it’s hard to believe…

… that in a developed country such as the UK, the national health system (and I’m not talking about the institution the National Health Service) absolutely sucks.

I’m sick at the moment. Flu, I think. Afterall, I did have the sore throat and green phlegm & muck. I’ve been sick on and off for the last three weeks. The last time I was completely well was the weekend in Paris just before CNY.

So today I phoned the doctor’s office for an appointment and she said that the next available appointment was next Wednesday. Gosh! I might be dead next Wednesday! Basically in the UK, first you have to [take time off and] register to become a patient of a particular clinic. Then when you fall sick, you don’t actually get to see the doctor; you have to call to make an appointment  to see the doctor which may not necessarily be on the day you fall ill. In my case the appointment is a week later.

Then at the doctor’s, it’s not a one-stop shop where you see the doc and he prescribes medicine which you can obtain. No, in your weakened state, you actually have to find some store of energy and make your way to the nearest pharmacy, if you don’t [as I always say] drop dead on the tube.

Singapore’s health system is so much better. There are private clinics everywhere. And these clinics are affordable. You can phone to make an appointment if you so wish, but you can walk in as well and wait. The typical wait is about 30 minutes to see the doctor. After the dignosis, you go to the waiting area where the nurse/assistant will call you and give you your meds and you pay one fee for everything. Easy peasy. Then you go home and rest.