We actually live in the tiny country of Belize on the Caribbean coast, but since we live on the Northern tip of the country we are only about 12 miles from Chetumal, the capital of Quintana Roo,  Mexico, so this is where  we go most often for  medical care. 

Over the years, our family has  had the following medical  and dental procedures done here:  Four root canals, numerous fillings, caps and crowns, 3 types of surgery, one oral, one outpatient, and  one more serious abdominal surgery requiring several days hospitalization.  We've had emergency room treatment 3 times, one time included a broken arm. We have undergone a medley of tests  including, x-rays, ultrasounds, blood tests, throat culture, mammograms, pap smears, and colonoscopies.

We have consulted with all sorts of specialists including gastroenterologist, ophthalmologists, orthopedic surgeons, pediatricians, gynecologists, neurologist, ear, nose and throat (which in Spanish is “otorrinololarringologia”) even a specialty that we didn't know existed, a pediatric endodontist. 

We can say without any reservations that we've never had better medical care in our lives. Over the years we have periodically gone back to the US and have at times during those visits gotten medical care, ranging from check-ups to surgery.  Nearly every time we've regretted it, and wished we would have taken care of it in Mexico. Why? Several reasons: 

Convenience 

The clinic that we usually go to has several different specialists all under one roof.

They see patients Monday to Friday from  9 a.m. until about 1:00 p.m. and later in the day from 5 p.m., and on Saturday from 9. until or 2.  You never need an appointment,  you go in and  give your name to the receptionist and she will tell you how many people are ahead of you, then you can judge how long the wait will be. If there's only a couple of patients on the list I'll stay in the clinic practicing my Spanish by  reading magazines or watching  the television set that almost all “consultorios”  (doctor's offices) have. They will either be showing  “novelas” the torrid Mexican soap operas that come on in the evening or maybe an American film with Spanish subtitles, which is my favorite way to take a language lesson. If there are several people ahead of me I'll walk across the street to the supermarket and do my grocery shopping  and/or get a bite to eat. 

Is this inconvenient? Granted, it is different from what I was used to in the US, not having a set appointment, but the bottom line is, I know when I need to see the doctor I can see him right away, I don't have to wait weeks for an appointment.

Once I see the doctor, if any tests need to be done, there's a lab as well as a radiology and ultrasound facilities on site, with an actual doctor of radiology there to read the tests and write the report.

That means that you can see your doctor, tell him you have a pain, he writes the orders, and 45 minutes later you're back in his office with the results of your blood work, x-ray and ultrasound in hand, with out ever leaving the building. 

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In the US my experience has been that after waiting weeks to see the doctor I then had to wait weeks to get an appointment for an ultrasound, then after it was taken I had to wait another week or two while the films were sent to a doctor at another facility (who had  never seen me) to read and then  write a report which was then sent to my doctor, who I would then have to pay again to tell me what was wrong with me in the first place. Is this efficiency? Not to mention the stress of having to wait weeks to find out results of medical tests nor to mention the danger of having to wait so long for a definitive diagnosis.

Cost 

Medical care in Mexico is unbelievably inexpensive by almost anyone's standards. Of course prices vary according to the region and whether you go to a private clinic or a government run facility. Here are some random prices from private clinics in Chetumal in US dollars:

Private room in a hospital,	$50 per day
Exam and consultation with a specialist,	$15
Ultrasound or X-ray,	$15
Oral surgery,	$50 per tooth
Porcelain filling,	$30 each.
Teeth cleaning,	$25
Emergency room treatment,	$15

Exploratory abdominal surgery and appendectomy using video laporoscopy. Including 4 day hospital stay in private room , all fees of surgeon and anesthesiologist , medication.  $1,200.

I know an elderly American woman living in Belize who had an operable brain tumor. After consulting with doctors in the US she decided to have the operation done by a neurosurgeon in Merida, Mexico, the capital of Yucatan. The surgery was a complete success and a bargain at $7,000 

How many people do you know in the US who can afford to choose their own doctor and pay for health care services out of their own pocket? Isn't this a luxury reserved only for the richest of rich now? Aren't most of us at the mercy of an HMO? Being told which doctors we can see and how often and which medical procedures we can have done? Or even worse off are the millions of uninsured Americans, just praying that nobody in the family gets sick, because they know they can't afford to 
pay the medical bills.  So while cost isn't the only factor to be considered when making health care decisions, it certainly does matter to some extent. After all a country can have all of the latest medical 
technology available but if you can't afford it what good does it do you? 

Competence and Compassion 

If your only experience in Latin America has been visiting Tijuana for a day, you are in for a big surprise. The hard-working professionals who stay or return home after studying abroad  to make their country a better place are really the unsung heroes of Latin America... and  the reason the health care system is so “user friendly” 

Latinos are also by nature a warm, caring people and I think that this helps to make them in general great doctors and nurses. 

As you can see from the prices quoted above, for the most part, a person  becomes a doctor in Latin America not to become rich , but to help people.  That very fact makes him or her a better doctor. They actually care about their patients and want to help them. Also, they want you as a foreigner to think well of them and their country. What's more they'll treat you as an equal. . . that whole doctor/god complex that so many people complain about in North America is gone in Latin America. 

In fact as a patient you have so much more freedom because your health care is literally in your own hands. In Latin America you can walk into a lab and ask for any test that you'd like without a doctor's order, or go into any pharmacy and buy whatever medication you'd like without a prescription. When your tests results come back you go and pick them up and show them to your doctor not,  vice versa. Your doctor will have you keep your x-rays, ultra-sounds etc., they are yours not his and you can do whatever you like with them, including show them to another doctor. 

Communication 

Some imagine that they will be unable to communicate with a doctor in Latin America, but  most doctors can speak at least enough English to figure out what your problem is and  many speak it quite well.  Many doctors have studied  abroad.  The fact that both English and Spanish are Latin based languages and that doctors study Latin in medical school seems to help. Also many Spanish speaking doctors have learned to read English in order  to read medical journals. And many clinics in Latin America have someone on staff who can translate, some even staff a translator. 

Over the years we've occasionally led tour groups of people interested in retiring in this part of the world. As part of the tour we show them the medical and dental facilities available. We were amazed at the number of people who would stay on after the tour to have extensive dental work done in Chetumal. They liked what they saw and took advantage of it.  All of the equipment in the dental clinic is from the US and the materials used are from Europe, and as the dentist says “Only the hand is Mexican” 

Health care in Latin America certainly won't appeal  to everyone, some will feel a medical assistant in a mini-skirt and platform sandals is just too unprofessional. But for some of us it is a refreshing alternative that we readily embrace. 

Bill and Claire Gray are the authors of “Belize Retirement Guide: How to Live in a Tropical Paradise on $450 a month” As well as numerous articles and reports on living in Latin America. 
Visit them at: www.belizeretire.com -