Based on some comments Tristan made on the thread, "Cost of Living", I decided to try a SIMI for medical care, today. I've been suffering a severe sore throat for three days. The experience was completely satisfying. I believe they work mainly on a first come first served basis, with no appointments. I had to wait less than 15 minutes. I suggested perhaps a culture and sensitivity might be worthwhile, but told the doctor I would rely on her judgment. She said she didn't think that would be necessary, and wrote prescriptions for an antibiotic and a pain killer. I feel better, already. Total cost, for the consultation and ten days of antibiotics was just 265 pesos. I'm reminded of the recent visitor to Cancun who was suffering from a bad cold: she posted on this forum, asking for advice where to go. Someone told her you could see a doctor here for $5, but she ended up having a serious sticker shock when she went to Galenia Hospital instead of a SIMI or similar type of operation. ________________________
Tell you the truth, I don't know what's not to like about those docs, unless you don't like sitting in the waiting area with a bunch of everyday Mexicans. I consider it an "outing". We've been using them for years for all the common ailments. 15 minutes is probably an average wait. I don't think I've actually ever spent more than $200, for doc and meds. Try that in the states. Plus, the advantage that they're there weekends, night and holidays and they have offices all over town. They will also recommend that you see a specialist or your family doctor if they think it needs further attention. They don't consider themselves medical gods, like so many American doctors. Most Mexican doctors may not have quite the education that American ones do, but a visit to them is a lot more pleasant experience and they actually talk and listen.
Tristan, if it were not for your comments, I'd have never even tried one of these. I confess to a bias against any medical services this cheap, and I expected to have a number of medications pushed on me, as this can be where they might make up for the low cost of the consultation (35 pesos: night rate 50). However, nothing more than required was prescribed, and the cost was low. The pain medication made my condition tolerable and buys time for the antibiotics to work. By the way, was the NSAID you mentioned giving relief for your back pain "nimesulida"? That's what they prescribed for my throat pain, and it worked, which I'm thankful for because now I can sleep! ____________________ When Mexican docs give me a prescription I immediately check to see if the drug is approved for use in countries whose medical systems I respect, and for any interactions or side effects I should be concerned with. (In part, this is because it is rare for a Mexican doctor to inquire about what other drugs and food supplements you may be taking which might interact with the drugs they prescribe.) With nimesulida I found that France and some other developed countries do allow use of this drug; but, some have not permitted it, or banned it, because of liver failures it has induced. I'm not too worried about that, but will curtail drinking while taking it, as a precaution.
My wife has occasional back pain from a previous surgery that didn't help years ago.And no medical insurance. Moving to mexico and using the medical system is a big concern,based on a lot of feed back about the medical care I am feeling more confident,my wife will be in good hands.
The nsaid was Lertus and is more specialized for something like back pain, I believe. I learned of it because it was prescribed for my wife when she hurt her back, and it really helped her. I've never had back pain, but I hear it's something not easily relieved. I just thought I'd give it a try on my sciatica and it's worked a miracle. I always research drugs on the internet if I've not heard of them. I don't think Lertus is approved in the U.S., but the FDA is known for taking decades to approve drugs that could be helping people.
I have no problems with the health care system here, but I have a few doctor friends here and that's a big help. I may get a price break here and there but I pay what they tell me I owe. Plus, nearly 4 years ago, I had a malignant tumor. Went to the states for surgery but back here, Merida actually, for chemo and radiation. If I had it to do over again, I would have had the surgery here too. I remember having a discussion with a surgeon here and asked him if we should have a plastic surgeon to close the neck up, and maybe have a prosthetic device so there would be no disfiguring. He looked at me, thought for a second, smiled and said, "No, I am really quite good at what I do." Also, my first doc friend, when I showed her a lump on my neck, got me to an ear, nose, throad doc, then to a radiologist for an ultrasound, and then an oncologist for a biopsy, with no appointments and in a less than 4 hour time span. I know I am lucky and others have not been so fortunate. And I might add that my good friend V was there for me whenever I needed him. Which was a lot. Rough time for a few months. Gracias a Dios.
People, generally, have had good to acceptable experiences with the medical services here, but do look into medical insurance, once you arrive. Even here it's a good idea to have it. More than one person I've heard of has died here, for lack of it, with medical providers only willing to go so far when they knew there was no hope of ever being paid for what they did and spent on a patient. It can happen, anywhere, for those who choose to be uninsured and don't have millions waiting to be spent in some emergency. For those who can't afford a few thousand a year for medical insurance IMSS, a national Mexican health service, is a low cost option- costing just a few thousand pesos per year, instead of a few thousand dollars. It is available to residents of Mexico, whether temporary or permanent. You will notice the service difference but for those who don't have a lot of money it is way better than nothing when it comes to health care that you may need to survive. ________________ Tristan, have you cost compared with others, like Costco or Walmart, on pharmaceuticals sold by SIMI to see how competitive they are on price?
I used to buy my blood pressure meds at Walmart for a little over 100usd. I've been buying them for years from SIMI for less than half. I had a complete workup from a cardio at Hospiten last year, including a 24 hr monitor on my bp and it was totally under control with the SIMI meds. I also buy their version of Nexium, which works really well, for about 30% of the cost. If you buy at one on Tulum, near Oxxo, they're always have "promociones" that lower your cost even further. I don't know if all the sucursales have the same specials. Btw, on insurance, I've had AXA, formerly ING for many years, and they are super. They've always paid 100% of inpatient. It's getting pricey as I get older, but still beats everything else I've seen. They also don't cut you off at a certain age, like some others do, as long a you don't let it expire. They have a lifetime deductible per illness of 7000MXN. I've never used them for my meds, but I'm getting ready to start. I should have used them years ago, but I didn't want to hassle with filing. The cost of the meds, alone, should cover about half my annual premium.
I was impressed with the low prices. For a full course of antibiotic treatment with the generic version of Augmentin, it was just 95 pesos. My wife has AXA insurance, though she has no claim experience with them, yet. Always heard they were solid.
I tend to prefer the Red Cross over Simi. At Simi whatever you have you always leave with a prescription full of stuff - 1 antibiotic, 1 pain killer, 1 paracetamol based thing :icon_mrgreen: I guess it is how they make their money. Whereas at the Red Cross it is also dirt cheap, but they don't need to prescribe a load of stuff so you tend to get a prescription for just what you need.
