All new experiences told as stories to others usually have a lesson or moral from which we are to learn or ponder. Mine is two-fold; one is a culture changing truth, and the second a personal challenge overcome. My desire in writing is to share what I have gained from a shocking and frightful ordeal and essentially help others. Whether it be joining the change of a country's stigma or opening minds to global medical tourism, my journal begins.
Kind. Caring. Utmost professional. Patient conscious. The absolute best medical experience I have ever encountered. This does not touch the surface of the entire staff at the hospital. In all my 44 years, I have never felt such a level of concern or comfort as in this Colombian hospital. I speak from not only a patient perspective but clinical as well. About 25 years ago I worked as an orthopedic nurse in the largest tertiary care hospital (at the time) on the east coast. I almost made it an entire year. The daily mental and physical endurance was more than I could make my life's work. Nursing school doesn't teach this because it can not. People whom you have grown close to, suffering in multiple types and severities of pain. That sums up nursing in my eyes.
From the doctors and nurses, to the hospitality and communications staff, each one had a smile and awareness of its patients. And especially with my lack of spanish speaking abilities (even though my father is Ecuadorian) a happy face makes all the difference in the world.
Amazing pictures of the surgery wound, two days post-op and today. Scar will be barely noticable in the future, thanks to my masterful and english speaking surgeon!
Showing posts with label Central and South America Primo Travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Central and South America Primo Travel. Show all posts
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
American Medical Tourism Blogger has Major Emergency Surgery in Colombia
I never thought it would happen to me. As I write, research, and promote medical tourism in Colombia, who could guess that I would soon have a 'as-serious-as-it-gets' experience as an emergency patient. I speak barely enough Spanish to say I am in pain, and not enough to know what the doctors were saying was wrong with me. But the nine days I spent in the hospital I will write about for the world to read. And hopefully my experience will help others needing medical treatment and cannot receive it, for more reasons than just financially. I am only 2 1/2 weeks out of surgery and recovery is going very well. My surgeon is a wonderful man who speaks better English than my Spanish abilities, and will make his second house visit Friday. The tomography picture above shows my kidney on the left normally. The right kidney (looking like a hot dog) is smashed by the 10 cm abscess behind it. My large intestine was also half blocked which caused me to become severely dehydrated. I had started with a bladder infection and as we are reminded to 'always finish ALL the antibiotic prescription' I consciously did not. I now know why this is impertinent; I learned the hard way.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Eyelid surgery costs in U.S. and Colombia
From ColombiaMedicalTourism.blogspot.com
Eye lift cost comparisons
Eyelid
surgery (blepharoplasty or eye lift) is a popular cosmetic plastic surgery to
remove excess skin, fat or muscle from droopy upper and lower eyelids.
Blepharoplasty improves baggy skin under the eyes, sinking upper eyelids or
drooping eyelashes that impair vision. The surgery can also treat a medical
condition called ptosis (drooping eyelid), which is caused by poor muscle tone
or nerve damage. Ptosis causes the eyelids to hang very low and block
vision.
In the states, the total fees can range from $2,000 to $5,000 or more, depending on the extent of the procedure. In 2007, the national average for plastic surgeon fees for blepharoplasty was $2,480, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. In Santa Marta, Colombia, our specialists quote was 2,600 pesos, or about $1,457.05 USD with today's currency exchange rate. With all the options available in Santa Marta, or Colombia, as a whole (Bogota is the 4th best location for all plastic or as I like to say, improvement surgery) many patients combine services to get the most for your money. I am working with a group of family doctors here, to have the blepharoplasty and total veneers for my husband and I. My molar implant is almost complete, and then we will be ready for the veneers, which take about a week. The eye lift is a pretty quick surgery and recovery is a breeze, according to my mother, who had it done last year. Thanks Mommy, for that gene, and lousy teeth genes too! <3 You Mommy!!! She said it feels like paper cuts on the eyelids, and stitches are out after five days. I am a veteran orthodontic patient, and hated dentist visits more than my fear of bugs, which ranks at totally petrified. So keep checking for updates to these maintenance visits we will be undergoing. After we have completely healed and look absolutely fabulous we certainly will be posting our photos here, and just about everywhere I can online, so look out facebook, all my profile pics, linkedin.....
