Medical adventure in Sabang/PG

[JohnN]

At St Luke's Hospitals in Metro Manila (or Chong Hua in Cebu City) -both JCI accredited medical facilities as noted above in post#3- you would get the same quality treatment and diagnostic work-up as in any US Hospital accredited by the American Joint Commission, but at a fraction of the cost (and still just as easily covered or reimbursed by most private or public US Health Insurance Providers like Medicare for example):

Cost Of Treatment Comparison | Medical Tourism Philippines

Good luck with that. My experience with foreign doctors (First World) has been less that satisfactory.

If you do a little investigation, I believe you'll find MD degrees can be purchased. And that accreditation is the JCI


Here is an interesting factoid:

There has been criticism in the past from within the U.S. of the way the Joint Commission operates. The Commission's practice had been to notify hospitals in advance of the timing of inspections.^[12] A 2007 article in the Washington Post noted that about 99% of inspected hospitals are accredited, and serious problems in the delivery of care are sometimes overlooked or missed.^[13] Similar concerns have been expressed by the Boston Globe, stating that "The Joint Commission, whose governing board has long been dominated by representatives of the industries it inspects, has been the target of criticism about the validity of its evaluations."^[10] The Joint Commission over time has responded to these criticisms. However, when it comes to the international dimension, surveys undertaken by JCI still take place at a time known in advance by the hospitals being surveyed, and often after considerable preparation by those hospitals.

 

[diver 85]

Aren't the PIs nice..........Wife ordered round of antibiotics, round of steroids, cough medicine and throat lozenges for 12 bucks from a pharmacy-- delivered to our resort, Pura Vida, while we were diving Dumaguete a couple years ago.....

 

[Kevrumbo]

Good luck with that. My experience with foreign doctors (First World) has been less that satisfactory.

If you do a little investigation, I believe you'll find MD degrees can be purchased. And that accreditation is the JCI. . .

[/I][/I]

Then good luck yourself in accrediting & vetting every Physician and Hospital you seek treatment from --foreign or domestic.

You have trouble speaking English JohnN? Because all Physicians at Hospitals/Clinics in the Philippines speak, write and understand conversational English along with 90% of the population. . .

 

[JohnN]

You have trouble speaking English JohnN?

Nasty nasty. Be nice now. Based on your mis-cite, you shouldn't be throwing stones about competence in English. . .

And I carry evacuation insurance (and so do you if you use DAN). Too often I find that you get what you pay for. . .

 

[Kevrumbo]

Good luck with that. My experience with foreign doctors (First World) has been less that satisfactory.
[/I][/I]

Nasty nasty. Be nice now. Based on your mis-cite, you shouldn't be throwing stones about competence in English . . .

And I carry evacuation insurance (and so do you if you use DAN). Too often I find that you get what you pay for. . .

Then what was your trouble with foreign doctors ("First World") and have you ever been to the Philippines?

Be objective, contribute to this thread and don't be a dismissive cynical Troll, JohnN. . .

 

[JohnN]

Then what was your trouble with foreign doctors ("First World") and have you ever been to the Philippines?

Be objective, contribute to this thread and don't be a dismissive cynical Troll, JohnN. . .

Hey I was not the one throwing insults bucko. . . better get your mirror out, right now you have a lock on that Troll title.

In short my experience was in Italy (which coincidentally ranks very high in world rankings of healthcare). My wife and I were in a very severe auto accident (two cars head-on ~ 50 mph each). The lady driving the other car was killed by the impact.

Fortunately my injures were minor, not so much for my wife. We were admitted to the local regional hospital (in Terni, Northern Umbria) She perforated her bowel and was leaking gastric juices into her abdomen. Of course this diagnostic was missed, she received no antibiotics, no X-ray, no ultrasound, no treatment, despite an extremely hard lower abdomen and we checked out after a few days (don't get me started on the lack of rudimentary hygiene observed by the nursing staff) AMA.

We traveled back to the US on re-arranged commercial flights (and why she didn't die in transit is still a mystery). Upon being seen by a Dr in the US she was immediately transferred to a Level1 Trauma center and was placed into a medically induced coma for 34 days. Her bowel was repaired and she went through 16 procedures where the bowel was run (basically they pull your intestines out and check for perforations).

