'People go broke to pay for medical services': how an immigrant from Belarus became a surgeon in the USA
'06.09.2019'
Source: NN.by
Olga Beresneva has been living in America for more than ten years. After the second year of philology, she had the opportunity to emigrate to America - and she took a chance. I got a job in the financial department of a car company and went to study again, says NN.by.
“I was lucky because employers paid for my training. True, I had to study either business, or economics, or finance, ”says Olga.
For six years she combined work with training, went to classes in the morning or in the evening. The American education system is very flexible, it is quite possible to schedule so that interesting subjects are at a convenient time for the student. The main thing is that the employer also went to a meeting regarding the schedule.
“With the acquisition of experience, I held higher positions,” says Olga. - As a result, I realized that I do not like to sit at a table all the time, look at a computer, count endlessly, shift papers. I left this sphere and got into the laboratory. I met a doctor who showed me how cells look under a microscope. That's when I decided to go to medicine. ”
To go on medical in America, you need to have a higher education
Olga says that in the USA after school it’s impossible to enter the medical faculty, for this you need to have a higher education. And it may not be related to medicine.
To enter, during the year Olga pulled up the main profile subjects at the university: physics, chemistry, biology. In America there is such an opportunity: to attend lectures only for some time and in certain subjects.
Then Olga was waiting for four years of intense training. And already, there was no talk of combining with work, it was necessary to study in the morning, and in the afternoon, and in the evening, without days off.
The first two years at American Medical University are mainly lectures and exams. Students study pharmacology, biochemistry, physiology, anatomy and so on. By the way, not all lectures must be attended. Indeed, many of them are recorded on video - and they can be viewed at home at a convenient time or, for example, at an accelerated pace. But you must go to the laboratory.
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“In the first two years of study, I liked anatomy the most. We had a laboratory where we studied the human body. All students, and in my group there were 175, were divided into subgroups of five people and each gave a corpse. Within a year, it had to be studied. I liked these classes, it was necessary to find nerves, muscles, blood vessels.
At that moment I realized that I was interested in a specialty that allows you to use your hands and do something with them. But at that time I did not think about surgery, ”the young woman recalls.
Students spend the third and fourth years almost all the time in the hospital. They study various medical specialties for two to three months: pediatrics, gynecology and obstetrics, neurology and surgery, as well as specialties that deal with diseases of the internal organs (cardiology, pulmonology, gastroenterology and so on).
“When I visited the operating room in my third year, I realized that I don’t want to work anywhere else. Before that, I thought that I would never go to surgery, I heard how hard it is and how long it takes to study, ”Olga shares.
After four years of study, graduates must choose a specialty in medicine, which they will receive at the residency (in Belarus this is called an internship). They travel to different hospitals and are interviewed. Then graduates and representatives of hospitals make lists: the first write where they would like to reside, the latter write which students are ready to accept. Then the wishes are compared.
“If you participate in this system, then this is a contract. If you opened the envelope and you don’t like where you are being sent, you can’t refuse anymore, ”Olga said.
For future pediatricians, residency lasts three years, for future surgeons - five to seven years. Then, if you want to narrow the specialty, you need to study from another year to three.
Olga is now completing her third year of residency at a Boston hospital. According to her, in America, Boston is considered a medical mecca. This is an academic city where there are many huge hospitals in which doctors are engaged in research work. However, after training, Olga does not plan to stay here.
“I would like to move to a calmer city. Just work, do operations, take care of people, ”she says.
For three years, Olga took part in approximately 550 operations. The longest lasted 12 hours. Once he had to save a guy who got a gunshot wound, his aorta was damaged - one of the largest arteries that carries blood from the heart to all organs of the body.
“In the first year of residency, you learn to care for patients before and after surgery. On the second - for critically ill patients who are in surgical intensive care. On the third, you spend a lot of time in the emergency room, where you provide consultative, diagnostic and therapeutic assistance to patients with surgical diseases (for example, appendicitis or diverticulitis). The main task at this stage is to learn how to make a diagnosis. During this year, you also learn to provide emergency medical care to patients who are injured, ”the young woman explains. - During these three years we also operate. The more experience, the more often you operate, participate in more complex operations. In the fourth and fifth year of residency, you operate almost constantly. You are already at the head of the team, responsible for everyone with less experience. In the morning, you go around patients, prescribe treatment, diagnostic tests, decide who needs an operation or some specific procedure, and who can be discharged from the hospital. Of course, there are senior doctors over all of us, with whom we discuss the patient’s situation and how to treat him, and the last word is always theirs. ”
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How much do doctors earn in America
While the student is studying, only he pays. If he goes to the residency and helps doctors, participates in operations, then he has a certain income. Of course, much lower than experienced professionals, but still have income.