In the states, the total fees can range from $2,000 to $5,000 or more, depending on the extent of the procedure. In 2007, the national average for plastic surgeon fees for blepharoplasty was $2,480, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. In Santa Marta, Colombia, our specialists quote was 2,600 pesos, or about $1,457.05 USD with today's currency exchange rate. With all the options available in Santa Marta, or Colombia, as a whole (Bogota is the 4th best location for all plastic or as I like to say, improvement surgery) many patients combine services to get the most for your money. I am working with a group of family doctors here, to have the blepharoplasty and total veneers for my husband and I. My molar implant is almost complete, and then we will be ready for the veneers, which take about a week. The eye lift is a pretty quick surgery and recovery is a breeze, according to my mother, who had it done last year. Thanks Mommy, for that gene, and lousy teeth genes too! <3 You Mommy!!! She said it feels like paper cuts on the eyelids, and stitches are out after five days. I am a veteran orthodontic patient, and hated dentist visits more than my fear of bugs, which ranks at totally petrified. So keep checking for updates to these maintenance visits we will be undergoing. After we have completely healed and look absolutely fabulous we certainly will be posting our photos here, and just about everywhere I can online, so look out facebook, all my profile pics, linkedin.....
Monday, July 30, 2012
Subject: Primo Vacations Expansion Announcement
June 8, 2012
Subject: Primo Vacations Expansion
Corporate Announcement of Central / South American Expansion
Hello Lucy,
I hope your summer is already beginning to shape to be the best one
you've ever had. For us, it absolutely is as we're now experiencing
unprecedented growth.
We're daily bringing on more new members to Primo than ever before.
We're crushing all other opportunities out there and many of you
are daily stuffing your pockets with $500 commissions (or more).
I LOVE that.
Today, I'm writing about expansion in a unique part of the world.
Primo is a worldwide opportunity but is absolutely exploding in
Central and South America and attracting some very large leaders
with large groups and marketing arms.
I'd like to introduce to you, just such an individual. A leader
among leaders who is facilitating our growth South of the border.
His name is Frederick Siller and because of our expansion into Central
and South America, effective immediately, I am naming him President
of PrimoVacations Central and South America.
We have plans in process now for a transition of Primo into Spanish, but
this has not been a barrier in any way for Frederick as our growth is
now compounding.
Medical Tourism is all the rage in Central and South America, particularly
where Frederick and his beautiful wife Lorena live. Its the epicenter and it opens
a whole new market up for an already enormous, 7 Trillion dollar a year
space.
Attached is Frederick's bio. Please take a moment to look it over and see
why we're so excited to have him and his leaders on board.
I've said from the beginning, if you like Primo now, you're going to LOVE
it later.
Welcome Frederick! It's great to have you on board.
More to come,
Rob
Rob Hannley
President, Primo Vacations
.JPG)
Frederick Siller- President, Primo Vacations Central and
South America
BIO: Frederick Siller has extensive accolades of experience
and talents as a professional Personal Mentor, International
Public Speaker, and Direct Sales /Closing Coach for over 24
years. From early beginnings as an Insurance Agent, his
success allowed him to single-handily acquire and restructure
Southern Casualty Insurance to 10 agent offices through
Central and Northern Florida, serving as President, mentor, and
trainer for over 50 associates while titled Brokering Agent for 30
major insurance companies.
