The American Medical System

[jemmyell]

My wife tells me that in China they get medical services pretty much 7 days a week most any time the need them. She is having a LOT of issues with the 'make an appointment and wait' system. I have had to explain that skin problems are NOT emergencies and we cannot get immediate treatment unless we have a true emergency. Still she says that the 'American Medical System is not good'. I don't think it helped when I told her that probably 95% of all Americans would agree with her.

 

-James

[Dennis143]

Both Leiqin and I certainly believe that had she not been in the US and had received the care she did, she may not be alive today. So, she¡¯s adjusted to it. I have noticed a big change from when she was treating herself with Chinese medicine, from daily self-injections of urine from pregnant women (sent to her from China) to drinking juice made from the skin of a donkey.

 

As far as getting immediate medical treatment, I suppose that¡¯s what our corner drug stores and over-the-counter medicines are for. Yet, you can still go to emergency for a skin condition too, James.

 

 

 

 

 

Our system is drug based to treat and cure illness and not wellness based for the body to heal itself. Seldom will you here the word ¡®heal¡¯ used when being treated by an MD. Their words are to ¡®cure¡¯. Chinese medicine is more wellness and healing based. In my humble opinion.

 

I believe that our system is both good and bad and a lot of that depends on who¡¯s insured and who is not.

[amberjack1234]

My wife will not go to an American doctor no matter how sick she is. I don’t know if it is a money issue or a matter of trust. We do have very good medical insurance.

 

Just after her arrival in America Duke University Medical Center put lungs into a poor Spanish girl with mismatched blood types and the result was that she died. Then just a few months later Duke was found to have been mistakenly disinfecting their surgical instruments with hydraulic oil, that’s right not a misprint hydraulic oil.

 

I think that these two incidents had a profound blow to her trust in American medicine. Since Duke is considered one of the top hospitals in the world.

Edited April 11, 2007 by amberjack1234 (see edit history)

[Stone]

My wife will not go to an American doctor no matter how sick she is. I don¡¯t know if it is a money issue or a matter of trust. We do have very good medical insurance.

 

Just after her arrival in America Duke University Medical Center put lungs into a poor Spanish girl with mismatched blood types and the result was that she died. Then just a few months later Duke was found to have been mistakenly disinfecting their surgical instruments with hydraulic oil, that¡¯s right not a misprint hydraulic oil.

 

I think that these two incidents had a profound blow to her trust in American medicine. Since Duke is considered one of the top hospitals in the world.

 

there are many Chinese speaking doctors working in American hospitals. My wife's doc is one of them.

[Joanne]

Both Leiqin and I certainly believe that had she not been in the US and had received the care she did, she may not be alive today. So, she¡¯s adjusted to it. I have noticed a big change from when she was treating herself with Chinese medicine, from daily self-injections of urine from pregnant women (sent to her from China) to drinking juice made from the skin of a donkey.

 

As far as getting immediate medical treatment, I suppose that¡¯s what our corner drug stores and over-the-counter medicines are for. Yet, you can still go to emergency for a skin condition too, James.

 

 

 

 

 

Our system is drug based to treat and cure illness and not wellness based for the body to heal itself. Seldom will you here the word ¡®heal¡¯ used when being treated by an MD. Their words are to ¡®cure¡¯. Chinese medicine is more wellness and healing based. In my humble opinion.

 

I believe that our system is both good and bad and a lot of that depends on who¡¯s insured and who is not.

 

Injecting urine? It is hard to believe.

[Dennis143]

Both Leiqin and I certainly believe that had she not been in the US and had received the care she did, she may not be alive today. So, she¡¯s adjusted to it. I have noticed a big change from when she was treating herself with Chinese medicine, from daily self-injections of urine from pregnant women (sent to her from China) to drinking juice made from the skin of a donkey.

 

As far as getting immediate medical treatment, I suppose that¡¯s what our corner drug stores and over-the-counter medicines are for. Yet, you can still go to emergency for a skin condition too, James.

 

 

 

 

 

Our system is drug based to treat and cure illness and not wellness based for the body to heal itself. Seldom will you here the word ¡®heal¡¯ used when being treated by an MD. Their words are to ¡®cure¡¯. Chinese medicine is more wellness and healing based. In my humble opinion.

