Before moving to France we informed OHIP of our plans to live abroad and purchased the necessary extra insurance. And we expected the French system to be somewhat different, but still quite adequate. And we were not let down.
The doctor here seems to be more available on a short-term notice, i.e. when you are sick, you call for an appointment and he sees you. We have not had any need for it, but the doctor can even make house calls for a slightly higher fee.
In the fall, when we were enrolling the boys in activities for the year, a health certificate was required. We called up a doctor around the corner, on our landlady’s recommendation and were given an appointment for about two hours later. He asked if the boys were healthy. Yes. He listened to their hearts and lungs. He agreed. He wrote out three certificates of good health and we were on our way. Because we have foreign insurance we need to pay each time we visit and then get reimbursed. Ed has found out what a nightmare that is. But 23 Euro later we walked out the door armed and ready.
Our next visit with the good doctor came right after our trip to Barcelona where, unfortunately, most of us got sick with a nasty cold. Ed, Noah and I went in to be seen – I had called from the road and we had an appointment shortly after we arrived back in town. This was of the essence, not only because we were sick but also because I was about to travel to the U.S. and had an infected hangnail as well. For the cold he prescribed various regimens according to our symptoms, and for my finger a whole host of treatments. A local spray, an ointment, special tape and gauze, and an antibiotic to boot. And specific instructions to keep it dry at all costs.
Well, after completing the finger regimen it was still infected. Being in the U.S. I called my brother-in-law who is also a doctor. He recommended a sterile soak, using an antibiotic ointment and a new antibiotic. Thank goodness the finger was better after his regimen! I am not knocking the French doctor’s advice, just glad that the problem didn’t last any longer.
After our return from Venice we had, you guessed it, another illness, this time a flu with fevers, aches (no it was not just the sore skiing muscles!) and a nasty mucousy cough and nose. And, as is my normal course in these situations, I got a sinus infection. For my first appointment with the doctor I was recommended RhinAdvil, a nasal spray similar to one I was already using, and a cough suppressant. The infection wasn’t raging at this point, so I gave it a whirl. One week later I had a raging sinus infection. After my second appointment with the doctor I walked out with a new nasal spray, a stronger decongestant, an inhalation to use with hot water and a towel. And an antibiotic, which he only prescribed hesitantly, advising me to wait two days until filling the prescription. Let’s just say that I have had enough sinus infections and have tried enough remedies to know that at this point in the game only the antibiotic will do the trick, in conjunction with all of my other cleaning and drying out methodologies.
On a slightly different topic, we have friends here who have a daughter who got appendicitis after about a month of moving here (they are on sabbatical as well). The daughter was in severe pain, and the Algerian woman who lives in the corner did several interesting remedies to try to help. She washed the daughter’s hair with a special solution and gave her some cod liver oil. Needless to say, they took their daughter to the hospital. She was operated on using laproscopic surgery and recovered without issue. The mother did say that she was amazed at the lack of hand-washing that occurred, despite the sink in the room. I have found a similar thing with the good doctor. He shakes hands with each patient, even kisses those with whom he has a greater familiarity (very French, of course). It surprised me quite a bit though, given how contagious I imagine a doctor’s office to be.
All in all I find the French medical system to be not that different from the Canadian or U.S. systems, with a slightly higher reticence to jump in with the big medical guns. However the care is so much more personable. Each time I have met with the doctor I have not felt at all rushed. He has been understanding with my less-than-perfect French (although I have to admit to giving myself a primer on all my symptoms before the first visit) and very patient with all of my questions to make sure that I did not miss some important detail. All this despite a full waiting room.
It is good to know that the good doctor really is just that, a good doctor. And hopefully none of us will need to see him ever again!
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