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My partner has Dengue, and if his platelet count goes down again today, the doctor wants him to check into the hospital.
We are in Quepos, and have a public hospital here.
The doctors said ” of course if you have the money, you should go to Cima”
Does anyone know what kind of money we are looking at?
Of course we don’t to mess around, and if we need to, we will most likely make it to Cima.
Is there a basic cost per day?
We just want to have an idea, if that is possible.
Anyone been there specifically with Deunge this year?
By the way, his symptoms are almost non existent.
He is totally exhausted,for a week now, but little to no pain anywhere, just really low platelet count.
Thanks for any helpYou would have to contact Hospital CIMA who I am sure would insist on seeing your partner before giving you any idea about possible costs but they will certainly be more expensive than the other two JCI accredited hospitals in Costa Rica = Clinica Biblica and Clinica Catolica…
As you’ll see from ‘Dengue Fever in Costa Rica. Questions and answers’ at [ https://www.welovecostarica.com/members/Dengue_Fever_in_Costa_Rica_Questions_and_answers.cfm ] I had dengue in July 2007 and my Doctor at CIMA (who thankfully rarely charges me) told at the time that there’s really not much they can do for you.
If you do a Google search for dengue you’ll see numerous comments like:
“There is no specific treatment for dengue. Persons with dengue fever should rest and drink plenty of fluids. They should be kept away from mosquitoes for the protection of others. Dengue hemorrhagic fever is treated by replacing lost fluids. Some patients need transfusions to control bleeding.”
“There are no specific anti-viral tablets or injections that can kill the virus. However a lot of supportive care and treatment can go a long way to save a patient suffering from dengue fever.”
Scott Oliver – Founder
WeLoveCostaRica.comPS. Dengue is also reappearing in the US [ http://pagingdrgupta.blogs.cnn.com/2010/07/13/dengue-reappears-in-the-united-states/ ]
Thanks Scott, for the reply.
Did you have a very low platelet count?
I ask because the reasoning behind hospitalization is when platelets fall below 100. The normal range is between 150-45o, then a doctor here is obligated to suggest hospitalization.
I agree that there is not much that doctors can do for Dengue in and of itself.
However, when platelet levels fall below a certain point, and I’m not sure what that is, they do consider procedures such as blood transfusions and platelet replacement.
I am only speaking from what I have read, and not from a place of knowledge.
Back to the Cima question, do we know if the cost is on par with US prices, or well below?
We are going in for another blood test this afternoon, and if it is below what it was yesterday,already below 100, then it looks like we are headed for a hospital.
Any info from anyone who has a similar situation, we’d appreciate hearing from you.The cost of CIMA should be 30-40% lower than the USA but you would need to confirm that with them…
The odds of you finding someone in the forum who’s just been through this at this one hospital are pretty slim…
Scott
CIMA does take some US insurance plans including BCBS. I can tell you this for Physical Therapy its $32 per session including ultrasound. In the US its $100 per session without the ultrasound.
I think the issue isn’t whether CIMA Hospital takes Blue Cross/Blue Shield plans (or other insurance coverage) but whether one’s particular U.S. health insurance coverage extends outside the United States. Our BCBS plan, for instance, only covers emergencies and unforeseen events outside the U.S. and those only for U.S. residents. Since we’re full-time residents of Costa Rica, we have no BCBS coverage here whatsoever.
Each plan can have different coverages and limitations and only a careful investigation of your own plan will give you the right answer. Please believe me, we went round and round with BCBS and our former employer about all this just last year.
CIMA has its own foreign insurance department in a small office opposite the registration desk. They are extremely helpful and can tell you if they have an agreement with insurer. Overall, having a baby at CIMA last November, we found the costs to be significantly less than in the US (much better than 30%-40% less Scott). We had a 3-day stay after a C-section and the entire bill for just the hospital was $1,600, which included an operating room. Our US insurance company reimbursed us 70%. A normal 3-D ultrasound in the US runs about $600. Our OB/GYN had the exact same machine in his office, but he does them for $79. That is a significant difference.
grb, your experience at CIMA doesn’t surprise me a bit. I’ve had two colonoscopies there and paid cash. The whole bill — gastroenterologist, anesthesiologist, OR, and pathology — ran less than what the anesthesia would cost in the U.S. And the service was excellent.
Hopefully, [b]pranaspakeywest,[/b] the OP, when he has time will let us know how his partner made out with CIMA, if indeed he had to go there.
I don’t know the costs at Cima but hear that it is quite expensive(according to my standards) I also had denge fever a few weeks ago and because my platelet count went below 100 to about 65, I checked myself into Hospital San Rafael in Alajuela. The Caja,CCSS covered everything. I couldn’t have asked for better treatment but of course Cima would be better. The denge ward had eight beds with lots of activity and great care. Have to say the bottom line great.
