We spoke with Ole Petter Drønen, a Medical Doctor based in Gran Canaria, about the importance of medical certainty abroad. For years, Ole has been treating local and visiting patients. As an MD, he has seen too many cases of people not having details of their medical information when seeking help while on holiday.
“During 10 years as a practising MD on Gran Canaria, I have been reminded daily about patients’ need for medical certainty abroad. The biggest problem has been people’s lack of health information. This lack of information often leads to unnecessary examinations and hospital admissions, which steals valuable time and increases the risk of mis-medication.”
One example that caused concern for Ole was a 49-year-old male patient on holiday to Gran Canaria. The patient had suffered from a minor heart attack the previous year. Despite this, he was always in good health. Due to the heart attack, he was treated with a stent and felt fine since. His EKG profile is slightly altered and gives readings that could be seen as heart attack warnings but were benign. During his holiday, he became unwell and experienced fatigue, chest pain and headache, so he went to see a doctor. He was admitted to the closest private hospital, which was paid for by his insurance. Several tests were conducted, including EKG and blood tests. The EKG results were interpreted to be a possible heart attack because of the old scar and changes to the EKG readings. As a result, he underwent surgery, and the stent implanted the previous year was found; otherwise, his condition was normal. The surgery and 3 nights in hospital cost £23,000.
What Could Have Been Done Differently?
The doctor could have opened the patient’s WMC card and been able to read the information in Spanish online using the WHO standard codes on the card. He would have seen the stent being put in, which would have resulted in benign changes to the EKG. The doctor would have concluded that this was a case of dehydration and administered an IV drip for 1 to 2 hours.
How the World Medical Card Saves Time and Money
If the doctor had all the information available about the patient, the 49-year-old would not have been subject to a potentially life-threatening surgical procedure. The hospital bed was occupied for three days for potentially no reason. Several medical staff, including a surgeon, were allocated to tend to the patient when they could have been treating somebody with more severe needs. The unnecessary payout by the insurance company will increase the premium for all other policyholders.
Individuals with World Medical Card membership feel a greater sense of security when travelling. If you have medicines and prescriptions, details of surgeries and implants, vaccines, allergies, donor status, X-rays or hospital records, photos of non-prescription medications, diagnoses, and insurance details, doctors need this information should an emergency occur. Knowing that medical professionals can access your medical information in an emergency will ensure correct treatment without delay.
