty expensive.

  • spirinolas@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    3
    ·
    edit-2
    9 hours ago

    Portugal

    If it doesn’t require immediate attention I call my health center. I can get an appointment with my family pshysician in a few days or, if it’s more urgent, some other doctor will see me the same day but I’ll have to wait there until one is free (can go anywhere between 15mn and 2 hours). I’m lucky though, some health centers suck really bad. The ones in big cities are generally better.

    If it’s more urgent I call the national health line and they’ll A: tell me how to treat it myself B: set up an appointment in my health center (or another if mine is not available) C: send me straight to the closest emergency room.

    Wait times in the emergency room depend on the gravity and the hospital. My hospital sucks. Low priority you’ll spend there the whole day, easy. 10+ hours. Medium priority you’ll wait 4 or 5 hours. High priority about an hour, maybe two. Very high priority (head falling off) you go right in. In good hospitals those times are much lower. In the major city I used to live I never waited more than 2 hours for any priority. I also had surgery there and it was great.

    Never paid a cent, I think it goes without saying.

  • Oniononon@sopuli.xyz
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    11
    ·
    12 hours ago

    East europe: Just use government level 2fa to sign into a health portal and send a message about your problem. It usually is answered within a few hous and you either get prescription or a checkup in a few days. If a specialist doctor is needed, wait times can be up to a year, unless you go the evil hypercapitalist route and pay them the price of happy meal to get a visit at a private clinic. All procedures are free or practically free. ER now costs like a tenner cause idiots would not fucking stop wasting their time with things like “oh I have a tick” and “oh my kid sneezed once”

    • Tattorack@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      4 hours ago

      Hey, man! A kid sneezing is very serious fucking business! What if the kid sneezes a second time? What then, huh!?

  • MrStag@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    10
    ·
    12 hours ago

    United Kingdom, Dorset.

    My 3 year old daughter was vomiting and not keeping liquids down. Phoned the non-emergency line and after a bit of a wait, spoke to them and went through the script.

    Was told to go to A&E and we would be expected. After a short wait there, was led down to the children’s ward and she was given a bed in her own room. She was put on a drip, had antibiotics and kept in overnight. By the end of the following day she was able to keep down water and some toast so was discharged.

    Had a follow on call from a GP the next day, she was back to normal in a couple of days.

    Cost: £0 (I contribute to the NHS through general taxation)

    • blackn1ght@feddit.uk
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      12 hours ago

      This has been pretty much our experience too when our kids have been ill, except they didn’t have their own room but a small ward.

    • jordanlund@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      12 hours ago

      That sounds kind of scary, did they actually get to the bottom of what happened or was it just “Hey, she can eat toast now, you’re free to go!”

  • MystikIncarnate@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    9 hours ago

    Canada. It’s generally easy and free (no direct cost to me). I try to avoid having to go to my doctor whenever possible and I live with a nurse (and my doc knows that). Usually when I send him a message, either by email or by calling, he’ll have a follow up question or two (sometimes none) then decide a course of action and move right to implementation. Sometimes that’s sending a script to my local pharmacy, sometimes that’s a referral to a specialist. Who knows? I haven’t seen the guy in years. But if he made the request for me to go in, I would without hesitation.

    I know my experience isn’t the same as others, since my doctor and my spouse have actually worked together; but still. It’s all free and there’s usually minimal waiting.

    The only significant delays I’ve heard of in Canadian healthcare relate to major procedures when the issue is non-critical. Like getting an MRI as a precaution, to make sure things aren’t messed up or something (IDK what MRIs are used to diagnose, I am not a doctor).

    Everything is triaged, so if you’re not actively dying from a thing, and you need a big piece of equipment to scan you to figure something out, you’re going to be waiting a while.

  • Draedron@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    23
    ·
    15 hours ago

    Germany. When I am sick I call my doctor in the morning ask what time would be best to go there as to not wait too long. Then I go there, wait maybe an hour sometimes because he likes taking time for his patients, tell him my symptoms, get a sick note for work and possibly a prescription if I need medication.

    I dont pay anything for the visit. If I need medication I will go to the pharmacy near my flat after the visit give them my health card, get my medication and depending on what drug I got pay a little bit, maybe 5€ , maybe a bit more.

  • GissaMittJobb@lemmy.ml
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    13
    ·
    16 hours ago

    Sweden.

    A few alternatives:

    • I could book an appointment at the local health center. I would probably get a time at the earliest next week, and it would cost me $30. Health center doctors are generally quite overworked, and can sometimes be a bit dismissive of your issues in my experience, but they will help you. If you need specialist care, they will give you a referral, which could take several months depending on the priority of the case and the type of specialist.
    • I could use an app to get access to a video call with a doctor, after having described my symptoms in the app. I would get a video call the same day and it would cost me $30. Given the remote nature of this kind of contact, they can be a bit limited in what they can do for you, but will try to help you regardless. If your case requires in-person examination, they will ask you to go to a health center instead. If you need specialist care, they will give you a referral and you’ll have to wait the same amount of time as for a referral in the health center scenario.
    • I am lucky enough to have a private health insurance plan through my employer. If I have any problems, I’ll submit them to this private health insurer, and they put a human on the case and connects me with a specialist right away if the problem warrants one. Typically this happens the same or the next day. This costs me nothing, apart from what I pay in benefit taxes to be on the private health insurance plan.

