As most of you know I am a totally disabled Army veteran. I have many medical issues and use the VA Medical system as my only health care. Last night my wife and I got to see for ourselves how the new system they have set up for "emergency care" works.
You used to be able to walk in like any other emergency room in the nation, but now you call a nurse call center, they forward your call to the local VA Medical center to Dayton, Ohio call center. The process was fascinating and encouraging, a human and a computer program. It sounds like trouble but it's not.
To set the stage for you, most know I have wierd sleeping habits, like 2-3 hours at a time, from either nightmares or pain from the three herniated disks in L3, L4 and L5/S1. So for me to spend the past 4 days sleeping 20 hours a day, had my wife concerned. Dori keeps pretty close tabs on me, and she asks a lot of questions, what's wrong, has something upset you, are you taking to many sleeping pills etc.
No, NO and NO, I just didn't feel good, but on Tuesday when I would stand up I started getting dizzy. So I dug out my VA issued blood pressure machine and took my BP reading not a good idea with my wife sitting there 70/50, so I asked for some water and pointed out that we had just eaten so it was possible my blood was digesting my food, and since I was a bit dehydrated I would drink some water and take it again in about a half hour, we waited,it was 65/45. She then insisted I get in the car that she was taking me to the hospital in Augusta.
I pointed out the new system that you had to call and ask if you should go to "Life Support" or make a walk in appointment for tomorrow. So I called the "Ask a Nurse" number, of course they were closed it was about 9pm but the call was transferred to Dayton Ohio.
"Jamie" was very friendly she asked me for my last 4 numbers of my Social Security Number to pull up my record, she asked me what the "problem was" explained the odd sleeping the vert low blood pressures etc, she said the computer program instructed her to tell me to go to the Life Support unit, now. She would call them and to notify them I was approved for immediate treatment, and I was enroute.
We arrived there, instead of the days of old, and the waiting room full of people passed out sleeping and the normal crowded waiting room, the place was empty except for the employees and a federal police officer.
They took my Veterans ID card, entered me into the computer, took my wife and I, into the triage room, I learned I had lost 5 more pounds and now weigh 210 pounds, then he took my BP, it was 67/50 he had me stand up and he took it again 68/52, then he took one of those finger things that read ozygen levels and it said 89, that seemed to botherhim as much as my low BP reading.
We were then led back into the Life Support area, where I was put into a bed, and a very nice nurse came in and told me she was my "vampire for the night" and she started pulling out tubes, lot's of tubes, I almost wanted to name her "ted", I asked her if she knew what she was doing or was I just a prctice dummy for her? She replied she was just learning and I was "practice" she inserted the IV Line, painlessly, and took out about 8 tubes of blood before I even knew what she was doing. She then proceeded to tape down the IV line and hooked up the bag.
She same back in dragging the EKG machine and printed the copy out in minutes and pulled out the most recent one from the computer to compare them.
She had me then hooked up to the Oxygen got me 2 blankets and told me to rest until the doctor got the lab work back.
About 3 am the doctor came in and told me that my lab work all looked great and that the only thing he could figure out is there is no reason I should be in a medicine called "lisinopril 40mg" half tablet twice daily.
With my blood pressure being so low and my records had showed this problem since the previous September when I was hospitalized after an ambulance took me to a local ER in Columbia due to my passing out in the kitchen and loosing all bodily control.
That time they cut my Carvedilol from 25mg to 12.5mg, but no change to the other meds. This elderly doctor looked at me and said look we have all kinds of meds to lower high blood pressures quickly, we don't have any to raise a low blood pressure quickly. Don't take any more of the Lisinopril, it's going to kill you.
With that bit of advice he told my wife to take me home and put me back to bed.
If that is what Americans have to look forward to with the future of "one payer health care" that everyone is afarid of, and many people use the VA healthcare system to scare people with, why? To me this is the way most people would want their health care to work. My portion of the bill "nada" I paid that bill with my health while in service to my nation.
My wife and son's health care we pay the co-pays, 25% for meds and 20% hospital up to 2500.00 a year, then they pay 100%. So far we have been lucky and never maxed out the co-pays yet. But if that day ever comes, I know I am not going to lose another home due to medical bills and the bankrutcy it can and has caused before.
Now I still have a lot of heart burn over the compensation claims process and the appeals process the VA has, but the medical care, I am fully pleased and have been for years.
Last night is an example of why.