Fortunately she has largely recovered

Add to this is she is the Dean/Director of a Physician Assistant program here and has multiple FMG (Foreign Medical Grads) come through the program (it is very very difficult for a FMG to get licensed in the US and they opt to become a PA).


So what are your medical credentials (you do have some, don't you) ??

 

[Kevrumbo]

Hey I was not the one throwing insults bucko. . . better get your mirror out, right now you have a lock on that Troll title.

In short my experience was in Italy (which coincidentally ranks very high in world rankings of healthcare). My wife and I were in a very severe auto accident (two cars head-on ~ 50 mph each). The lady driving the other car was killed by the impact.

Fortunately my injures were minor, not so much for my wife. We were admitted to the local regional hospital (in Terni, Northern Umbria) She perforated her bowel and was leaking gastric juices into her abdomen. Of course this diagnostic was missed, she received no antibiotics, no X-ray, no ultrasound, no treatment, despite an extremely hard lower abdomen and we checked out after a few days (don't get me started on the lack of rudimentary hygiene observed by the nursing staff) AMA.

We traveled back to the US on re-arranged commercial flights (and why she didn't die in transit is still a mystery). Upon being seen by a Dr in the US she was immediately transferred to a Level1 Trauma center and was placed into a medically induced coma for 34 days. Her bowel was repaired and she went through 16 procedures where the bowel was run (basically they pull your intestines out and check for perforations).

Fortunately she has largely recovered

Add to this is she is the Dean/Director of a Physician Assistant program here and has multiple FMG (Foreign Medical Grads) come through the program (it is very very difficult for a FMG to get licensed in the US and they opt to become a PA). None have been stars, the most notable, a "surgeon" who failed basic anatomy.


So what are your medical credentials (you do have some, don't you) ??

I understand your cynicism and now sympathize -Thank you for relating your wife's ordeal and I apologize for the provocation/troll that evoked re-telling such a personal harrowing account above. . .

I have no current professional medical credentials (I work in Aerospace now) --just past job experiences in Medical Records (DRG Coder/UCLA Medical Center), and Volunteer Relief Crew for the Univ of Southern Calif/Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Services Recompression Chamber on Catalina Island.

 

[JohnN]

I understand your cynicism and now sympathize -Thank you for relating your wife's ordeal and I apologize for the provocation/troll that evoked re-telling such a personal harrowing account above. . .

I have no current professional medical credentials (I work in Aerospace now) --just past job experiences in Medical Records (DRG Coder/UCLA Medical Center), and Volunteer Relief Crew for the Univ of Southern Calif/Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Services Recompression Chamber on Catalina Island.

No problem

Back to what I think your original assertion was, English fluency is not a good proxy for the quality of medical care. I would suggest the care you would receive in rural ED (Emergency Department) in Alabama/Mississippi/Iowa/etc is greatly inferior to that you would expect to receive at a Level 1 trauma center. All would be expected to have the same level of fluency in English

That and any accreditation from a bureau that schedules and announces inspection dates is highly suspect

 

[Kevrumbo]

No problem

Back to what I think your original assertion was, English fluency is not a good proxy for the quality of medical care. I would suggest the care you would receive in rural ED (Emergency Department) in Alabama/Mississippi/Iowa/etc is greatly inferior to that you would expect to receive at a Level 1 trauma center. All would be expected to have the same level of fluency in English

That and any accreditation from a bureau that schedules and announces inspection dates is highly suspect

JCA has periodic annual performance review requirements which are well known in advance by medical facilities/hospitals --I know what a pain in the "gluteals" that was from my days working in UCLA's Medical Records. With regards to their "unannounced surveys being leaked" per your recitation factoid above JohnN, there is some validity in that anecdote, but I don't believe that that is indicative of corruption or total breakdown of the JCA's Mission.

As with regards to quality of both foreign and domestic US Medical Care, as always in anything, "Caveat Emptor". (Or God help you if needing Emergency diagnosis & treatment in an unknown remote part of the world). ....

Here's an interesting 60 Minutes story on Medical Tourism and the quality & economy of care compared to the United States in Bangkok Thailand:

[video]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zzsXNCwgfuM[/video]

("First Rate Medical Care at Third World Prices. . .")

 

[opheliafae]

Woodsman, do you have the name of the doctor that helped your wife? I live in PG and would love to have a reliable medical source to contact if need be.