Exploring global health care...

So... No truly comprehensive travel experience would be complete without a visit to the emergency room ;-). And for once, I'm not the prospective patient after some kind of bicycle mishap!  Norma has been experiencing soreness in one of her arms for several weeks, and as it hasn't really improved, she's been trolling the Internet to try to find out what might be the underlying issue. After waking up today with some swelling in her lower arm veins, we've hypothesized that it might be a blood clot... Probably not, but given my own experience having a DVT in my leg (and spending the past 15 years on blood thinners as a result), it seemed prudent to get it checked out.
As has been our past experiences with health care in various international settings (Germany, Czech Republic, Costa Rica), the hospital here in Chiang Mai is busy, efficient, and well staffed with lots of helpful people.  After walking in off the street on a busy Friday morning, Norma managed to get an initial exam within about 2 hours, and while the Dr. was sceptical about a blood clot, he agreed that a quick ultrasound wouldn't be a bad idea.  After a very thorough scan, it turns out she had a whole vein in her lower arm that was clotted!  Fortunately, the Dr. felt that a thrombosis in the arm, while uncomfortable, typically is not likely to lead to complications like a pulmonary embolism, which is not unusual if you get one in your legs... And it's relatively easy to treat with anticoagulants.

So- after 3 hours we left the hospital with a prescription for blood thinners sufficient to last us until we get home, and a $550 bill that should be covered by insurance... Whew!!  On the way out of the hospital, we stopped by the little Buddhist spirit house and thanked the local spirits for our good fortune:-)


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