While at UMMC, I met exactly ONE racist fucktard - another patient.
This dude kept on telling me I had it cheaper.
"You had it cheaper," he said.
"Okay," I said, under the influence of mind-altering drugs. "I got charged 10K deposit for the angiogram. How much of a deposit did they charge you?"
"They charged me RM10K as well," said the dude.
"So we pay the same, then?" I asked.
"No! I got a RM5,000 assistance from Welfare," said the guy.
"Okayyyy. And thennn?"
"You pay cheaper! You Malay!"
Well, fuck you. I never initiated any conversation with the victim-wannabe racist idiot after that.
UM Medical Center is set up to be affordable for most people. My procedure required a deposit because apparently some people had it and then ran away without paying, as the gossip goes.
The RM10,000 deposit is not the final amount for the procedure. The angiogram is around 2K, and each angioplasty and stent has a separate cost. In total, I paid around 7K for the procedure. Which means they gave 3K back.
Hospitalisation is very affordable, and each daily test they did for liver function, blood glucose, BP (two-three times a day), are all quite okay.
I was staying first at the CCU and later at a ward. With four meals a day and round the clock supervision, it was extremely value for money. I mean, the nurses would give you sponge baths or even cleaned up your shit if need be. And I heard UMMC is still not the cheapest.
In terms of quality of service, professionalism, empathy and attitude, I rate UMMC cardiology ward and all the other departments I dealt with so far to have exceeded my expectations.
I fully expected a cheap but rude service, but these people - the doctors, nurses and staff - were very patient, accommodating and helpful. I can't thank them enough. Especially knowing civil servant pay scales.
The doctors were not condescending, which was a delight. They explained to me everything necessary and answered all my questions, despite - in the case of one consultant - having hundreds of beds and cases to go to. The dude has like, 5 minutes or less per bed and he was never rude, always patient and I find his attitude exemplary.
This goes to all doctors I encountered at UMMC. Not a single one was an idiot, and for that my compliments to their parents.
Nurses were very capable, very professional, experienced, fast, compassionate, even when I complained of something frivolous. Having seen my neighbour suffer from the hiccups (related to his heart condition) for four days, I pressed the red button when after a meal, I began to suffer from the hiccups.
They came. Ooooh.
In the first two days, every time I needed to pee, I pressed the red button and the nurses would come with a bed pan or a chamber pot, as I was not supposed to stand up or move about that much.
I also witnessed the nurses trying to flush the stomach of one of my neighbours before a colonoscopy. This task required feeding an old man litres of water with a substance to clear the intestines, as well as waiting for the old dude to go number two in his adult diaper.
And then changing them. And then repeat until the guy's colon is clean enough for a colonoscopy.
A job where every day you deal with cleaning up piss and shit and making sure you're clean again to hand over medication. I believe, like the policemen for law enforcement and teachers for our educational system, our nurses are the backbone of our healthcare.
The only drawback with UMMC is because it attracts a lot of people. Most of them poor or not rich.
I was lucky because I had my sister who immediately took over the tasks involved with insurance documentation like obtaining medical reports, settling the bills, etc, as well as lining up at the pharmacy.
There are always hundreds of people queuing up, and if I was alone, I don't know how long it would have taken me to even get discharged. This is not UMMC's fault and seeing how they work, I believe they are doing the best they can with the amount of people they have.
It's just... people get sick. Lots of people do. And a lot of them are not millionaires or children of thieves who stole all the money from this country and are now crying out for social justice by pretending to be a liberal while beating up their wives and girlfriends.
If I had the money, I would go to a private hospital just because it's faster and to ensure UMMC and other similar establishments can cater to people who are really in need at the time, such as myself right now. Right now I'm broke cause some people did not pay me money.
People who have the money should go to private hospitals. Leave UMMC and other establishments for the poor or the broke. If your net worth is over a million - fuck you.
Anyway, I just want to say thank you to the doctors, the nurses and the staff at UMMC. This episode was made survivable and bearable mostly through the good work of the people at UMMC.
Thank you. For serious.
