socal78
Well-known member
The subject of this post -- Medical Tourism -- could open up a can of worms because obviously there are a million different directions it could go in. The one I am posting about today is medical tourism in Mexico, specifically. Unfortunately, I received some news this weekend which was devastating to me.
My friend told me she has a surgery date lined up this spring for w*eigh*t*loss / gas*tric sl*ee*ve surgery in TI*JUAN*A! (Adding asterisk to make it not come up in a search by her or someone else.)
She will fly from her home state in the south to San Diego, where the coordinator from Mexico will pick her up from some U.S. based medical tourism office and take her down there. She will then undergo the procedure, stay a couple days, go back to San Diego and stay at a hotel to be monitored.
Medical tourism in Mexico has a bad reputation. Numerous stories have been all over the news about things going wrong. The show "Botched", is about two surgeons fixing previous surgeries -- most of which were done in Mexico. One woman they featured did not receive the general anesthesia she was promised. Instead, they kept her awake and packed her body in ice to dull the pain during her operation. She obviously still struggles with the mental torment of that! That show's surgeons completely advise against going to Mexico for surgery due to it being a third world country with a lower standard of care.
There are plenty of stories like this woman who is a Canadian who went to Mexico for weight loss surgery. She now suffers long-term complications and may not live! Her stomach contents began leaking into her body. Her body can not take in enough nutrients. She had to have multiple corrective surgeries. She regrets the procedure and now disagrees that it was ever necessary in the first place. She was healthy before. Not now. Canada has a big problem with this, just like the U.S.
Don't get me wrong. I don't think this is a bad idea. I think it is A COMPLETELY STOOOOPID, IRRESPONSIBLE IDEA!
This is like getting brain surgery in Bangladesh.
She has 2 children!! Yeah, she's overweight. Okay. That might shorten her life 5 years. But at least that's at the end of her life. If her surgery goes sideways, she could die now. She does NOT have diabetes. She does NOT have ANY serious side effects as a result of her weight. I think this is mainly about looks for her.
Anyway, if she really wanted to have the surgery done, why not do it in the U.S.? People do medical tourism because of the cost. It can be drastically less expensive than doing it in the U.S. But what is our life worth?!! I am sure she could afford the surgery here in the states if she sold off her massive amounts of handbags!! The priorities here are killing me!
Anyway, this all comes from a place of concern. She is a good, long-time friend of mine. I do NOT want to lose her. She has a history of making impulsive decisions. She also tells me she is "not a smart person". WELL OKAY then WHY should she be allowed to do this? She thinks that because the Mexican doctor is willing to take her $$$$ that means she is a good candidate. Um, no. That means they won't refuse a pay day.
I SWEAR. I am so frustrated.
My friend told me she has a surgery date lined up this spring for w*eigh*t*loss / gas*tric sl*ee*ve surgery in TI*JUAN*A! (Adding asterisk to make it not come up in a search by her or someone else.)
She will fly from her home state in the south to San Diego, where the coordinator from Mexico will pick her up from some U.S. based medical tourism office and take her down there. She will then undergo the procedure, stay a couple days, go back to San Diego and stay at a hotel to be monitored.
Medical tourism in Mexico has a bad reputation. Numerous stories have been all over the news about things going wrong. The show "Botched", is about two surgeons fixing previous surgeries -- most of which were done in Mexico. One woman they featured did not receive the general anesthesia she was promised. Instead, they kept her awake and packed her body in ice to dull the pain during her operation. She obviously still struggles with the mental torment of that! That show's surgeons completely advise against going to Mexico for surgery due to it being a third world country with a lower standard of care.
There are plenty of stories like this woman who is a Canadian who went to Mexico for weight loss surgery. She now suffers long-term complications and may not live! Her stomach contents began leaking into her body. Her body can not take in enough nutrients. She had to have multiple corrective surgeries. She regrets the procedure and now disagrees that it was ever necessary in the first place. She was healthy before. Not now. Canada has a big problem with this, just like the U.S.
Don't get me wrong. I don't think this is a bad idea. I think it is A COMPLETELY STOOOOPID, IRRESPONSIBLE IDEA!
This is like getting brain surgery in Bangladesh.
She has 2 children!! Yeah, she's overweight. Okay. That might shorten her life 5 years. But at least that's at the end of her life. If her surgery goes sideways, she could die now. She does NOT have diabetes. She does NOT have ANY serious side effects as a result of her weight. I think this is mainly about looks for her.
Anyway, if she really wanted to have the surgery done, why not do it in the U.S.? People do medical tourism because of the cost. It can be drastically less expensive than doing it in the U.S. But what is our life worth?!! I am sure she could afford the surgery here in the states if she sold off her massive amounts of handbags!! The priorities here are killing me!
Anyway, this all comes from a place of concern. She is a good, long-time friend of mine. I do NOT want to lose her. She has a history of making impulsive decisions. She also tells me she is "not a smart person". WELL OKAY then WHY should she be allowed to do this? She thinks that because the Mexican doctor is willing to take her $$$$ that means she is a good candidate. Um, no. That means they won't refuse a pay day.
I SWEAR. I am so frustrated.
She said they have discussed it for a long time. Said she has done her research over the past 3 months (wow, so she is basically, what, a doctor now?!?!!) and that she would NOT be doing this if she didn't think it was safe because she has her kids to think of.