Health Encounters

We had our first encounter with the health care system when we went to be checked out when we enrolled with the doctor. It was all very efficient, you have a card, that you use to identify yourself to the different sections. When we went to the blood taking bit, we just put our cards on the tray, and they knew who we were, and what they had to do. The doctor told me about checking for testicular cancer, and that it wasn't a problem, because it was easily cured nowadays. I said that they had done their work, and they could whip them off any time. He didn't think that was funny. (Obviously, I do know about their other roles, being an informed sort of chap.)

The use of the internet was very clever (I thought). You can get a password to log into the website, where you can check aspects of your records, like when you last had an immuniszation. When the results of the various tests we had were ready, I was sent an email, could log into the website, and get the results, along with blurb about what they mean. I was right in the middle of normal of most tests, except for HDL cholesterol, which was low. This sounds good, except that HDL cholesterol is the good sort of cholesterol, so you want more of that. Apparently the results aren't hugely reliable, because I had eaten though.