Saturday, November 20, 2010

Week 8: Golf Match & Socialized Medicine

I apologize for not keeping up with my posts, I am three papers away from being free; thus I am trying to get them done as soon as possible. This week was the second golf match I was able to attend. Wednesday's at LSE are sports days, so classes end in the morning and most students participate in one sport or another. LSE is not, by any means, a sports oriented school. The only thing LSE students are good at is the "Game Theory." (Stupid econ joke). Anyway, the match was held at Royal Blackheath Golf Club - the oldest club in the UK, and we faced Kings College of London. To say we got our butts handed to us would be an understatement. Six of our squad members played six of their squad members and only one LSE golfer won (I was not one of them). Regardless, the course was amazing! Sure the dew made the ball slippery and thus having any control over it was hard, but the scenery was excellent and it was good to get out of the city (even though the course is still considered to be part of London). Here are some pictures from the course, hopefully they capture its majesticity and allure:



I've been sick for the past week, so I had the opportunity to experience the UK's infamous socialized medicine. I walked into St. Philips Medical Center, which is conveniently located on LSE's campus, and I told them I was feeling ill. The receptionist asked me to fill-out a few forms and then come back during the emergency "open-house" later that afternoon if I didn't want to wait for an appointment until the next day. I obliged and went in a few hours later not expecting what kind of treatment I would receive. After waiting about 20 minutes to be called, I saw a doctor and she informed me that I had some type of virus (probably) and then prescribed me antibiotics. I was impressed with the overall process. It was nothing like Fox News made it sound like during the healthcare debate in the US (not too surprised about that). Generally, the doctors in the UK are not as thorough as they are in the US, as US doctors ensure that every possible test is conducted so they can cover their own butts. Regardless, the doctor did give me a check-up that was satisfactory and told me to come back if I didn't feel better in a week. It's been about four days and I'm not feeling too much better so I'll probably go experience the socialized medicine with its death panels and all in a few days. Additionally, it should be stated that my check-up was free (I did not have to give a co-pay) and the antibiotics (which are precautionary as virus's don't have cures) only cost be 7 GBP - very cheap! When I go in on Tuesday I'll be sure to take pictures of he office! (They probably won't like that).

1 comment:

  1. free check ups and cheap antibiotics! I'm sold bro. I don't know what ur talkin about standing up for US health care.

    and what r u doing that ur getting viruses in London? You make it cound like ur in India or somthine

    ReplyDelete