Our views of the health system here had
all been positive thus far but has been shaken a little by our visit
to Rethymnon Hospital. As far as we know, K needed a second blood
test. We arrived at 9.00 a.m. upon a throng of at least 100 noisy,
gangs and families of people all trying to get the attention of two
women behind some glass windows with a numbering system. Kimon
wasn't feeling good, and we had no way of knowing whether we were in
the right place or not. I got a ticket number 155. The numbers
above the windows said 41. Everyone in the foyer was hot, tired,
fretful and not very well. However Kimon stood his ground and after
an age and lots of people shoving their books and papers through the
window in front of him finally got to the front and spoke to the
lady. She sent us to another office down the corridor.
So we set off and came to various
offices, various corridors and various queues of people – and there
was nobody minded to give anyone any help at all. We queued up at
Triage for another age just to speak to somebody and find out where
to go. He wanted to send us back to the first throng and queuing
system. We passed an office marked “Information”. There was a
bag there and an empty coffee cup but no one to give us any
information or help. Everybody we asked pointed vaguely down one
corridor or another, but we had no idea where we were supposed to be.
We had no option than to go back to the original throng of queueing
where the numbering system had got up to 71. We went out across the
road for a coffee. At this point we had been there for hours and
made no progress at all, so I went and did a little shopping while
Kimon waited for his 155 number to come up.
When he got to the window again with
his numbered ticket, the lady said No, he shouldn't be here and
wanted to send him back to the previous place where we had already
queued and been sent back to her – so he gave up. He had been
there most of the day and had only seen office staff. I think we
need to take a family of bossy Greek speakers with us next time so
that we can storm the offices mob handed and make some progress SAS
style. Fortunately, we got home again OK on the bus, so he is a bit
better than he was. I pray I never need to go to Rethymnon Hospital
for anything because the queues will kill me off in no time.
Still being worried we took him back to
our local health centre the following day but they could not really
do much for him there. However, the nice receptionist telephoned
Rethymnon Hospital and made an appointment with the Pathologiki
Doctor and we thought that this would solve everything. Taking
soundings from our friends and relatives, we discover that you need
to get to the hospital early because nothing can save you from the
numbered queueing system at the Outpatients Windows. Kind friends
picked us up at 8 am sharp and we got into the foyer as fast as
possible taking ticket number 71 when the numbers were into the mid
40s. Perhaps there are people who camp out all night to get an early
place at the check in window. I was a bit more vocal this time and
when people tried to slap their books and papers in front of us, I
just took them and gave them back, pushing K's papers forward telling
them that we had spent all day on Tuesday seeing administrators and
we needed to see a Doctor today. We paid 5 euros, were given all
sorts of papers and chitties with official stamps all over them and
went to wait outside the door of the Pathologiko. It was not such a
long wait this time. A couple of people arrived and left and as no
one seemed to be fighting their way in, I knocked on the door and we
both shuffled in – relieved at last to see a proper Doctor and feel
that something was going to happen after a week of paying 5 euros at
different places and getting absolutely nowhere. The Doctor said
that I should check K's temperature 3 times per day and keep a log.
Bring him back if he got a fever or anything worse happened. After
two banks of blood tests and another full check over, a visit to the
kind ladies in the Microbiology Department, another queue at the
window for another sheaf of papers and a stamp and signature, we were
free to go. And it wasn't even lunch time! We felt that we had done
much better today and our kind friends helped us stop and get
shopping on the way home.
Three weeks on, we discover that E coli
is the cause of the urinary troubles and we have been issued the
right antibiotic, but it took so much time and effort to achieve it.
Kimon still has ultrasound scans to accomplish tomorrow, but is
beginning to look ever so much better than before. We wish we had
much more interesting photos to post apart from temperature charts
and home made lemon barley. Still things are on the mend.
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