Swedes buy insurance to skip long health queues
“One in ten Swedes now has private health insurance, often through their employers, with some recipients stating it makes business sense to be seen quickly rather than languish in national health care queues.”
[...]“It’s quicker to get a colleague back to work if you have an operation in two weeks’ time rather than having to wait for a year,” privately insured Anna Norlander told Sveriges Radio on Friday. “It’s terrible that I, as a young person, don’t feel I can trust the health care system to take care of me.”
“The insurance plan guarantees that she can see a specialist within four working days, and get a time for surgery, if needed, within 15.“ (emphasis added)
Posted on February 4, 2014 by OCTS4
The Local, 17 Jan 2014
Swedes buy health insurance to skirt socialized system
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Children Denied Ambulances in Emergencies
“Swedish emergency services are to launch an internal investigation after a one-year-old boy who received second degree burns was denied an ambulance, reported Aftonbladet newspaper.”
“The boy had spilled a cup of hot tea on himself on Thursday and was burned on his face, neck and trunk. His mother immediately called SOS Alarm, the agency responsible for handling 112 emergency calls and coordinating rescue work. She was told that they should go to the hospital on their own.”
“The journey to Huddinge Hospital took forty minutes. In Huddinge, the boy’s condition was deemed serious and he was taken by ambulance to Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital.”
“On Sunday, Aftonbladet reported of another incident in Falun in central Sweden involving a one-year-old with blood poisoning and a fever of 39.2 degrees Celsius who was also denied an ambulance.”
Badly burned 1-year-old denied ambulance
The Local / news@thelocal.se
August 9, 2009
http://www.thelocal.se/21188/20090809/
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Medical Care ‘Going to the Dogs’ As Animal Hospital Offers X-Rays to Cut Delays
“Patients in need of an x-ray or an MRI scan in southwestern Sweden might soon be heading to a veterinary hospital to have their images taken.”
“The lines are so long, the Skara animal hospital has opened its doors, saying it could serve some of those who are waiting up to a year to have imaging done within the public health system.
“We have been taking care of private health care patients for six months,” said Per Johansson, spokesman at the Skara animal hospital to The Local. “We have the same machines and techniques as they do.” Johansson said his hospital could do the imaging and could then forward the results to the public hospital for reading.”
“Birgitta Molin Melander, head of the public Skaraborg hospital, said she has reservations about turning patients over to a vet. However, she said that she was willing to look into the idea, if patient security could be guaranteed.”
“Swedish healthcare needs real investment to reduce waiting times and increase access to normal doctors, hospitals and healthcare centres. Longer opening hours at the vet are not the solution to the health system’s problems.”
Animal hospital could do human x-rays
Adam Ewing
June 13, 2006
http://www.thelocal.se/4059/20060613/
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No staff, no service, no survival: Lack of personnel in Stockholm hospital leads to forgotten patient’s death
“A patient admitted to the emergency room of a Stockholm hospital later died after being forgotten by hospital staff for more than an hour.”
“…Staff first performed an initial diagnosis on the patient, who suffered from multiple illnesses… and came to the hospital one afternoon complaining of abdominal pains….”
“An hour later, the patient was found unconscious… While hospital staff tried desperately to revive the patient, the person died early the next morning.”
Forgotten patient dies in Stockholm emergency room
The Local
December 4, 2008
http://www.thelocal.se/16134/20081204/