 

I believe that our system is both good and bad and a lot of that depends on who¡¯s insured and who is not.

 

Injecting urine? It is hard to believe.

Well, actually it was placenta extracted from the urine of pregnant women. Strange, but true, Jo.

[ameriken]

My wife tells me that in China they get medical services pretty much 7 days a week most any time the need them. She is having a LOT of issues with the 'make an appointment and wait' system. I have had to explain that skin problems are NOT emergencies and we cannot get immediate treatment unless we have a true emergency. Still she says that the 'American Medical System is not good'. I don't think it helped when I told her that probably 95% of all Americans would agree with her.

 

-James

95% of americans may agree because they may only have had experience in the American medical system and have nothing to compare it to. While our system is not perfect, it is perhaps the most advanced in the world. So, naturally, if a system is not perfect, people will complain. But: how many of those same Americans who have spent time in an American hospital, would say the same thing about the American system if they spent time in a Chinese hospital?

 

I went with Jie to Shanghai Peoples Hospital for her med exam. At one point they did an EKG. The machine looked like a relic from the 1970's... old and a bit dilapidated. I would feel very nervous about spending time in a Chinese hospital. Since we plan to move to China in the future, Jie has mentioned that she wants to see if somehow we can keep American health insurance so we can continue to have access to American care.

 

So, while waiting for an appointment may have its inconveniences, it is not such a major issue as the quality of care. I think thats a fair trade off.

Edited April 11, 2007 by ameriken (see edit history)

[lyscra]

I dont know really anything about chinese medcal style/technology other than my fiance was unsure about whether she wanted to have a child because she said that allot of people die in childbirth

 

That being the case, I think they may be a bit behind IMO

[SinoTexas]

Repeat from August 7, 2005

 

As aye,

 

Jim

 

I have a friend who is in the admissions office for the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. I recently had an opportunity to meet with about 50 of the Chinese medical students who are attending UTMB. We talked about medical quality in China since I had just recently returned from three weeks in Fushun. All of the medical students expressed a deep desire to stay in the US after completing their medical studies. They appreciate what the American medical system has to offer and want to stay with it. Most of them have obligations to return to China, but said that once they met those obligations, they would seek to head to back West. I asked about the quality of medical care in China and their comments were interesting. I asked if they were in need of medical care in China, what would they do? As mentioned in an earlier posting, they all said they would use their medical connections and seek out a doctor who had been trained in America. They would never seek out a Chinese trained doctor. That spoke volumes for me. By the way, these med students were from all over China, large cities to small rural areas and their one goal was to seek medical training in the United States. I also had a chance to speak to one of the faculty members who has been in the US for 20 years and from Yichang, China. She said she has worked all over the world in the medical field and even though the cost of medical care is high here in the US, it is still the best in the world. She has been back to China many times to visit but she said she would never live there as Texas was home. At her invitation, she, a few Chinese students and I went out to breakfast for menudo and barbacoa tacos the next morning...go figure!

 

Jim

[yuehan123]

My wife has reluctantly accepted the USA medical system because she has no choice. What she misses and dislikes most is the lack of the ability to see the local doctor almost at will and, better yet, the ability to call the doctor and the doctor will come to my wife's home almost right away. Secondarily, she misses the ability to obtain the medications she is accustomed to without a 'doctor's paper' (written prescription).

 

Without regard to which system is more technologically advanced, or which system of medicine manufacture, use and delivery is better, the 'fact' remains that for my wife, at least, she is used to the system where she grew up, had good results from that system, and cannot duplicate those results here.

[david_dawei]

My wife has reluctantly accepted the USA medical system because she has no choice. What she misses and dislikes most is the lack of the ability to see the local doctor almost at will and, better yet, the ability to call the doctor and the doctor will come to my wife's home almost right away. Secondarily, she misses the ability to obtain the medications she is accustomed to without a 'doctor's paper' (written prescription).

 

Without regard to which system is more technologically advanced, or which system of medicine manufacture, use and delivery is better, the 'fact' remains that for my wife, at least, she is used to the system where she grew up, had good results from that system, and cannot duplicate those results here.

My wife is almost exactly the same.. I would say she is less than reluctant though... It's not the major medical things as some are referring to.. it's the simple things that cannot even be done easily...