US v. UK Healthcare -- if you were really in need...

I would probably go back to Oklahom if it were a serious condition. My family is there plus health insurance isn't an issue since I'm a registered Cherokee and can get free health care.

I think a few would chose to go home for emotional reasons radther than on who had better health system. I would chose to be here as I find it to be more my home than the US. As a healthcare worker on both sides of the continent there are give and takes on both sides. The UK system seems more open to try out unconventional methods because they are not stiffled by health insurance policies. The US multidisplinary team seem more uniformed and team oriented than the UK (at least thats how it was in the hospitals I worked in the US 6 years ago ..not sure if things changed)

I would stay here, definitely. 

I disagree with those of you who say that the NHS is 20 years behind, midwives are not as good as OB/GYNs, and you MUST have a smear and a mammogram EVERY year without fail by saying the following:

1.  I trust my GP implicitly.  She has seen me through post-natal depression, an abnormal smear, a poorly baby, and a breast lump.  She listens to and cares about each one of her patients and I trust her with my life.

2.  I found a lump in  my breast when I was 27.  Because of family history I was sent IMMEDIATELY for a mammogram.  I was given the all clear, but had a mammogram every year for the following three years to be sure all was OK.

3. When I was pregnant with DD, I developed breathing difficulties and was taken straight to hospital and tested to ensure I wasn't developing an embolism.  I was kept in for 2 days of testing.

4. When DD was born, she had difficulty feeding.  The midwives told me to stay in hospital until I was happy with how she was feeding.  We stopped for 5 days.

5. DD suffered from febrile convulsions as a baby.  She was treated in hospital on a number of occasions, and in every instance she was treated immediately and given excellent care.

6. In December, on DH's 40th birthday, he began having chest pains!  We went straight to A&E (on a Friday night!) and he had a battery of tests.  He was given the call clear and we were back home within 2 hours.

Finally, if you think about it in terms of money, rather than treatment, of course you are going to have lots of regular testing and screening in the U.S. - you're paying for it.  The insurance companies and drug companies are in this for the money.  They're going to encourage you to have all the exams and tests you can.  I've found in the 10 years that I've been here, the NHS is more about prevention, and doctors don't push drugs and tests that are unnecessary.  You can go private if you chose, and you can purchase private health care.  Personally, I've never found a need for this.

One of the reasons we moved to the US was healthcare. (That, and an obvious reason of my husband getting transferred with a fantastic job). Wonderful and Rotten experiences happen in both countries, you can get fabulous, fantastic care in both countries, and you can be completely ignored and mistreated in both countries. It depends on your experiences and which *people* treat you. I was sorely mistreated during my pregnancy and birth (and after). I am finally getting the treatment I need here in the US (yes, a year after giving birth). Even though we are paying out of pocket at the moment, at least I'm getting treated. We are going through the process of filing an official complaint with the NHS.

My experience with US healthcare-standing in the waiting room of the local clinic holding a four year old swollen to the size of the Michelin Man while the receptionist queried a four year old $60 unpaid bill that turned out to be a mistake.

Give me the NHS any day. 

In the USA...I was on my way to work one day which was 90 miles from home. As soon as I reached the airport where I worked I had terrible pains in my lower right side. The pain was so bad I couldn't get out of my car. I found the nearest local hospital and nearly crawled through the door of the Emergency room. There were 3 other people waiting and after FOUR HOURS and in dire pain I told the receptionist I cant wait any longer and decided to leave. She begged me to stay and I was seen within 30 min. Ended up I had appendicitis and if I left when I was going to I probably wouldn't have made it through the night as the appendix had burst. I just don't understand why they make you wait hours and hours in the Emergency room. I have only been to the A & E a few times here but have never experienced a wait like I did in the American hospital.

Also just a note for those of you that don't know..the NHS isn't exactly FREE....a tidy little sum is directly debited from my husbands pay each month.

Also just a note for those of you that don't know..the NHS isn't exactly FREE....a tidy little sum is directly debited from my husbands pay each month.

I still remember the good old days when everyone paid £1 per week and prescriptions were 10p,then Thatcher got in LOL.
Still, the older you get the better it gets.

Dave

It would depend on the illness (how well-known or rare it is), and whether it was affordable without insurance in the States. I hate to say this, but most of the cutting-edge medical research these days is done in the States, simply because the hospitals and researchers get the money to do it. In my case, with a rare joint disease, my only NHS option is to have a total hip replacement (they last only 10 to 12 years, and I'm 39--it's not a procedure I'd want done several more times). In the States, where a doctor at Johns Hopkins is the world specialist in AVN, has written a book about it, and has taught two British surgeons how to do a procedure called femoral head resurfacing, health insurance would cover it. It's still considered "experimental" here, so the NHS won't. So in either country, it's going to cost about $20,000. Given that, I'd rather have it done in the States (I no longer have U.S. health insurance, but all things being equal, I'd rather go with the specialist at Johns Hopkins University). I've also heard a lot of horror stories about having babies here, with the NHS, so I wouldn't even consider having a baby unless I did so in the States, should I ever have kids. So, to give the short but final answer, I trust physicians in the States more than I do here. No offense is intended to anyone, so please, no verbal assaults.

Not a verbal assault, merely a difference of opinion.    

I've had three babies-one in the US, two in the UK.  All three were fairly straight forward.  But given a choice I'd go with the UK system.  I loved the midwives, loved have the same person with me throughout the labour and delivery.  And I think the aftercare is a huge advantage.  The midwife, then the health visitor come to your house for the first week therefore are able to pick up on any problems. 
Sure, there are horror stories but they are actually on both sides of the pond.  It's certainly why the insurance for OB/GYN is so expensive in the US and why so many are leaving the profession. 

Mindy,

I love your musical quote. To continue it:

Must have been a dream: I don't believe where I've been...
Come on--let's do it again!

I saw him at a very small club in Alexandria, long past his stadium-filling days. He'd lost a lot of hair, but sounded as good as ever.

Damn. Now I'm going to have to find "Frampton Comes Alive" and play that song--it's stuck in my head.

the  states...   but I know we  probabaly couldn't afford it...

Also just a note for those of you that don't know..the NHS isn't exactly FREE....a tidy little sum is directly debited from my husbands pay each month.

Very true.

But I could never get the kind of coverage the NHS affords our family of 4 for the equivalent amount in the US.  So it's still rather a good deal from my standpoint.

Peedal,

What are "meanful events"?

The NHS is free at point of delivery/access/need. Also, National Insurance goes towards unemployment benefit, disability benefits and your state pension, as well as the NHS.

But hey, I don't like paying it either