Kevin Bozeat recently experienced a medical emergency while visiting Taiwan. His health required him to visit the emergency room at NTU Hospital in Taipei, and his overwhelming experience caused him to write "The Horrors of Socialized Medicine: A first hand experience" on Facebook.
On February 17th, Bozeat posted about his experience at Taipei's NTU Hospital.
Kevin had been vomiting for hours and finally resigned himself to going to the E.R. despite his fears and reservations about medicine outside of the United States.
His experience was one for the books.
He began the story by giving background as to why he required medical attention.
"The Horrors of Socialized Medicine: A first hand experience
A few days ago my stomach began to hurt. Thinking it would pass, I went home to try and rest for the night. A bit later I vomited. I thought that was the end of it.
But for the rest of the night, I kept vomiting almost every 30-40 minutes. Even after my stomach was completely empty, I kept vomiting. Soon it was nothing but stomach fluid and bile. I tried to drink water to stay hydrated, but I kept throwing it up, no matter how hard I tried to keep it down.
By 3am I had severe stomach cramps, my body kept trying to vomit even though there was nothing left. I was dizzy and light-headed. My symptoms showed no signs of abating.
At this point I had to seek medical treatment, I knew I had to go to the hospital."
Kevin went on to share his fears about Taiwanese medical care.
"I wanted to avoid it. I had no idea how different Taiwanese hospitals would be, whether I would be able to find an English speaking doctor, or what it would cost me (my US health insurance has lapsed and I don't qualify for Taiwanese NHI)."
As his story continues, it becomes clear that Kevin's fears were completely unfounded.
"My Taiwanese roommate called a taxi and took me to the ER at NTU Hospital. I was immediately checked-in by an English speaking nurse. Within 20 minutes I was given IV fluids and anti-emetics. They took blood tests and did an ultrasound to ensure it wasn't gall stones or appendicitis. From there I was given a diagnosis: a particularly severe case of Acute Viral Gastroenteritis (aka the stomach flu). After about 3 hours on an IV, I began to feel slightly better, my nausea disappeared and my stomach began to calm down. I was discharged with a prescription for anti-emetics and pain medication. Each day since Ive gotten progressively better and am now pretty much back to normal.
The bill for the ER visit?...
US$80.00
Eighty. American. Dollars.
Out of pocket. Full cost. No discounts. No insurance.
At one of the best hospitals in Taiwan.
And if I had NHI, it would have been a fraction of that."
Bozeat concluded his account expressing the difference between Taiwan's socialized healthcare and that of the United States.
"This could have easily cost me hundreds or even thousands in the US without insurance. But here in Taiwan I was able to receive speedy, quality care comparable to what I would have gotten in a US hospital for relatively small amount of money.
Given this experience, I no longer have a reason to fear or hesitate getting care in Taiwan should I ever need it.
America, it's time to stop making excuses."
The post has since gone viral with 208,000 shares of his original Facebook post alone.
People agree that it's time for America to "stop making excuses".
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I used to be afraid of socialism and thought universal healthcare was a joke. Not anymore, healthcare is a right t… https://t.co/04m5IHs4xC— Tonya Brandt (@Tonya Brandt) 1551377579.0
Others had similar stories to tell.
Facebook
@Upworthy Had a motorcycle accident in Taiwan. Rushed from the scene to a hospital on an ambulance, treated for mul… https://t.co/65Smg2jjMb— tian (@tian) 1551377817.0
Great story! My own comparable ER experience as visitor in Seoul, South Korea...US$170, full out of pocket, great c… https://t.co/2J2BSADWl1— Ozzie Diaz (@Ozzie Diaz) 1551389943.0
Wake up, America.
Redditor h-gotfred wanted to hear from the over 50 crowd, so they asked:
"To you Redditors aged 50+, what's something you genuinely believe young people haven't realized yet, but could enrich their lives or positively impact their outlook on life?"
There is so much to know about life.
And we have to age to learn it.
So let's chat...
Be Happy
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Inevitable-Mine6466
"Piggybacking off this and saying, even the happiest marriages get into arguments. It's not a reason to leave."
J3sush8sm3
Battles...
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hail2theKingbabee
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A_Socratic_Argument
The End
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Justin9314
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Reynyan
The Truth
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"Failure is not an end state unless it is where you choose to stop. He loved to quote that line by Churchill whenever something didn't work out for me, Success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm."
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iskandar-
Be Quiet
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revnhoj
Take care of your ears.
One of life's greatest lessons!!!
Live by the Moon
bart simpson maggie GIFGiphy"Wear sunscreen."
nilecrane
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HootieRocker59
Passions
"Take a genuine interest in what other people have to say, ask them follow-up questions about their passions in life. Don’t just talk about yourself, or wait for your turn to talk. That’s how you have a conversation, and build a relationship."
MayIServeYouWell
"Sometimes you gotta be careful with that. Pay attention if the other person is doing that too, it's important for you to share about your life. It can be kind of lonely when you know so much about your friends, but they don't know about you."
jacarelunar
Practice makes Perfect
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EarhornJonesI
"I love cooking - and find it easy and relaxing. I have hit a point where I can make several dishes that I can honestly say are far superior to what I could get at a restaurant. I love delighting my family and friends with what I cook."
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NewSummerOrange
63
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"You don’t have to go nuts and set unreasonably strict requirements for exercise goals or diet that a normal person can’t possibly maintain - just do the best you can, make exercising a few times per week a habit, eat a reasonable diet (avoid fried stuff, eat fruit and veggies, lay off the sweets), and 40 years later you’ll really thank yourself, believe me!"
lanky_planky
Plan Ahead
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vanityklaw
Debt. Everyone should learn about avoiding debt as early as possible.
This whole list should be taught in Universities.
