I'm going through a really rough time and I'm not sure this is the best place to put this post but I guess I need someone to hear me.
I moved to Brazil in 2019 and, short story, I had an urgent hysterectomy (open abdominal) 2 days ago. The nursing staff at the hospital here were extremely indifferent toward me. I was very frightened before the surgery and was crying, nobody held my hand or told me it would be okay. They only talked to me to tell me to move this way, put my arm here, etc. 1 day postop I tried to ambulate to the bathroom (no one would help me) and fainted, hitting my face on the bathroom floor (currently have a black eye and bruised cheekbone). I woke up and yelled "help, help!" about 10-15 times before anyone came, finally it was my boyfriend who woke up and came to help me. The nurses stood there sucking their teeth and saying they can't believe I did this as he helped me back to bed. No one examined me afterwards, looked at my face, or even asked if I had symptoms.
The doctor came shortly after that and said I could go home, and you could believe I got out of there as fast as I could. The doctor only sent me home with ketoprofen. For an open abdominal surgery. I am currently using old prescriptions of zofran and hydrocodone I brought with me from the states.
My feelings are so hurt at being treated like this. I would never in my life let a patient fall. I would never let a patient sit in bed and cry. I have always made sure to tell my patients to call me if they feel anxious, upset, or need to talk. I hold my patients' hands and say I am here for you.
I feel like these nurses hated me. My boyfriend, who is Brazilian, says this is normal here. He says it is his fault for letting me fall because the family is supposed to do all the patient care, the nurses are just there to give medication. I am beyond offended at this idea, that nurses are just pill pushers. I am having a lot of second thoughts about living in a place where anyone would act like this, to me it's just common decency.
I was discharged to home yesterday and honestly terrified of having complications and having to go back to the hospital. I also feel like I need to find out what the governing body is for hospitals here and file a complaint against these people.
But I can debate from personal experience. The thread had taken a turn about entitled and demanding people. These are often the same people who think things should be "free". The problem is that nothing ever is.
I was simply explaining why there will be strong reactions to your opinion. I happen to disagree that it is mostly people who think things should be free. My mom thinks that way, too. That people feel entitled to free things. That's too dismissive of people's feelings on the matter. Medicare for all is appealing to me for many reasons. Not one of them is thinking that I will be getting something for free. However, I don't think America is ready for it. We're too quick to repeal something that understandably will have huge growing pains. America does not like that.
Specializes in Psych, Corrections, Med-Surg, Ambulatory.
5 minutes ago, Orion81RN said:
I was simply explaining why there will be strong reactions to your opinion. I happen to disagree that it is mostly people who think things should be free. My mom thinks that way, too. That people feel entitled to free things. That's too dismissive of people's feelings on the matter. Medicare for all is appealing to me for many reasons. Not one of them is thinking that I will be getting something for free. However, I don't think America is ready for it. We're too quick to repeal something that understandably will have huge growing pains. America does not like that.
I'm not saying everyone is looking for free stuff. And I do remember the comfort of taking health care for granted without worrying about how it would be paid for. Yes, there are pros.
The Province of Saskatchewan pioneered in Medicare for all. There were fewer than 1 million people and there was no entrenched health insurance industry to be upheaved. It worked great for a long time. The current problem is that with wonderful technology there are exponential costs and health care eats a bigger and bigger portion of GDP. Now people suffer on waiting lists. Contrary to popular belief, Canada does not have a national healthcare system. Healthcare is administered provincially and there are differences between the provinces.
What's being proposed in the US is a national system. I can't even fathom how that is supposed to work. I truly believe in a public/private hybrid on both sides of the border. My original comment only referred to the frills that many people have become accustomed to. Governments tend to be disinclined to pay for frills.
I was simply explaining why there will be strong reactions to your opinion. I happen to disagree that it is mostly people who think things should be free. My mom thinks that way, too. That people feel entitled to free things. That's too dismissive of people's feelings on the matter. Medicare for all is appealing to me for many reasons. Not one of them is thinking that I will be getting something for free. However, I don't think America is ready for it. We're too quick to repeal something that understandably will have huge growing pains. America does not like that.
I’m also going to state that Medicare for all is the wrong term and not lining up with what people think it is. I was on Medicare many moons ago when I was disabled. You still have to pay for Medicare premiums and there are still deductibles and big copays.
I think we sometimes conflate how we choose pay for healthcare with how much we choose to pay. You can spend way too much on healthcare services with a single-payer system, and you can pay way too little with payor-mix system. Think of it like the choice between two credit cards, one charges $5 per transaction and another charges $20 per transaction. You can go out to eat and buy a really expensive or really cheap meal with either card, the only difference is how much your paying for the function the credit card provides.
