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My illness got worse and I had to be sent to hospital. I've never been more grateful for the NHS services we have at home, I hear British people complaining about them 24/7. And the next person I hear complaining, I'll tell them to shut up. I don't care if the waiting time is over 3/4 hours, it's free, totally clean, and we have professional doctors/nurses.
It costs 500 pesos just to see a doctor, and I saw a lovely doctor who is recommended by the VSO company. I felt bad skipping the whole queue, I had priority because.. Well I don't know, I guess VSO volunteers have priority! He sent me to the emergency room straight away.
As I was wheelchaired into the ER, it was crowded, full of people and there weren't enough beds so just a queue of people waiting in wheelchairs. I joined that queue, plenty of Filipinos staring at me as usual. The alarm kept sounding, with lots of doctors running towards each bed, closing curtains and doing whatever it is that they needed to do. There were plenty of anxious families waiting around, and there was me, just looking around at all the drama.
And this was the best hospital in Cebu... What?!
I went in for scans, plenty of tests and I had to stay overnight. The whole treatment alone costed well over 12000 pesos I would say, and it breaks my heart to know the average Filipino earns 11700 pesos a month. Even my host family wouldn't be an average family. They're well below average.
Thank god for interpreters. Doctors and nurses, no matter how many times you tell them that you're deaf, they will talk to you with their masks on. If you ring the bell in your room wanting service, they will ring you. They will never understand. With a serious issue like health treatments and instructions, an interpreter must always be present for a deaf person.
My nurse was only 21 years old. She looked way younger than that as well. All the other nurses and doctors looked amazingly young, I couldn't believe my eyes!
In the morning, I was already annoyed with staying in bed all day, attached to an IV drip, with nurses waking me up every half an hour with the same questions -
"Your birthday?" "What's your religion?" "Are you married or single?"
I do not care. How are these questions relevant?! I don't understand why they can't just write it down and attach it to the side of my bed so when a different nurse comes, they can just read it. I felt like giving them all different answers each time they asked, just to see if they would even notice.
I was desperate to be discharged. I couldn't miss the MPR, away to the beach in Moalboal. When the doctor said that he would see me tomorrow to see how I do -
"Wait what?!" I said. I was determined to go home, so I begged him if I could be discharged.
He disagreed at first, but then with time, he agreed. But I have to go back to hospital on Monday - dreading it already!
So in total, never ever complain about NHS. Filipinos cannot afford any treatments.. Why should we complain about the waiting time or lack of staff? They have it much worse.
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