Eastern European medical clinics in Dublin

luckat · 14-11-2007 05:59PM #1

I was listening to Metro on RTE Radio 1 on Saturday night and they were talking about all these new clinics for Poles, Latvians and Lithuanians - they found the Irish health service inferior so they set up private clinics, which sound pretty good.

Apparently if they have a throat problem they go straight to a laryngologist, for instance.

But then I heard about someone who rang in to Joe Duffy or his like, and was told that she couldn't attend because she was Irish. Whatttt??????

Has anyone any experience of these?

I'm sick of Irish GPs. They don't even take a swab when you go to them with the flu, so how they'll know if you're carrying some deadly strain I can't imagine. And they always have a listen, say a few words and prescribe the same antibiotics.

Pete4779 · 14-11-2007 06:04PM

If you want to see an ENT you can do it here too, but

a) you probably don't want to pay
b) you have knowledge that the Irish specialist is on the medical council register of medical specialists.

So what's the problem?

I bet public health care in Latvia is equally bad, and the private consultants there see an opportunity to set up here and make money easily - if they can prove their accreditation.

I'm no medic, but why are you going to the GP with a case of the flu? Maybe that's why you aren't taken seriously! Deadly strain?!?!?

luckat · 14-11-2007 06:23PM

Taken seriously? I don't care about being taken seriously; if I'm sick I go to the doc to be cured. They can break their crack laughing if they give me decent medical treatment.

The guys in the Polish clinics sounded pretty well qualified from what the programme said. Listen here: http://www.rte.ie/radio1/spectrum/

But of course we don't like medical competition here.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar · 14-11-2007 06:41PM

they 15 minutes they waste on your could could be better spent on somebody who is seriously ill..

shane86 · 14-11-2007 06:43PM

What exactly do people expect from doctors? None of the foreigners i work with can believe the way doctors here work. Personally, if I have a flu i usually let it work itself out, until last August I hadnt seen a GP in at least six years. But i recognise that when I do have a flu, and when it requires something better than over the counter, the doctor is a formality. Lets be honest, we are only going for the prescription, its a flu full stop, the chemist on their own knows full well what meds you require for your sickness, all we go to the doctor for is to get the piece of paper confirming it. Exactly what extra attention their GP back home gives baffles me, sounds like they are just trying to justify their wage by keeping patients there and waffling for 10 mins.

Work with one girl who is so distrustful of our health service that she has an insurance policy whereby if she suffers anything requiring hospital treatment (from severe flu to a broken bone, or whatever yid need to stay overnight for) she gets flown home to Slovakia for treatment

Dont ge it myself, any time me or my friends required the hospital in recent years we were seen within a few minutes, and none of us have VHI/Bupa or anything.

Guy:Incognito · 14-11-2007 06:55PM

I got sick a couple of weeks back, went to the doctor, got my prescription and all is well. In and out in half and hour (inc waiting time) and now i'm over it. Got him to check one or two longstandign things that I was never oushed enough about before (turne dout to be nothing to worry about). Pleasent enough experience. No complaints. As above, only went for the prescription really. I havnt had any complaints personanly

Had a dislocated finger about 2 years ago that I never got sorted (long story) and went to the hospital about 6 weeks later (Tallaght) . Was seen quickly and they realised I needed an operation. Was in, operated on and back out within 5 days of first walking in the door, even then the only delay was because I was in the ward overthe weekend and lots of serious cases came in that moved me down the list a bit. Again, pleasent enough experience (special menttion to the doctor that dealt with me, top guy).

Had an issue with my son last year (he was 2 at the time) again in Tallaght hospital and they were great. He needed a minor operation and was done that day out the next.

Zaph · 14-11-2007 10:07PM

I work with a Polish girl who has pretty good English, but she says that when trying to explain what's wrong with her or understand what the doctor tells her she isn't always sure that she's got things right. She now goes to a Polish doctor and it makes sense to me.

Owen · 14-11-2007 10:11PM

My girlfriend's Polish, and she's can't believe how slow and underdeveloped our medical system is. And I can understand why, we went to Poland in September, and she visited 2 doctors while we were there. In a country where most people haven't got a pot to p*ss in, they make us like kids playing in a sandpit when it comes to medical care.

lostexpectation · 15-11-2007 01:41AM

can anybody justify the gp system here? nope, I think alot of these other countire have clinics, where a number of doctors in different areas working all the time, as opposed to gp surgeries.

i dunno I havn't gone to many doctors in my life, it doesn't seem to work like that here, but it is being introduced in public and private clinics.... now thank science!

its part of the reason people go to ER when they shoudln't they want to see a specialist becuase they had their time wasted in expensive GP who does nothing knows nothing, to expensive a screening method.

tallaght01 · 15-11-2007 09:55AM

luckat wrote: »

I'm sick of Irish GPs. They don't even take a swab when you go to them with the flu, so how they'll know if you're carrying some deadly strain I can't imagine. .

The flu won't show up on your average swab. Even if it did, there's no cure for it, so why bother??

shane86 wrote:

But i recognise that when I do have a flu, and when it requires something better than over the counter, the doctor is a formality. Lets be honest, we are only going for the prescription, its a flu full stop, the chemist on their own knows full well what meds you require for your sickness, all we go to the doctor for is to get the piece of paper confirming it.

Again, there's no cure for the flu. Antibiotics don't work on the flu!

lostexpectation wrote:

time wasted in expensive GP who does nothing knows nothing

That's a ridiculous statement.What do you think your GP has been doing for the last 10-35 years of his/her career?? Most illnesses that GPs see don't need treatment. Thy're constantly fighting an uphill battle to convince people they don't need antibiotics or a hospital referral. When they succeed, us hospital docs applaud them, but the public think they're incompetent. It's a no win situation.

On topic, I think these medical centres are a great idea, insofar as it will help with the language barrier. I've treated the kids of a LOT of eastern European immigrants, and sometimes I literally don't have the first clue what's going on becasue they simply can't communicate. Then it takes hours to get an interpreter before we can even start to talk about what's wrong.

But for those who speak good english, they are unlikely to get any better care from these clinics, IMO

dexterfletcher · 15-11-2007 10:49AM

I totally agree with tallaght01 on the GP front. I love the aul Irish attitude of "ah sure them GP's only keep you in there to justify their huge salary"...makes me laugh. These are probably the same people that hate leaving a GP without getting a perscription too. Most people only seem to think they get value for money when they leave with the little script. Mary Harney/Brendan Drumm has repeatedly told everyone that GP's should be the first line of defence for the health system. People should be warned away from going to the ER for a small ailment at all costs when GP's can probably sort them out.

Also, you can't get an antibiotic for the fcukin flu..its a virus and has to work itself out.

Why do people always think they know better than the doctors?

Eastern European medical clinics in Dublin

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