In the System

There's a lot of chatter lately about the state of our health care system - lobbyists getting cash that should be used on patient care, wait times to make your head spin and of course, let's not forget the complaints about overpaid administrators and their vacation payouts. But the last two weeks, I've been 'in' the system, and I must say, I've been happily impressed with my experience.

My mother is 'having her eyes done'. No, not a brow lift; cataracts. At the hospital where she's having the procedure, the team looking after the patients has their work down to...well..down to a science. Wednesdays are for left eyes, Tuesdays are for rights. A simple thing, but when you think about it, a very clever way to avoid a mistake. For those of us waiting, our patient is assigned a number and in the waiting area, a screen tracks their progress. I knew the minute my mum was under the knife, (actually a laser, I guess), when she was done and long before I expected her, there she was, left eye bleary and ready for a nap. Today, we're doing the whole thing over again.

The very same day, about a week after my yearly womanly 'lube oil and filter' as my sweetie calls it, I stopped in at the lab of that very hospital to have some blood drawn and tested. I had a message from my doctor's office fewer than 24 hours later, he having received and already reviewed the results. Seriously, less than a day. That seems very very fast to me.

My only complaint about the entire experience is the unbelievably long line at the coffee shop. Maybe we can hire some lobbyists or consultants and task them with creating a framework to curb our collective addiction to Timmys.