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Health problems are one of the most unsettling things that can happen in a foreign country: dealing with medical information in a second-language, trying to navigate the system etc. I recently had a banal accident which unfortunately left me with a couple of fractures, so I thought it would be helpful to record the couple of places which I dealt with during the process.

Not having health insurance, and unsure as to the seriousness of the injury I first went to the Hospital Fernandez, at Cervino/Bulnes in Palermo. In emergency there was a very basic check-in where I was asked my name, age and the nature of the problem. At no point was I asked for DNI or passport (I had brought ID just in case). It was mid-afternoon and there were about ten other people waiting to be attended to. After about a half an hour I was called to see the traumatologist/orthopedist. After speaking for a few minutes in castellano, he asked where I was from and then suggested that we speak english, which he spoke very well. He took a quick look at the injury and sent me to get an X-ray, which was performed extremely quickly (10 minutes). Immediately afterwards I was ushered back into the doctor, who confirmed my suspicions: two traumatic fractures. He told me no surgery would be necessary and directed me to get crutches and a medical shoe. This type of equipment can be rented or bought at many pharmacists and there are a couple opposite the hospital which specialise in this. If you rent they require you to leave a deposit, and in my case I had no problem recouping the money later.

I was really impressed at the speed of treatment and the courteousness of the medical staff in Fernandez, which in my view compared favourably with experiences I have had in Europe, especially with regard to the former.

The public system is under a lot of pressure due to the general economic situation in argentina and a particular problem is the use of it by people covered by Obra Social who elect to use the public so as to avoid having to pay the supplementary charges which have been introduced. many say that this is the result of the abuse of Obra Soial funds over the years by their administrators, and unfortunately that's not difficult to believe (see the recent stories about Barrionuevo and the PAMI for example). In any case Hospital fernandez is a good place and a credit to the country.

Given that I'm not broke, and knowing that resources are streteched, I decided to get more x-rays and receive follow-up treatment some weeks later at the Hospital Aleman at Pueyrred�n/Beruti. This is a private hospital which also provides free treatment for german nationals (unless something has changed!). Here it's basically a la carte medical treatment. I needed another x-ray, which is available in the basement. They wanted to see a doctor's referral but I had my previous x-rays and they were happy with that. The price for one x-ray is 27 pesos, which you pay up front, or alternately get your insurance to cover although usually authorization from your insurer will be required. At the desk, they have staff who speak german and (in my experience) also english. They give you a ticket and you wait, in my case for about 25 minutes and they shoot the ray.

On the same floor there's the orthopedics department. You repeat the same procedure, paying for an appointment (46 pesos in this case) and then you bring the ticket to the desk where they manage the clinic. If you have already seen a specific doctor there, it's best to point this out to them. I was waiting for another half hour and then had my consultation. Once again the doctor spoke english (although not as well as the fellow at Fernandez!) and was friendly and willing to answer all my questions.

Hospital Aleman is very professional and much frequented by residents from nearby Recoleta and Barrio Norte, so it's pretty serene. I was satisfied with it.

Finally, I want to relay a negative review of the Hospital Italiano from a friend of mine. He was suffering from acute pain and a high temperature, and was rushed there. They refused to attend to him without receiving authorization from his health insurer. They insisted that he pay for the call himself and, when he could get no reply, offered no assistance. Otherwise they wanted 37 pesos up front - he had 35. They wouldn't compromise. Eventually, and in acute discomfort, he went home and after some hours the problem disappeared. It turned out that he was suffering from an uncommon side-effect from a medication he uses. However it's fortunate that things worked out as they did, and it was no thanks to the Hospital Italiano, so if you can, avoid dealing with them.

Voila. I hope this is of some use to people, and that anyone else who has had to negotiate the health system here will add their own contributions.

Take Care!

dub_vibrations