“In America, doctors make good money, on average about $ 250 thousand a year. Much depends on the specialty, on the place of work. Highly qualified specialists get much more. Doctors who work in the central part of the USA earn more. It also matters whether a doctor works in a private company or in a public hospital. In the state, specialists usually get a little less, ”Olga explains.
“The medicine here is very expensive, very!”
The doctor says that most Americans have health insurance. Many employers provide insurance, then it is free or at a discount. If a person works for himself, then he must acquire it at full cost for a lot of money. Many simply cannot afford it.
The price of insurance also depends on the age of the client. For a young and healthy person, it will cost about $ 350 per month. For an adult who has certain health problems, the price will be higher. As for pensioners, after 65 years they are provided with state medical insurance.
“There is a law in America, according to which, if a patient goes to the hospital, we cannot refuse to help him, even if he does not have insurance. When a person is brought in after an accident and he needs an operation, we will do everything to save his life. But if he didn’t have insurance, they’ll write him a giant bill, ”Olga explains. - If the patient does not pay it, then the amount is written to his account at the credit bureau. It contains all the information about how people pay their debts. It is very important that the credit history is clean, because everyone, including employers, look at it and take it into account when making decisions. ”
Olga says that people who face oncology, who need, for example, chemotherapy, sometimes simply go broke, sell at home because they don’t have enough money to pay for medical services.
“Every big city has a hospital, which is subsidized by the state. They help those who are in a difficult social situation. By the way, I work just in one of these hospitals, ”says Olga. - People with very serious illnesses often come here. "They don’t have money for insurance, so they can’t afford to go to the doctors, monitor their health, or buy medicine."
Olga, like other residents, is sent from time to time to gain experience in other hospitals. She has already visited one of the largest children's hospitals in the world, which is located in Boston, as well as a hospital for veterans.
Olga says that some medicines in the US can cost thousands of dollars. In America, they constantly invent new, more advanced drugs, which, of course, are more expensive.
“The advantage of the American system is that we can treat serious diseases, we have the necessary medicines, the latest technology, but all this is very expensive. And the more modern the treatments, the more expensive the medicine. If you don't have insurance, you're out of luck. The medicine here is very expensive, very! ”, Olga emphasizes.
Olga notes that when she entered the medical faculty in America, the average age of freshmen was 25 years. They already knew exactly what they wanted from life, they had a strong intrinsic motivation.
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Today Olga no longer represents her life in another country.
“People from all over the world come to America. There are so many nationalities, so many cultures that I don’t know if there is anything like that anywhere else in the world. I love traveling, and the USA is a huge country with a rich landscape. Here you can swim in the ocean, climb mountains, go skiing, says Olga. - When I have a vacation, and this happens four times a year for one week, we always fly somewhere. We were in Iceland, Hawaii, the Caribbean, Miami, we fly to my husband’s parents in Mexico. When my mom is visiting, I try to show her as much as possible. Last year I spent a week in Belarus. ”
By the way, she met her husband, Mexicans Sergio, during a ski vacation, 14 years ago.
“I went with friends, but they rode much better than me, so I went to the steep mountains. I stayed on the slopes easier. I remember I stood in line to get to the top in a special elevator, and there was a sign that it was advisable to unite with someone so as not to drive the elevator in vain. I remember turning my head - and saw a guy. She asked: “Alone? Let's go together". While we were driving, we met, began to ride together. They exchanged mail and have been married for three years, ”the young woman recalls.
Olga comes to Belarus once a year or once every two years.
“I really miss family, friends, Belarusian cuisine,” Olga admits. - Before arrival, I tell my mother that I want cabbage rolls, jellied meat, borsch, pancakes. When I come to Belarus, the idea arises that it would be good to live among relatives. But I understand that coming and living are two different things. Although, who knows, maybe when I will be a surgeon with experience, I’ll return to work in Belarus, ”says Olga.