As a multi-million dollar producer by the age of 23, his decision to improve his
quality of life by transferring business from office to home proved to be a pioneering,
faith-based but a very correct decision for Frederick. His team launched several profitable
start-ups in the home-based industry that went onto be very successful and continue to
do so. His advertising and marketing departments grew attention from the Motivational
Speakers he admired and learned from in his younger years, and with his flourishing
online network showing exponential growth, he accepted an offer to travel and speak
along side his teachers and mentors across the country and the world-another dream
accomplished by the age of 27.
He has since been on stage with many mentors and coaches in the Home-Based Industry such
as Ellie Drake, Jeffrey Combs and Anthony Robbins. Audiences of 1000's would leave with
a tremendous sense of energy, desire, determination, and motivation for their teams. Frederick
was asked to Personally Mentor on a daily basis and thus changed many lives professionally
and personally. Presidents and leaders such as Doctors, Lawyers, Marketers and
Homemakers reached out to Frederick for career and success strategies as he continued
Speaking Publicly.
Frederick is considered a serious global force in sales marketing, advertising, and team building
and continues his passion of personal mentoring and speaking. His charisma and catalyst
in speaking paired with his resources and keen awareness on motivation and success are
unmatched.
Joining as President of Primo Vacations for Central and South America is the challenging
endeavor he desired for many years. His unfailing belief in both the Opportunity and
the Latin Culture are in alignment for unprecedented success whose time has come. This
will also create a massive wave effect for Europe, Asia and beyond. Frederick has chosen to take the message and action of Fair Travel and Medical for every person around the Globe.
"Treat each and every not just our own, as Equal and Greater than," he remarks to the
Colombians he knows, and whom now follow him daily. Philanthropy is his passion and
practiced each and every day to the 'Samario', the locals who call him Federico and
amigo.
Frederick brings his energy, fortitude and heart each and every single moment, hour, and day of the
week as he refers to IT as His Chosen Lifestyle. "To have what I have, You must do
what I do" He can be reached at medtourcolombia@hotmail.com
2831 St Rose Pkwy Suite 301 Henderson, NV89052
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Dental Procedure Price Chart on UK, US, and Colombia
Taken from http://medellindentalsolutions.com/costofimplantdentistry.html
United United Colombia
Kingdom States
United United Colombia
Kingdom States
| White Fillings | $150 to $250 One Surface Filling | $25-30 one surface |
| Crowns | £300.00 – £2000.00 per tooth | $950 per crown up to $3.500. | $220-440 per crown |
| Inlay & Onlay | $650-1200 | $220-440 |
| Basic Dental Implants | £1500 – £2500.00 per tooth | $2,000-$4,000 each | $650-950 per implant |
| Veeners | 300.00 – £2000.00 Per Tooth | $975 per veneer up to $2200 | $100-400 per unit |
Thursday, June 28, 2012
American physician has procedure done in Cartegena, Colombia
How is that for your second opinion? Dr. Curtis Hunt, M.D. of Detroit recently traveled across the Caribbean to historic Cartegena, Colombia where he saved about $3,000 on a single office visit procedure. His story can be found at http://cartagenainfo.net/MedicalTourism/GastroCaribe/index.html
Got Health Insurance? Medical Tourism is Better, Here's Why
Health insurance can be confusing, disappointing, and is almost always expensive. When considering travel abroad for procedures, side-by-side cost comparisons still favor medical tourism. Studies tell the whole story.
The Commonwealth Fund, in its annual survey, “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall”, compares the performance of the health care systems in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada. Its 2007 study found that, although the U.S. system is the most expensive, it consistently under-performs when compared to the other countries.
The Commonwealth Fund completed its thirteenth annual health policy survey in 2010. A study of the survey “found significant differences in access, cost burdens, and problems with health insurance that are associated with insurance design”. Of the countries surveyed, the results indicated that people in the United States had more out-of-pocket expenses, more disputes with insurance companies than other countries, and more insurance payments denied; paperwork was also higher although Germany had similarly high levels of paperwork.
