Wellabroad.com Blog

While I assist tens of thousands of travelers outside of the United States each and every year, not long ago I had a first-hand, personal experience with my own mother that made me thankful I had the background I do in overseas medical care.

 My mom was living as a missionary in the Netherlands and was on a trip from the Netherlands to Costa Rica where I was residing at the time. While she was visiting me, she managed to get her hand caught in a ceiling fan which then knocked her to the ground. We chose to quickly get to the nearest hospital, even though we were all a little nervous about the treatment available in the area. Upon our arrival to the ER, we were greeted by a crowded room filled with sick, vomiting children, couples, families, even a drunk man who had been stabbed was wondering around aimlessly with urine soaked pants. It would have made a good scene for an ER TV reality show.

We were very pleased when mom was escorted out of the waiting room quickly (certainly due to the fact that she was a tourist from the US). The entire visit lasted only a few hours and included all of the appropriate processes (exam, x-rays, financial office, placement of cast), but there were several people that were there in the waiting room upon our arrival that were still there when we left. After her ordeal was all over, Costa Rican locals told her she would not have to pay anything insurance didn’t cover, that the government would cover it. To a US citizen that didn't seem like a good idea. It seemed sooner or later, someone would realize she wasn’t authorized to accept Costa Rican government healthcare, and she didn’t really want that legal battle to end up finding her some day, so she happily paid her small expenses.

We were both glad when it was over, and I ever since I’ve had a different perspective when helping families through their overseas medical crisis.