The NHS

So for years now, the United States has been battling with the issue of health care reform.
I should start of this post by stating that this is by no means an academic look at the NHS, nor does it necessarily reflect my overall opinions of how I think the healthcare system should look like in the United States. The U.S. is so different that the two cannot possibly be compared beyond looking at basic models of providing universal health care coverage.

Initially when I came to Cambridge, I was required to register with a doctor. It was free and took no more than 10 minutes out of my daily routine to get it all squared away. They were very nice and efficient. I registered out of requirement, and had the idea/hope that I would never have to return to the doctor's office for a real visit.

Well, a week ago, I started to feel a bit ill and just crossed my fingers that I wasn't going to start growing a snout and turn into a pig (aka contract swine flu). My throat continued to hurt for 4 days and by that time I decided it was best just to get it checked in case it was a bacterial infection. I headed over to the docs office, and was so pleased to arrive, give them my name, and only have to wait about 7 minutes to be seen. No co-payment necessary whatsoever.
Quick, efficient health care coverage at no cost = priceless.
Well, almost.
The doctor just looked at my throat (didn't check my ears/heart etc. just the throat) and told me to go home and just rest. It was a nasty virus going around.
Well, around midnight the following night, my ear became excruciatingly painful and I couldn't hear anything out of it... nor could I sleep, all night (as Katie, mom, dad etc. can attest to..).
Saturday morning: second attempt to get some sort of antibiotic from the doctor. They didn't even want to see me though. Called the NHS helpline and they just told me it was result of my virus and the congestion would calm down over time.
By afternoon, quite the opposite was the case as my ear started draining (this is a bit graphic, I know), and the pain did not ease.
Sunday morning: Another phone call, this time to a friend's dad who is a GP in Britain. He told me I needed to get antibiotics right away, because I had an ear infection (the second doctor to indicate that this was probably the case).
So, after telling the NHS helpline that I was in fact bleeding from my ear, they finally decided it was serious enough for me to be seen by a doctor. I went to the nearest instacare equivalent, and after about an hour waiting (which is average in the states as well on weekends), I was seen and the doctor said, and I quote, "Ooo. You have a severe infection. Those are very painful."
As if I didn't know!! This is what I had been trying to tell these people for a couple of days at this point (and had the doctor thursday checked my ears i arguably would have never gotten to this point to begin with).
Well, he said to just go sleep it off. Again, no antibiotics.
We had a bit of a tiff over this and I insisted that antibiotics were what I needed to speed up the recovery. Finally he consented to writing a prescription, and then followed up by telling me (in passing) that I had a perforated eardrum, and my hearing may not be restored for at least a little while (it simply takes time for it to heal itself).
Well, after 48 hours of antibiotics, I can say I am already feeling much better, am finally back in business and attending classes again, and am eagerly anticipating the day when my right ear is no longer buzzing... and my hearing is completely restored.

Thank you NHS. (And hey, it was FREE).