The Commonwealth Fund, in its annual survey, “Mirror, Mirror on the Wall”, compares the performance of the health care systems in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada. Its 2007 study found that, although the U.S. system is the most expensive, it consistently under-performs when compared to the other countries.
The Commonwealth Fund completed its thirteenth annual health policy survey in 2010. A study of the survey “found significant differences in access, cost burdens, and problems with health insurance that are associated with insurance design”. Of the countries surveyed, the results indicated that people in the United States had more out-of-pocket expenses, more disputes with insurance companies than other countries, and more insurance payments denied; paperwork was also higher although Germany had similarly high levels of paperwork.
Comparative Knee Replacement Costs for Colombia vs USA
Comparative knee replacement costs in Colombia vs. U.S.
June 2, 2011
Colombia provides a knee replacement for about $5,000 USD, including all associated fees, such as FDA-approved prosthetics and hospital stay-over expenses”.
—from “Medical tourism growing worldwide” by Becca Hutchinson, UDaily, July 25, 2005. Retrieved September 5, 2006.
“For patients without health insurance, a total knee replacement (in the U.S.) can cost $35,000 or more.”
—from http://www.costhelper.com/cost/health/knee-replacement.html
Cartagena's Medical City Promises to Increase Medical Tourism
“One of the last reasons why Colombia is the medical destination of
the future is the development of a medical supercity, the “Medical
City 2012′ project that is being build in the upscale suburbs of
Cartagena, approximately 10 kilometers from the Cartagena airport.
This project, spearheaded by Dr. Francisco Holguin, aims to provide
comprehensive services in a select group of surgical specialties
including cardiac surgery, orthopedics, bariatric surgery, dentistry
and plastic surgery. In a recent interview with Holguin, he stated,
“No hospital, not John Hopkins, not Harvard can be excellent in all
areas of medicine. But with the right programs, and the right staff, a
place like Medical City can be excellent in a few select areas.” He is
meeting with leading physicians in these areas to develop surgical
specialty programs at the new facility.”
—from ‘Colombia healthcare network future of medical tourism for
Americans’, http://www.wellnessvisit.com/mtnblog/?p=451
City 2012′ project that is being build in the upscale suburbs of
Cartagena, approximately 10 kilometers from the Cartagena airport.
This project, spearheaded by Dr. Francisco Holguin, aims to provide
comprehensive services in a select group of surgical specialties
including cardiac surgery, orthopedics, bariatric surgery, dentistry
and plastic surgery. In a recent interview with Holguin, he stated,
“No hospital, not John Hopkins, not Harvard can be excellent in all
areas of medicine. But with the right programs, and the right staff, a
place like Medical City can be excellent in a few select areas.” He is
meeting with leading physicians in these areas to develop surgical
specialty programs at the new facility.”
—from ‘Colombia healthcare network future of medical tourism for
Americans’, http://www.wellnessvisit.com/mtnblog/?p=451
Colombia Ranks Higher Than U.S. In Worldwide Healthcare
Colombia Ranks Higher Than U.S. In Worldwide Healthcare
What is Your Country’s Ranking?
According to Dr Uton Muchtar Rafei, WHO's Regional Director for South-East Asia, “This Report will hopefully provide a framework for the review of health sector reform in these countries, and will enable them to adopt various policy options in order to obtain higher levels of health.”
According to Dr Uton, “Choosing the right interventions and providing incentives to the providers is one way to improve the performance of the health system. WHO calls for a new ‘universalism’ - which means providing the simplest and most basic quality care for all, including the poor. Developing countries should rationalize their investment in human, physical and technological resources. The health ministries need to play a strong stewardship role, and should invite and regulate investment by other sectors, including the private sector into health.”
The following is the list provided in that report. Where does your country rank? Surprised?
