Our first experience of the Public Healthcare in Aus

[Dedrei]

Yesterday we had our first experience of going to the emergency of our local public hospital.

Let me explain why we ended there first.

Hubby was lying on the couch Saturday night and we decided to call it a night and go to bed. Well as he brought his feet to the floor from the lying on the couch position, he cut his foot by stepping right into the glass he left on the floor. I just heard a cry from the living room to bring some toilet paper. Nothing had prepared me for what I was about to discover. Our living room floor was in a 'dam' of blood. This cut bled like there was no tomorrow. So anyways got hubby to keep his leg up and to keep the pressure on it so we can stop the bleeding.

Well, I am very squeemish about blood and have fainted just by visiting someone is hospital, that's how bad I am. But some how I just kept my compure and started to clean up.

So we the bleeding stopped eventually and we wrapped it up with elastoplast and toiletpaper (didn't have anything else) and told hubby we need to go to hospital, but yes hubby knows better and refused. So he slept on the couch with his leg up in the air on the arm of the couch.

Needless to say that he was in pain through the night and crawled to the toilet during the night as he couldn't step on his foot. So the next morning I said that's it we need to go to hospital and let the doc check it out as he might need stitches.

Went to our local private hospital, since we only have private healthcare (on 457 visa), just to be told we need to go to the public hospital as they don't have an emergency dept or doctor on duty.

So we went to Cairns Base Hospital and the traige nurse had a look at him, but ripped of our bandages and hubby started to feel naucious from the pain and it started to bleed again. Well we had to wait almost 3 hours n a que before a doctor could see us. And hubby just feels worse and worse because of the pain.

EVENTUALLY, we get called and we had the nicest asian doctor and aussie male nurse. Hubby got a tetanious injection and some stiches. Doctor exlained that the glass actually cut into a few layers of skin and some muscle but luckily no ligaments were hurt. Ok, just to give you an idea it is not the sole of his foot that got cut but actually on the outside of his foot where your ankle is. The cut is on that ball on the outside of your foot. So he can hardly move his foot and I am on nurse duty today, so he can rest on not use this foot at all. Booked off for three days, but he won't be returning to work until next week anyways I think.

So my question is this. Have anybody else had an emergency experience and had you also have to wait so long? I was just baffled that our local private hospital did not have an emergency dept, does the ones in the city at least have them? And it cost us $172.50 to see the dr at the public hospital, which I hope our healthcare will refund us, will find out later today. This was just a bit shocking for us to wait 3 hours to see a doctor.

Please tell me about your experiences with healthcare and hospitals and how they work in the big cities?

Luv

D

[SASydneysider]

Hi Dedrei,

What an awful thing to happen!

I've had no experience with private or public hospitals here in Sydney, but have this past week had an incident which neither Medicare nor my private health care (HCF) covers. I don't want to hijack your thread, so I'll do another posting on my experience.

I hope hubby recovers real soon. Enjoy the nursing bit!

SAS

[Mara]

Hi Dedrei

Sorry, but that is how the hospitals operate! You take your number and wait your turn.

It may pay to find out if there is a private hospital near you that does have an emergency department. I know we have one in Melbourne, as I have been there.

Hope hubby feels better soon.

[Dedrei]

Thanks girls.

Mara, we only have one public and one private hospital Seems like you can die waiting for them to have a look at you. Scary.

[Swerwer]

Went to our local private hospital, since we only have private healthcare (on 457 visa), just to be told we need to go to the public hospital as they don't have an emergency dept or doctor on duty.

Hi Dedrei

Do you know that you are eligible for Medicare if you have already lodged your PR VISA?

I see the followig on Medicare's website:

People who reside in Australia - excluding Norfolk Island - are eligible if they:

• hold Australian citizenship
  
• have been issued with a permanent visa
  
• hold New Zealand citizenship
  
• have applied for a permanent visa (excludes an application for a parent visa)—other requirements apply. Contact Medicare for further information.
  

[Dedrei]

Thanks Swerwer, maar ons wag nog vir ons TRA assessment om terug te kom, hopelik kan ons begin maart ons visa app lodge.

[Guest boeta]

hi dedrei

i just spoke to my wife,about your post and being a nurse she said i must tel you that you should have gone to the 24 hour medical centre,and not to CBH

hope this helps for next time

regards boeta

Edited February 20, 2007 by boeta

[Mara]

Hi Dedrei

I love it when a plan comes together - found the address and details of the 24-hour emergency that Boeta has recommended.

http://www.rightroundtheworld.com/Current_...airns_city.html

[Guest boeta]

HI DEDREI

Thankz to Mara you now have a pic of medical centre to,since i have met your hubby tel him to skip the wine glass next time and drink straight out of the bottle [hehe]

no naughty of me,tel him i hope he gets better soon I to still have a sore ankle[just had an opperation on it last week to have pin removed out of my ankle

regards boeta

Edited February 20, 2007 by boeta

[Riekie]

My seun was in Tamworth toe hy altwee sy voete, sy been en sy arm gebreek het. Hy is na die Tamworth Base Hospital gevat waar hy onmiddelik opgeneem was en al die nodige noodbehandeling gekry het, insluitende baie duur scans en medikasie, sonder dat enige iemand eers gevra het of hy medicare of privaat medies het (of dalk gladnie). Heel toevallig was die spesialis wat hom behandel het, 'n Suid Afrikaner! Hy moes dringend chirurgie kry en ons het gevra dat hy na 'n hosptiaal naby ons oorgeplaas word. Alles is binne 'n paar uur gerëel - self die helikopter (wat ons nie 'n sent sou kos nie!) - en sy chirurgie deur een vd beste orthopediese chirurge klaar geskeduleer vir die volgende dag! Heel toevallig is die verpleegster wat hom versorg nadat hy oorgeplaas is toe nou wraggies ook 'n Suid Afrikaner! Ek moet nog die "public system" ervaar vir dag-tot-dag mediese situasies, en kan daarom nie my mening uitspreek nie, maar sover is ek beïndruk.

D, jammer om van manlief te hoor...... Hoop hy is nou OK.

[Enrica]

Hi,

I can only say that I have had positive experiences with the emergency rooms here in Perth.

My husband had a heart attack 5 months after we arrived. The ambulance took 8 minutes to arrive ,and he received the best possible treatment by both the paramedics and the emergency room staff. (That was 7 years ago)

6 months ago the whole one side of his face collapsed, I thought he had a stroke , and I took him to the emergency room. The Triage nurse assesed him and he was seen to within 15 minutes of us arriving.

The emergency room was busy, you see a doctor depending basically on the level of emergency.

They ran all the blood test and other tests as require. Fortunatly it was not a stroke- he had a virus called Bells Palsy.

The public hospitals are certainly under a loy of pressure, but considering that the bulk of the population does not have Private Health Insurance, and the facilities are top class. If you have to wait - then so be it.

I can only coment positively regarding the public hospitals and the private ones.