"Time Is money" ：Seeing the Doctor in the United stated
When I was in China， I rarely went to see the doctor. This was because I seldom got sick. I often heard people complain about hospitals and doctors： how inefficient1 they were and so how time-consuming and unpleasant it was to go there. " It's cheap to see the doctor and it won't cost you much on medicine， either." I also heard such comforting comments from time to time2. However， when I felt under the weather3， I always took a " wait and see" attitude， determined to avoid seeing the doctor as much as I could. Most of the time， I got better as time went by4. Occasionally I had to go to the hospital， which was hardly a pleasant experience.
I came to Cornell University with the same " wait and see" attitude. As a university policy， each student is required to have some medical insurance， whether you like it or not. There are countless types of medical insurance offered to the students. Like most Chinese students who wanted to save money and had confidence in their own health， I chose the cheapest medical insurance， just to meet5 the university requirement. The insurance I had did not cover6 eye and dental7 care， which were very expensive.
I never thought I would use my insurance. However， as you age， something " unexpected" would happen to you. Once I threw up8 on the first day of my period9. My friend urged me to see the doctor. Believing that it would be much better than the unpleasant experience in a Chinese hospital， I decided to go. It turned out10 to be a painful process. First of all， I had to look up the insurance book and find out which doctor I could go and see. In the States， different doctors have different affiliations11 with medical insurance companies. Before you go to see the doctor， you should find out whether the doctor you are to see accepts your insurance or not. Most Americans have their own family doctors， and if they have serious problems， the family doctor would recommend them to see the specialists. Since I had no family doctor at all， I simply called up one doctor listed in the book. The receptionist12 answered my call and made an appointment with the doctor. Not until then did I realize that in the States you cannot just go and see the doctor once you find there is something wrong13 with you. You need to make an appointment， which could be one week or two weeks away depending how the doctor is booked14.
On the day of my appointment， I arrived at the doctor' s office 10 minutes earlier. When I came to the window， the receptionist first asked me to fill in several sheets15 of personal information. Then I was asked to show the insurance card. She made a copy of that and gave me a few agreements16 to sign. Then I was told to wait in the waiting room， where there were a variety of magazines for you to kill17 the time. After sitting there restlessly and leafing through18 magazines in pain for about 15 minutes， I heard my name called by a nurse. I followed the nurse to a small exam room. There the nurse took my temperature and blood pressure， asked me some questions on family history， and filled in the information. Then she told me to wait， explaining that the doctor would be with me in a minute19. However， the doctor did not show up20 until 10 minutes later. He asked me what was wrong with me. I explained and he listened. Then he told me what might be the problem and prescribed21 some medicine for me. The total time he spent with me was no more than 10 minutes. When I came out of the office， I was thinking to myself， " Did I come here to see the doctor or the nurse？" I had spent more time with the nurse than with the doctor. With the doctor' s prescription， I came to the pharmacy22 to get the medicine. In the States， you cannot get the medicine at the hospital. Most of the supermarkets such as Walmart and Kmart and drug stores have a pharmacy counter. There are two major types of medicines： over-the-counter23 and prescription. Many drugs for common ailments24 such as colds and fevers are available over-the-counter. The medicine the doctor prescribes for you is only obtainable through the pharmacist25. With my insurance， I would pay ＄ 5 for generic26 drugs and ＄ 15 for branded drugs. The rest of the expenses would be covered by the insurance company.
My experience with the hospital did not come to an end after I got my medicine. A week later， I got allergic to27 the medicine， with my mouth and face swollen28 and a rash29 all over my body. I called the doctor immediately. However， he was on call and the nurse answered my phone， telling me to go to the emergency immediately. Feeling extremely painful and also scared by the nurse， I drove to the emergency room right after I hung up. I always thought that patients would be taken care of immediately once they came to the emergency room （called ER in the States）。When I got there， it was just the same as in the regular doctor's office. Again I had to fill in several forms. Again I had to wait in the waiting room. Again I was checked by the nurse for blood pressure and temperature. And again I waited in the emergency room for the doctor to show up. This time the doctor only spent 5 minutes with me， listening to my description and then telling me that I was allergic to the medicine. As soon as I stopped taking the medicine， I should be fine.
A month later， I got a statement and several bills from the insurance company and the doctor' s office. It turned out that I had to pay 10 dollars for my first visit and 50 dollars for that visit to the emergency room. These payments together are called co-payment， which is the fixed30 amount paid by the patient if he uses these services. The statement from the insurance company showed that the doctors were paid around 60 dollars besides the co-payment out of my own pocket， but only for 10 minutes spent with me. Time is money――this is especially true with the doctor. If I could choose my career again in the States， I would choose a career in medicine.