CIMA & Clinica Biblica are two of a handful of Central American hospitals that are highly rated by an international agency that also rates US hospitals. They are both very modern facilities. I believe CIMA is affiliated with Baylor Medical School and often has interns from there. I recently met a young pedeatrician at Children’s Hospital in Seattle that did a 1 year neonatal internship at CIMA. Our pediatrician at CIMA did a stint at Children’s in Miami and D.C.
Just to give you some numbers. A night will cost you around $300 in Biblica or CIMA; slightly cheaper in Catolica. Add to that meds and your doctor’s fees, and it becomes $350-$400 per night. If you stay longer the room rate is slightly cheaper.
The hospitals above are rated: #1-Biblica, #2 -CIMA, #3 – Catolica. All 3 hospitals are excellent. We liked Catolica most.Do call them to get the quote.
FYI: in CIMA you get 5-8% discount if you have the PriceSmart card; in Catolica you get 10% discount if you use BCR for the payment (discount applies to the room only, not for meds or doctor’s fees).
[quote=”costaricafinca”]Hopefully, [b]pranaspakeywest,[/b] the OP, when he has time will let us know how his partner made out with CIMA, if indeed he had to go there.[/quote]
Thanks for asking.
We ended up dodging the hospital bullet. His numbers were below 100 for a day, we held off for one more day and they went back up.
Of course we will never no if this happened on it’s own or not, but , I did read on line that Papaya Leaf Juice can be very helpful, and so I used our juicer to create some very bitter, very green tasting juice, and one way or another his platelet count rose after plummeting for 7 days.
Thanks for the info.I was surprised to see the international rating for Clinica Biblica to be higher than CIMA. Most of the publicity for foreigners in CR seems to tilt heavily toward CIMA. This is the first time that I have heard much about Clinica Biblica. I have Costa Rican friends who use Clinica Biblica and who seem very pleased. For reasons I don´t fully understand, there also seems to be a negative attitude toward CIMA by these same Costa Ricans. I have seen Clinica Biblica from the outside (it is not far from Iglesia de Soledad and Tin Jo downtown), and it looks as modern (and stylish!) as CIMA. My question to readers is what experiences they have had with Clinica Biblica. CIMA has a reputation for being like a U.S. hospital including some degree of comfort for English speakers. Does the Clinica Biblica experience compare favorably with that of CIMA for U.S. expats? Thanks for the help. Bob
[quote=”juliab”]Just to give you some numbers. A night will cost you around $300 in Biblica or CIMA; slightly cheaper in Catolica. Add to that meds and your doctor’s fees, and it becomes $350-$400 per night. If you stay longer the room rate is slightly cheaper.
The hospitals above are rated: #1-Biblica, #2 -CIMA, #3 – Catolica. All 3 hospitals are excellent. We liked Catolica most.Do call them to get the quote.
FYI: in CIMA you get 5-8% discount if you have the PriceSmart card; in Catolica you get 10% discount if you use BCR for the payment (discount applies to the room only, not for meds or doctor’s fees).[/quote]
All hospital are for profit money making rackets. They give you everything and charge well for it. The three hospitals you have mentioned have dramatically increased in costs over the years and the quality of care has gone down. Obviously, they do not need the patients (clients) as all three have made a ton of money over the last 5 to 10 years. I remember going to CIMA when they first opened and it was the best service I had ever seen in any hospital. Not so now.
Then they had doctors who had been with the CAJA for years with tons of experience, now anesthesiologist, surgeons etc go into private practice without the years of practical experience from CAJA practice. One of my friends went under the knife at CIMA and the anesthesiologist collapsed his lung.
I was there last year and all the employees had dour faces. Not so the first time, as then you never had to ring, because there was always smiling faces around asking if you needed anything.
I know someone who is in medical school right now in Costa Rica and they are not Costa Rican and they cannot believe the amount of cheating that goes on here. Many of their fellow students do not talk to her because she is a top student and will not participate in cheating and has threatened to turn anyone in that she catches copying off her tests. She has given people several warnings. They say that with texting Etc, the Ticos have cheating down to a science and the school does not seem to care. This is a culture of cheating; just look at the professionals in most other practices, especially lawyers, and you will see how it goes. This cultures lies and steals more than any other culture I have been in except maybe Mexico, but even there the lower economic class is much more honest than Costa Rican lower economic class.
This whole line about CR doctors being as good as US doctors in a bunch of bull. They are second rate compared to the US. If I need to go under the knife, the only way I would do it here is if it was an emergency and I had to. Otherwise, I would be on a plane back to the US so fast it would make your head spin. So, you can tell yourself stories to make you feel more secure that Costa Rica has world class doctors (and there might be a few), but the majority are mediocre by US standards.
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