Here is how it went down. Our dog, Max, started having accidents indoors about a week ago. This has never been an issue for Max. He is house broken and had never had an accident indoors until just recently. (Unless you get him too excited, but that's a whole different thing.) After a couple of days of this we knew either he was having old age issues or it was a treatable medical condition.
We called up the vet and got an appointment the same day. We offered to bring a urine sample and they said they would prefer to take it while he was there so that it would be a newer sample. We pulled up to the vet and told them we had a dog that was going to pee as soon as we let him out of the car. They immediately sent out a nurse to take the sample and as expected, it didn't take long.
They brought the sample inside and the vet was immediately ready to see us. They told us exactly what the urinalysis would cost, we assented to it, and they started the analysis. (Right then, not "we'll call you tomorrow.") Right off, the urinalysis revealed that his urine was clean, but far too dilute. The vet explained that this meant it was not a urinary tract infection, but that it could be a kidney issue. He also explained that there are some types of brain tumors that can cause the kidneys to shut down. The vet then left the room to continue his testing. He came back in with some good news. He discovered that there were indications that the body was fighting an infection, likely in the kidneys.
At this point we had a discussion that you will never have with a people doctor. The vet said here is what I recommend. He explained a course of treatment. He gave us the pros and cons of each part. He tapped each treatment into a touch screen pc and the exact invoiced price was there before we even started treatment. Can you imagine that? Have you ever had a doctor say here is what we think it is and here is what the treatment will cost. I haven't. They can't even tell you what the meds will cost.
He must have dedicated at least 20 minutes to consulting with us. When I had my knee surgery, I couldn't get the surgeon to spend more than 5 minutes talking to me about the procedure beforehand (and that costed 10 times as much), but this vet talked to us for as long as it took.
We discussed what our options were, alternative medicines, the benefit of a blood test, etc. In the end, we decided it was worth the extra expense to have the blood test done and confirm the kidney infection.
Our dog is not good around needles, so to do the blood draw we knew we would have to sedate him. I asked when we would schedule the appointment to sedate him. They said, "Let's do it right now." Can you imagine a people doctor saying that? Me neither. They won't even contemplate it, they want an anesthesiologist. They left to prepare the sedation meds then came back in and sedated him while we were there.
Once he was asleep they said, "ok, we'll call you when it's done." While Max was under, they drew blood, gave him a rabies booster, and gave him a pedicure. (Hey, as long as he's there...) They called us up with the preliminary results: kidneys definitely infected, long term kidney function is not damaged. (Yes!!)
The result is being sent to a lab for additional testing. Keep in mind we already paid for this service and know EXACTLY what it costed. We don't expect any surprises, but if there are issues with canine diabetes or the like, they should be able to tell us.
When we came back to pick him up a few hours later, I swiped my discover card to pay our pre-agreed upon price, they gave us his meds, we grabbed Max, and we were on our way. No fuss no muss.
Let's recap:
- There was no wait to see the vet.
- They told us up front what the whole course of treatment would cost, including sedation, meds, and tests. They even knew what a 3rd party lab would cost.
- They did the sedation on premises, during the visit.
- We paid up front with no middle-man and zero insurance overhead.
- They gave us preliminary test results immediately.
- They didn't rush out of the room. They took the time to talk to us.
- They gave us the meds instead of sending us to a pharmacy.
So, having said all that, my rhetorical question is: why the hell is that treatment so much better than what I get from a people doctor? And secondly, does the ACA do anything to simplify my health care so that it is more like the streamlined treatment a dog can get?
I don't even have any serious issues with my doctor, but seeing how simple the process is for a dog, I can't help but think we humans are getting the short end of the stick. From what I can tell the ACA doesn't make things any better. It gives us a way to fund the machine, but does nothing to simplify the process.
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