我在国内很少去医院看病，因为很少生病；而且常常听到周围的人抱怨医院和大夫多么没有效率，看病多费时间，令人生厌。但我也时常会听到宽慰的话："看病很便宜，药费也不贵。"不过，我感到身体不适时，总抱着"等等再说"的态度，尽量不去医院。大多时候，随着时间过去我慢慢就好了。偶尔不得不去医院，那经历总令人不悦。
到康乃尔上学，对于疾病我还是抱"等等再说"的态度。大学规定每个学生都要买医疗保险，不管你愿不愿意。学生可以选择的医疗保险种类数不胜数。但像大多数要省钱及对自身健康充满自信的中国学生一样，我选择了最便宜的保险，只是为了要达到学校的要求。我的保险不包括眼睛和口腔，因为这两项费用太贵。
我从没想到我会用上保险。然而，随着年龄的增大，很多"意外"的情况随之而至。一次我来例假的头一天呕吐，我的朋友催我去看医生。我觉得在美国看病总应比在国内感觉好些，就决定去看医生。谁知这竟是一次令人痛苦的经历。首先，我得翻出保险手册，找出可以去看的医生。在美国，不同的医生与不同的保险公司有合作关系。在去看医生之前，你得知道你要看的医生是否接受你的保险。大多数美国人都有自己的家庭医生，如果他们有严重问题，家庭医生会推荐他们去看专家。因为我根本没家庭医生，我就随便给保险手册里的一位医生打了电话。接待员接的电话，帮我和医生预约了一个时间。直到那时我才意识到在美国你不能一发现自己有了什么毛病就去看大夫，你得预约，预约的时间有可能在一两个星期之后，全看这个医生的预约日程安排是否很满。
我在预约那天，提前10分钟来到医生的办公室。我到窗口前，接待员先让我填了几张个人情况的表格，然后又让我出示了保险卡。她复印了我的保险卡后，让我签了几张协议。接着她叫我到接待室等候，那儿摆放着各种杂志用以打发时间。我在那儿坐立不安，忍着疼痛翻了一刻钟的杂志。终于听到护士叫我的名字，我跟着护士来到一间小的检查室。护士量量我的体温和血压，询问了我的家庭病史，在表上填了这些信息，之后，她让我等着，说医生马上就来。然而我等了10分钟医生才露面。他问我什么毛病。我详细地叙述了一遍。他听后，告诉我可能是什么问题，给我开了一些药。他总共花了不到10分钟就把我打发了。从医院出来，我想："我是到这儿来是看大夫还是看护士？"我和护士呆的时间比和医生呆得还长。拿着大夫的处方，我来到药房取药。在美国，你不能在医院取药。大多数超市，像沃尔马特和凯马特以及药店，设有专门的取药柜台。药分两大类，不需处方的药和处方药。很多普通病诸如感冒发烧的药都不需大夫处方，随处可买。医生给你开的药只能通过药剂师取得。我虽有保险，但如果是一般的药需付5美元，如果是名牌药得付15美元。其余的费用由保险公司承担。
我拿到药之后并没意味着和医院的交道就此告终。一星期后，我吃的药令我过敏，嘴巴和脸都肿了，身上起了很多疹子。我立刻给我的医生打电话。然而医生出诊了，护士接的电话，让我立刻去急诊室。我难受极了，又被护士一吓，一挂电话就驱车去了急诊室（在美国，通常简称为ER）。我总认为，一旦病人到了急诊室，就会立刻受到精心护理。我到了那以后，就像到了一般的医生办公室。我又一次填了几张表格；又一次在候诊室等待；又一次由护士检查血压和体温；又一次在急诊室等候医生来到。这次医生只用了5分钟听我叙述，然后告诉我对药过敏，只要停止服药，就没事了。
一个月后，我收到保险公司和医生诊所寄来的一封信和几个帐单。我得付10美金初诊费给我看病的医生，50美金给急诊室。这部分钱称作"共付费用".病人如果用了这些服务就要固定地付这部分钱。保险公司的信表明除了我自己腰包出的钱之外，医生还从保险公司得60美金左右，而他们仅仅在我身上花了10分钟。时间就是金钱，对于美国医生来说再正确不过了。如果我可以在美国再选择职业的话，我要选择医生这一行。
注释：
1.inefficient adj.无效率的
2.from time to time 时时，间或
3.under the weather 不舒服，有病
4.go by （时间）过去，逝去
5.meet vt.符合，应付
6.cover vt.包括，涉及
7.dental adj.牙齿的，牙科的
8.throw up 呕出，呕吐
9.period n.（妇女的）经期
10.turn out 原来是，最后证明是
11.affiliation n.联系，从属关系
12.receptionist n.接待员
13.wrong adj.不正常的，有毛病的
14.book vt.预约
15.sheet n.一张（纸）
16.agreement n.协议
17.kill vt.消磨（时间）
18.leaf through 草草浏览，匆匆翻阅
19.in a minute 立刻，马上
20.show up 露面
21.prescribe vt.为…开（药）
22.pharmacy n.药房，药店
23.over-the-counter adj. （药）无医生处方也可合法出售的
24.ailment n.疾病（尤指微恙），病痛
25.pharmacist n.药商，药剂师
26.generic adj.非专利的
27.allergic adj.（与to连用）对…过敏的
28.swollen adj.肿胀的
29.rash n.疹，疹子
30.fixed adj.固定的，确定的
散文本文地址：http://www.dioenglish.com/writing/essay/44219.html
