Thursday, June 23, 2011

Ouch...

Last Saturday night Paul and I hosted a Pot Luck dinner for the expats in our area.  There were a total of 20 adults and three children in attendance, representing several different countries.  It was a wonderful evening filled with good food and even better company.  The only snafu was when a wine bottle fell on my foot. 

The swelling set in almost immediately.  After applying ice for ten minutes, I self medicated with Kingfisher and hobbled for the rest of the evening.  By Tuesday, the swelling had not gone down and my foot was a nice shade of blurple (yes, that would be blue and purple).  I made some inquiries, and decided to go to Hiranandani Hospital in Vashi.

Once there, we were sent to the second floor where I took a seat as Paul stood in line.  After a few minutes he came back with a receipt (apparently you have to prepay for services) and the name of the doctor I was to see.  We then moved to the appropriate area to wait our turn…except there were no turns.  There was no one to keep track of who was next.  Evidently you are to watch the door that has your doctor’s name on it and move at the speed of sound when it starts to open.  That, or plant your body in front of it, thereby blocking any other patients from getting in ahead of you.

Once I had had my consultation with the doctor, Paul got back in line to prepay for my x-ray as I got wheeled to radiology.  Yes, after limping around for almost an hour, I finally got a wheelchair.  Thankfully, the x-ray showed no fracture so I was wheeled back to the doctor’s office to get an elastic bandage…but not before Paul got back in line to pay for it.


Consultation:      425 Rupees
X-ray:                500 Rupees
Ace Bandage:    170 Rupees
Experience:        Priceless

Oh, and for those of you wondering how much 1,095 Rupees is…it’s under $25.00.

5 comments:

Bama Cheryl said...

Yikes! So it's just sprained? Bruised? Love your nail polish color! Take care of yourself! How are you dealing with the stairs in your apartment?

Blondefabulous said...

Oh good lord! $25??? If I could get medical care that cheap I'd surely do away with the receptionist and hip check people out of the way for my turn!

Sorry about your foot. I have done that before with a full, unopened can of coke. My foot turned "blurple" too. It took forever to heal up so I didn't have to hobble around, and when it gets cold, I am reminded of it. Feel better!

Unknown said...

Sending healing vibes your way. *OOOOHHHHHMMMMMM*

I kiss your foot - I make it better.

MWAH

Anonymous said...

Talk about value for money. I would love to see inside an Indian hospital - it would probably freak me out - but it would be a memorable experience.

I am so glad nothing is broken. Hope it feels better soon.

Lifeofkaylen said...

Wow...that's insane - $25!!!!
I just told my coworker the other day that if I were to get some kind of disease and the treatment is pretty clear, I'm headed to a different country to get my treatment because it's WAY more economical than even going through my work insurance, AND I feel like people in teh community are more willing to take care of each other, like bring meals and whatnot...
But hopefully I never have to make a decision on this plan.

Hope the foot is feeling better!!!