    All in all, things work fairly well in Sweden, but having gotten private health insurance has definitely jaded me a bit on account of how much better the experience is when you have that. If only the public system wasn’t systematically underfunded and run by the dumbest politicians on offer in the country, then maybe everyone could have great patient experience.

  • Appoxo@lemmy.dbzer0.com
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    7
    ·
    14 hours ago

    Germany:
    I call the office
    I schedule a time (and maybe a date if it’s not urgent)
    I go there
    I get my treatment (advice), a prescription and if needed when to reschedule
    I go to the apothecary and redeem my medication (usually without extra charges. But some arent subsidized 100% and you need to pay the remaining)
    I get better again
    I start working

  • masterofn001@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    58
    ·
    edit-2
    21 hours ago

    I call my Dr.

    I book an appointment. If urgent but not medically urgent to my immediate wellbeing I can get in in a week or so.

    If urgent, but not emergency, I can go to a clinic or the hospital non emergency (hospital can have wait times up to several hours)

    If emergency and severe or traumatic injury or life threatening - emergency at hospital. Triage assesses need. Last time I had to take someone it was maybe a 20 minute wait - they had been hurt pretty bad - got jumped.

    None of any of the above will cost me any money.

    An ambulance, though, costs like 75$ if it is not life threatening.

    Canada.

    • TwinTitans@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      23
      ·
      21 hours ago

      The hospitals usually have a severity for triage. If you broke your arm your going to be waiting longer than someone with a sever allergic reaction. Which makes sense, some injuries can wait longer than others.

            • skeptomatic@lemmy.ca
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              2
              ·
              15 hours ago

              Sorry. The “money” part didn’t actually factor in for me because I’m in Canada and it wasn’t on my mind. Doesn’t mean we don’t pay for it through taxes I just mean it wasn’t on my mind. I just meant greater severity should equal earlier service.

              • Mouselemming@sh.itjust.works
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                3
                ·
                15 hours ago

                Yes. If I have to wait in the ER, I try to think of it as a sign that I’m going to be okay.

                Extremely fast service, or people suddenly starting to be really really nice to you, means something very bad is going on.

    • Drusas@fedia.io
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      5
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      20 hours ago

      I think your definition of “urgent” might be off if you think that it can wait a week or so.

      • skeptomatic@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        7
        ·
        16 hours ago

        “Emergency” and “urgent” are different categories in hospitals.
        And actually defined, at least in my local Canadian hospital.
        Urgent Care is defined as infections, lacerations, wounds, less serious injuries, minor Pediatric illness, situational crisis support, Women’s Health services, contraceptive management, etc. So stuff that “could” wait about a week if necessary. I find they can get to stuff much sooner, based on anything I’ve needed or reports from friends and family.

      • lennybird@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        9
        ·
        20 hours ago

        No that tracks for me, and I work in Healthcare in the US just the same. I personally had what I perceived as urgent but non-emergent and got into my doctor within a week.

        I would go to urgent care (I know it’s in the name but alas) if I had more pressing concerns or symptoms were bad but not life-threatening.

        I would go to the ER if I was in massive pain and felt at imminent risk of death.

  • Leviathan@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    3
    ·
    13 hours ago

    Canada, I make an appointment with my family doctor, usually within a week, free. Specialists are more annoying because our right wing provincial government keeps chipping away at public healthcare and justifying it with its own results, but generally goes pretty quick too.

  • philpo@feddit.org
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    8
    ·
    16 hours ago

    Germany,rural area.

    I call my GP. It might take a few tries to get through. Tell the receptionist what I’ve got, she is more or less trying to triage me. When it’s urgent enough and I am calling early enough I can usually get there on the same day but have to wait longer at the office,if it’s less serious it’s mostly one or two days,but with less waiting time at the office. To check in you hand them your insurance card. Medication is prescribed electronically, so you just hand the card (or do it online) at the pharmacy. The GP visit is free, medication has a small, limited copay. You get fully paid for 6 weeks of sickness per diagnosis by your employer, reduced pay for up to 2 years by the health insurance.

    If it’s an illness requiring a specialist I can also try to book an appointment for that directly - but while that works well in larger cities it is totally impossible here, you simply won’t get an appointment, not even in a year. The same happens when your GP refers you to a specialist,but there are mechanisms to give you a more urgent appointment - which works sometimes,sometimes they don’t.