Canada for instance pays arguably to little for healthcare, regardless of the payment mechanism they use. We pay far more than we need to even if we want to keep a more 'value-added' type of care. We can keep paying the same amount and for the same amount of services (although we shouldn't) and still both save money with single payer (we'd be using the 5$ surcharge card instead of the $20 surcharge one) and improve our overall system by mostly getting rid of the wide variation in pay that providers and facilities get for doing the same thing. This would make it harder for the 4-star level hospitals to continue to serve meals with a butler and full linen service, but it would also benefit hospitals that currently struggle to provide even third-world quality care.
I’m also going to state that Medicare for all is the wrong term and not lining up with what people think it is. I was on Medicare many moons ago when I was disabled. You still have to pay for Medicare premiums and there are still deductibles and big copays.
I know someone who has been told that Medicare will no longer pay for a specific type of medical care I.e. this person no longer qualifies to receive a particular type of medical care that they had previously qualified for and received for many years due to the eligibility threshold for this type of care being changed in recent years.
I know someone who has been told that Medicare will no longer pay for a specific type of medical care I.e. this person no longer qualifies to receive a particular type of medical care that they had previously qualified for and received for many years due to the eligibility threshold for this type of care being changed in recent years.
I'm not sure what recent change that would be, although it's not a bad idea.
Currently, the only coverage cap for Medicare is that part A caps coverage for hospitalizations for a single illness at 90 days, although you can use your lifetime reserve days for beyond that. This doesn't include hospitalizations where you may have multiple 'illnesses' that occur after admission or where you are discharged then readmitted for the same reason, that would re-start the 90 day limit. This actually seems pretty reasonable, if after 90 days in the hospital for a particular illness or injury you still haven't even improved enough to get to a SNF, then maybe you need to re-evaluate whether hospital care is getting you anywhere. But you can also purchase 'medigap' insurance that often covers for up to a 365 day continuous hospital stay.
I’m also going to state that Medicare for all is the wrong term and not lining up with what people think it is. I was on Medicare many moons ago when I was disabled. You still have to pay for Medicare premiums and there are still deductibles and big copays.
People actually want Medicaid for all.
I for one am not speaking of Medicaid at all. Neither are the people who I've spoken with about it.
I for one am not speaking of Medicaid at all. Neither are the people who I've spoken with about it.
Well then you do understand Medicare is no different than private insurance? You have to buy gap and prescription coverage plus a part B plan to cover doctors visits? Mine was all purchased through united healthcare. Medicare itself back then was $109 a month, then I paid for the rest out of pocket.
12 hours ago, Orion81RN said:
I for one am not speaking of Medicaid at all. Neither are the people who I've spoken with about it.
Medicaid is what is actually paid for by the government and has super low copays.
The issue with "fills" going to the wayside is essentially a non-issue. These "frills"; nurses fetching water, fluffing pillows, giving back rubs, or assisting the patient to the bathroom when family is right there; won't disappear because our health insurance system changes. Sadly, these "frills" are considered basic nursing tasks and care. Nurses will still be expected to do them, and they will be billed as general nursing care. A facility is never going to tell patients they are now responsible for having family come tend to their needs because as soon as something happens to that patient, based on having a family member doing something, there will be lawsuits. Until lawsuits can't be thrown around like candy, nothing is going to change that nurses will still be the one escorting grandma to the bathroom or get her a glass of water even tho her son/daughter is sitting in the bed next to her.
The majority of my relatives live in Mexico and it's expected there for the families to provide, or give back, the blood that will be used for the patient. If not, then they charge you. I had an uncle who had terminal cancer that decided to take one last trip to Mexico, before coming back to his home in the USA . He got very sick. At the hospital, he needed a lot of blood so they went through all of my cousins, uncles, etc. to see who could donate to get the blood needed. Luckily we're a large family so there were no issues. Another uncle also recently had a heart surgery and the same thing happened. You just expect this. You also get to wheel out your loved one out of the hospital too once they're discharged.
Latin America healthcare is not the same as the US. There are private hospitals, of course, that will provide care similar to the US standards but they are costly and most people cannot afford this. To be frank, I think Mexico is a little bit more caring and advance than Brazil when it comes to healthcare, but that is what somebody I know told me...not from personal experience.
I would suggest getting used to this if you plan on living there. It's not the USA nor is it governed by US rules and regulations.
Good luck on your recuperation and hope you feel better soon.
Maybe this is why so many people want to come to the US. Among other reasons, of course .
Orion81RN
962 Posts
I was simply explaining why there will be strong reactions to your opinion. I happen to disagree that it is mostly people who think things should be free. My mom thinks that way, too. That people feel entitled to free things. That's too dismissive of people's feelings on the matter. Medicare for all is appealing to me for many reasons. Not one of them is thinking that I will be getting something for free. However, I don't think America is ready for it. We're too quick to repeal something that understandably will have huge growing pains. America does not like that.