Myomectomy - Costa Rica Medical Tourism Testimonial

The following is a verbatim testimonial from a patient, a medical professional who traveled to Hospital Clinica Biblica, one of our partners in Costa Rica.

"Just a few short weeks before my medical journey, I had only a vague notion of what I was to be doing. I had medical insurance, but my deductible would have made my much needed myomectomy unaffordable. I was also having difficulty figuring out where I was going to spend my initial recovery time, as I was working as a travel RN, and had no permanent home where I could recover. In fact, the place where I was living was going to have to be vacated on my last day of my work contract, well before any surgery date.

I spoke with a few brokers in the industry and finally settled with HealthGlobe because of the immediate ease and comfort I experienced with Sue Hart. Her girl-next-door personality combined with her MSW background and her punctual and professional manner provided me with the confidence boost I needed in order to really carry through with the foreign country surgery experience. We easily worked out the details of my flight, choice of hospital and surgeon, and recovery plan. I woke up the morning of my flight with one small packed bag, boarded the plane, and was on my way to Costa Rica.

This next and very important phase of my medical journey was as smooth-flowing as the first. I was picked up at the San Jose airport by Reuben, the husband part of the duo, Reuben and Lorena, who run Chetica Ranch, a beautiful 80-acre recovery ranch a few miles into the tropical mountains and away from Hospital Clinica Biblica. At this architecturally very modern, clean, and visually pleasing hospital I was led every step along my medical way by one of the representatives of the International Department, a group of people designated to accompany foreign visitors, all of them perfectly fluent in English. Shuttled back and forth between the Ranch and the hospital by Reuben or one of Lorena’s two brothers, I punctually attended all my pre-operative MD appointments. I was delivered to the hospital on the day of surgery, prepped by the meticulously professional-acting nurses and doctors, was sedated for surgery, and woke up warm, comfortable, pain-free, and in a post-operative room with all the same beds and instruments I had been used to seeing and using as an RN employed in many hospitals across the US. Over the next 36 hours post-operatively, I was visited by the surgeon, the general internist and the anesthesiologist at least twice each, and the nurses came promptly each time I used the call bell. After the surgeon and I agreed that my pain level was now manageable without the use of the IV, and that my vitals were all stable and I felt okay, I was shuttled back to the Ranch for the next phase of my medical journey.

This last phase was passed as comfortably as it could have possibly been. I had my own little posh and tastefully decorated cottage with an easy-to-use bathroom and a fireplace. Three meals a day were served, either in the dining room or in my room, per my choice, and a simple phone call at night was all that was required to have a roaring fire in my fireplace as I fell asleep. All my needs were met with ease. Any questions I had for my doctor would be followed up on by the Ranch staff. The resident nurse checked on me several times a day. She and I chatted about her training as a nurse and compared notes with my training as a nurse in the US. We were both surprised that her training required 5 years of study, whereas mine required only 2!

After 8 days at the Ranch, it was time to go home. I was delivered to the airport by the Ranch Shuttle with plenty of time to spare, and after only a few short hours in the air, arrived stateside at a friend’s house feeling much stronger than I thought I’d be feeling with only fewer than 10 days of recovery behind me.

I still am amazed at how perfect the whole trip was. I love telling this story to anyone who will take the time to hear it. I want everyone to know about medical tourism, a hugely under-tapped and much needed service for those of us in the US who want or need medical service but can’t afford it on our home turf. Very, very good to know that plenty of well-trained and competent MDs in clean, beautiful, modern hospitals exist worldwide, poised and ready to receive those of us who need them. I would go back to Hospital Clinica Biblica and do it all over again, even if I could instead afford to have the procedure done stateside. The experience was that good!

Thanks for setting the whole thing up, Sue Hart and HealthGlobe!"

LK

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