1 France
2 Italy
3 San Marino
4 Andorra
5 Malta
6 Singapore
7 Spain
8 Oman
9 Austria
10 Japan
11 Norway
12 Portugal
13 Monaco
14 Greece
15 Iceland
16 Luxembourg
17 Netherlands
18 United Kingdom
19 Ireland
20 Switzerland
21 Belgium
22 Colombia
23 Sweden
24 Cyprus
25 Germany
26 Saudi Arabia
27 United Arab Emirates
28 Israel
29 Morocco
30 Canada
31 Finland
32 Australia
33 Chile
34 Denmark
35 Dominica
36 Costa Rica
37 United States of America
38 Slovenia
39 Cuba
40 Brunei
41 New Zealand
42 Bahrain
43 Croatia
44 Qatar
45 Kuwait
46 Barbados
47 Thailand
48 Czech Republic
49 Malaysia
50 Poland
51 Dominican Republic
52 Tunisia
53 Jamaica
54 Venezuela
55 Albania
56 Seychelles
57 Paraguay
58 South Korea
59 Senegal
60 Philippines
61 Mexico
62 Slovakia
63 Egypt
64 Kazakhstan
65 Uruguay
66 Hungary
67 Trinidad and Tobago
68 Saint Lucia
69 Belize
70 Turkey
71 Nicaragua
72 Belarus
73 Lithuania
74 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
75 Argentina
76 Sri Lanka
77 Estonia
78 Guatemala
79 Ukraine
80 Solomon Islands
81 Algeria
82 Palau
83 Jordan
84 Mauritius
85 Grenada
86 Antigua and Barbuda
87 Libya
88 Bangladesh
89 Macedonia
90 Bosnia-Herzegovina
91 Lebanon
92 Indonesia
93 Iran
94 Bahamas
95 Panama
96 Fiji
97 Benin
98 Nauru
99 Romania
100 Saint Kitts and Nevis
101 Moldova
102 Bulgaria
103 Iraq
104 Armenia
105 Latvia
106 Yugoslavia
107 Cook Islands
108 Syria
109 Azerbaijan
110 Suriname
111 Ecuador
112 India
113 Cape Verde
114 Georgia
115 El Salvador
116 Tonga
117 Uzbekistan
118 Comoros
119 Samoa
120 Yemen
121 Niue
122 Pakistan
123 Micronesia
124 Bhutan
125 Brazil
126 Bolivia
127 Vanuatu
128 Guyana
129 Peru
130 Russia
131 Honduras
132 Burkina Faso
133 Sao Tome and Principe
134 Sudan
135 Ghana
136 Tuvalu
137 Ivory Coast
138 Haiti
139 Gabon
140 Kenya
141 Marshall Islands
142 Kiribati
143 Burundi
144 China
145 Mongolia
146 Gambia
147 Maldives
148 Papua New Guinea
149 Uganda
150 Nepal
151 Kyrgystan
152 Togo
153 Turkmenistan
154 Tajikistan
155 Zimbabwe
156 Tanzania
157 Djibouti
158 Eritrea
159 Madagascar
160 Vietnam
161 Guinea
162 Mauritania
163 Mali
164 Cameroon
165 Laos
166 Congo
167 North Korea
168 Namibia
169 Botswana
170 Niger
171 Equatorial Guinea
As the healthcare crisis in the US continues to grow and Americans are looking to overseas alternatives for treatment, many people are looking back to the World Health Report from the year 2000 that focuses on the performance of health systems, world wide. It assesses health systems and the 35 million or more people they employ. The report notes that the well-being of billions of people around the world, the quality, and length of their lives, depends on the performance of the health systems.The WHO report came out as the first ever analysis of the performance of the health systems of WHO’s 191 Member States. The performance assessment of health systems is based on many country variables such as: socio-economic, political and technological. WHO rankings show that even countries with the same levels of income can have very different healthy life expectancies while many countries fall short of their potential for performance.
