We think that we live in a time of medical miracles, and we do, but people are also still dying very quickly from things like pneumonia, and getting strokes from viruses. Any of us could die or be disabled at any moment. Be thankful if you have your health. You can blame docs, and sure it can be that, but this is not like having a good computer technician- life is full of risks!
Just anecdotal, but I visited Shanghai this summer and toured a top clinic - from my perspective, their standard of care is on par with, if not better, than many large (and quite good) groups like Sutter Health or Straub. The doctors there were educated in the U.S. and Germany (Massachusetts and Munich if memory serves).
Plus, if you can wait, treatment is nearly free, but you can get same day service for many procedures, like overnight ecg, for say $100 -$200.
Chinese public hospitals, at least ten years ago, didn’t provide nursing assistant care, so families would be responsible for cleaning and feeding someone in the hospital. Private hospitals are another matter, and when I lived in Beijing, I would go private even for ER services. And the private hospitals were pretty affordable, most of the doctors were foreign or foreign trained, most Chinese med students go to the public hospitals for residencies and after they graduate (my wife has a cousin in Shanghai finishing up her Med degree now). The program is different, it’s a 5 year degree plus residency, though you can go for a masters or PhD also (many doctors do), I think the American system of medical school is the odd one out.
Private health insurance had a cap (~$100k/year) for some reason. I thought that was risky.
If anyone has a friend or family member in the hospital, the best thing you can do is spend a few hours with them every day until they get out, or arange a schedule with other friends and family members.
Patients need advocates (and someone to help them from getting lonely, which also helps their recovery).
