When our youngest son Simon visited us for three weeks last month, we did a bit of medical tourism. He had a sebaceous cyst on his eyelid (which had been growing for about a year and a half).  Our mission (Reach Beyond) has a hospital, Hospital Vozandes Quito; he saw a dermatologist and had an ultrasound on a Tuesday afternoon, had the cyst removed by a plastic surgeon Wednesday morning, and had the (3) stitches taken out in the emergency room on Sunday afternoon (he was leaving Quito early Monday morning). Total cost $186:

• $18        Dermatologist (we got a 10% missionary discount)
• $33        Ultrasound
• $129      Surgery by plastic surgeon
• $6           Stitches removed in the ER

Had we gone to one of the more modern hospitals we would have paid more.  Jody sat next to a lady on a long bus ride who happens to go to the same glaucomologist at Hospital Metropolitano.  Her doctor recommended that she have her cataract surgery at Hospital Vozandes for $2,000 rather than at Hospital Metropolitano for $4,000.

Here is a random collection of our medical expenses:

• Jody’s eye expenses
  • $60      Appointment with glaucomologist
  • $40      Field of vision test
  • $35       Month’s supply of Krytan-tek, glaucoma eye drops
  • $35       Month’s supply of Travatan Bak-free, glaucoma eye drops
• Jody’s annual physical
  • $17      Initial doctor appointment (at Reach Beyond clinic, with an English-speaking doctor)
  • $44     Blood tests
  • $22     Bone scans (densitometria osea 2 puntos)
  • $79      Mammogram
  • $9        Ear Wax removal by nurse
  • $17       Followup visit with doctor
  • $311     Boniva, 12 monthly doses (with $105 discount for buying a year’s supply)
• Vaccinations (at Reach Beyond clinic)
  • $25/dose    Rabies (first, second, and third dose) (Verorab)
  • $75 & $21    Pneumonia vaccine (1st dose:  Prevenar 13V X 1 JER PRE X0.5ml); (2nd dose:  Imovax pneumo 23 Vacuna)
  • $8    DT vaccine (Imovax DT)
  • $22    Typhoid (Typhim)
  • $12 & 26    Hepatitis A (first dose:  Havrix Adulto 1440; second dose:  Avaxim Adulto)
• Scott’s orthopedic care (at Hospital Vozandes (for foot he broke in Costa Rica))
  • $18    Orthopedist appointment
  • $28    X-ray of foot
  • $30    Initial physical therapy session with evaluation
  • $11    Subsequent physical therapy sessions

For our friends living in other Latin American countries, how do these health care costs compare with your experience?