With this post I don't want to judge the japanese health care system, in fact I think one experience can't reflect the entire system, but......
Around 20 days ago a little red spot appeared on my skin, I though it was nothing, but since it was really itching I preferred to go to the closest hospital just to know what it was. The Hospital was the one close to Kansai Gaidai University. The building inside didn't looks so good, but the people were friendly and in few minutes I've been visited from a doctor. She had no idea what I had, and so she gave a cream just for itchiness.
The day after, the situation went worse, I had more red spots. I got a bit scared and decided to back to the hospital. Since it was saturday there was no chance to be visited. So I had to go to another hospital. There a doctor visited me after one hour (still good compare to Italy), but he really had no idea what was happening to me. He visited me for more than one hours, guessing random illness...finally he decided to give me another type of cream, some pills for the liver and some vitamins.
Monday...I was covered all over by big red spots, I was really scared and i couldn't sleep so I decided to go in Osaka to a dermatology hospital department as told by my japanese girlfriend. There the department semmed to be clean and competent. The doctor visited me but couldn't figure out what I had. She said different things, and gave me some medicines....nothing worked...so I went back angain some days later and she said that probaly was wong and I should try other medicines, this time for different illness. Nothing! I came back again and she was surprised and didn't know what to do...sh said that probably I had some bugs inside my skin!!!!!! I got scared and decided to go to another hospital....The hospital was in Temmabashi and looked very clean and new. The doctor that visited me seemed to be more confident but colun't figured out what I had....fortunally she gave me some medicine and this time it worked! In 5 days I could seen that I was getting better. In the meanwhile they took a pice of my skin in the last visit to analyze it. The day I went back to the hospital to know wich kind of strange thing I had, the doctor still wasn't able to explain it. Now I'm almost cured...after 23 days!! And as they said last week...tomorrow they will be able to tell me what i HAD!!!
At last, I can say that for my experience, healh care in japan seems to be not so good, some doctors couldn't figure out what I had, some others just gave me random medicine for different illness without be sre if it was the right things to do. For what it concern the price I paid I can tell that it was ok. I made a japanese insurance as soon I arrived in the country, so I spent few money just for the medicine. About 3000 yen every time! I can say that I wasted around 12000 yen since they gave me wrong medicine several times, but I think it wasn't too expensive.
Anyway...in my case, I can say that japanese health care is not very good as I thought. Hope nobody have similar stories to share with me, but if someone have please tell me, because I want to know if I've been just unlucky or it's better not to be sick in Japan!
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