Our experience of government Hospital

3rd January 2010

I came home today after a day of sorting things out. Luqman was asleep and when he woke up he just cried and cried and cried. Hubby told me he hurt his arm earlier whilst playing. My baby just wouldn't stop crying and he wouldn't move his arm. It didn't look broken but we thought it would be best to get it checked out.

So, we drove to Hospital Besar KL (HKL) Emergency Department. On arrival, we parked the car and got down to emergency; there was a triage place at the front where you have to give the patient's ID card or passport. Within a few minutes we were called and was seen by a male nurse who took Luqy's pulse, Oxygen saturation and temperature. We sat down at the waiting area again and was called to the payment counter. The fees for any trauma is RM50.00. Otherwise it is only RM15.00 for non-citizens and much less for Malaysian citizens.

We were given a number and within 15 minutes our number was called; we saw the doctor who sent him for Xray. The Xray would have taken less than 10 minutes except Luqman was screaming his head off. The Xray films were ready within a few minutes, took it back to the doctor who looked at it, confirmed there was no fracture and mada a follow-up appointment in a few days. We were out of the hospital and on our way home within 45 minutes.

There was a notice board at the waiting area that guaranteed all non-critical patients will be seen within 90 minutes. This was HKL, one of the biggest and busiest government hospital in Malaysia. There were no drunks, no time-wasters, okay...there was one guy who looked like he was involved in a fight and was surrounded by his family members including brothers, sisters, mom and dad all shaking their heads at him. Anyway, I think RM50 which is about £10 is great value for tip-top service. I would give HKL 5 stars! Now, can we discuss about what is wrong with the NHS?

TOP TIPS ON MALAYSIAN HOSPITALS:

You can go to government or private, government hospitals fees are much less but you may have to wait slightly longer; private hospitals cost a bomb!!!

Government hospital will charge higher rates for non-citizens.

Make sure you bring your ID card or passport because you will need it to register.