According to Dr Uton Muchtar Rafei, WHO's Regional Director for South-East Asia, “This Report will hopefully provide a framework for the review of health sector reform in these countries, and will enable them to adopt various policy options in order to obtain higher levels of health.”
According to Dr Uton, “Choosing the right interventions and providing incentives to the providers is one way to improve the performance of the health system. WHO calls for a new ‘universalism’ - which means providing the simplest and most basic quality care for all, including the poor. Developing countries should rationalize their investment in human, physical and technological resources. The health ministries need to play a strong stewardship role, and should invite and regulate investment by other sectors, including the private sector into health.”
The following is the list provided in that report. Where does your country rank? Surprised?
1 France
2 Italy
3 San Marino
4 Andorra
5 Malta
6 Singapore
7 Spain
8 Oman
9 Austria
10 Japan
11 Norway
12 Portugal
13 Monaco
14 Greece
15 Iceland
16 Luxembourg
17 Netherlands
18 United Kingdom
19 Ireland
20 Switzerland
21 Belgium
22 Colombia
23 Sweden
24 Cyprus
25 Germany
26 Saudi Arabia
27 United Arab Emirates
28 Israel
29 Morocco
30 Canada
31 Finland
32 Australia
33 Chile
34 Denmark
35 Dominica
36 Costa Rica
37 United States of America
38 Slovenia
39 Cuba
40 Brunei
41 New Zealand
42 Bahrain
43 Croatia
44 Qatar
45 Kuwait
46 Barbados
47 Thailand
48 Czech Republic
49 Malaysia
50 Poland
51 Dominican Republic
52 Tunisia
53 Jamaica
54 Venezuela
55 Albania
56 Seychelles
57 Paraguay
58 South Korea
59 Senegal
60 Philippines
61 Mexico
62 Slovakia
63 Egypt
64 Kazakhstan
65 Uruguay
66 Hungary
67 Trinidad and Tobago
68 Saint Lucia
69 Belize
70 Turkey
71 Nicaragua
72 Belarus
73 Lithuania
74 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
75 Argentina
76 Sri Lanka
77 Estonia
78 Guatemala
79 Ukraine
80 Solomon Islands
81 Algeria
82 Palau
83 Jordan
84 Mauritius
85 Grenada
86 Antigua and Barbuda
87 Libya
88 Bangladesh
89 Macedonia
90 Bosnia-Herzegovina
91 Lebanon
92 Indonesia
93 Iran
94 Bahamas
95 Panama
96 Fiji
97 Benin
98 Nauru
99 Romania
100 Saint Kitts and Nevis
101 Moldova
102 Bulgaria
103 Iraq
104 Armenia
105 Latvia
106 Yugoslavia
107 Cook Islands
108 Syria
109 Azerbaijan
110 Suriname
111 Ecuador
112 India
113 Cape Verde
114 Georgia
115 El Salvador
116 Tonga
117 Uzbekistan
118 Comoros
119 Samoa
120 Yemen
121 Niue
122 Pakistan
123 Micronesia
124 Bhutan
125 Brazil
126 Bolivia
127 Vanuatu
128 Guyana
129 Peru
130 Russia
131 Honduras
132 Burkina Faso
133 Sao Tome and Principe
134 Sudan
135 Ghana
136 Tuvalu
137 Ivory Coast
138 Haiti
139 Gabon
140 Kenya
141 Marshall Islands
142 Kiribati
143 Burundi
144 China
145 Mongolia
146 Gambia
147 Maldives
148 Papua New Guinea
149 Uganda
150 Nepal
151 Kyrgystan
152 Togo
153 Turkmenistan
154 Tajikistan
155 Zimbabwe
156 Tanzania
157 Djibouti
158 Eritrea
159 Madagascar
160 Vietnam
161 Guinea
162 Mauritania
163 Mali
164 Cameroon
165 Laos
166 Congo
167 North Korea
168 Namibia
169 Botswana
170 Niger
171 Equatorial Guinea
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