A Glance into the Costa Rican Healthcare System

 Hospital Calderón Guardia

Our Spanish class, which is designed for future healthcare professionals, took us on a field trip to the major public and private hospitals in the city. It was a really cool opportunity where we got to compare the Costa Rican healthcare system with the U.S.

First we went to Hospital Calderón Guardia, one of the main public hospitals in San Jose. It was interesting to see how things were run at this hospital because Costa Rica has universal healthcare, which means that the public hospitals provide all citizens with free treatment. While in theory it seems amazing, we got to see the realty of what universal healthcare means. It means long lines and and limited access to doctors when they are needed.

We saw how there were longs lines for everything at the hospital. If you want an appointment with a doctor for something simple like back pain and you go to schedule your appointment in January, you won't see the doctor until July. However, the good thing was that everyone had an opportunity to receive healthcare as well as free medications. Also the hospital provided the best treatment and had well trained doctors. The quality of treatment was not a problem.

Long lines at the Public hospital

After that we went to Hospital Clínica Bíblica, a private hospital 5 minutes from Hospital Calderón Guardia. The difference between the hospitals was like night and day.  The private hospital looked nicer than the hospitals in the US. We were blown away the moment we stepped in. There were high ceilings, huge rooms for patients, stained glass windows, and high ceilings.

Hospital Clínica Bíblica had the state of the art technology and amazing services for patients. There were no lines and personalized attention for patients. People can come in any time of the day, and be seen immediately, but the catch is that the hospital charges exorbitant amounts for treatment.  What ends up happening is that people have to pay the government for universal healthcare through taxes and then pay again when they go to a private hospital. They end up paying double.

The hospital also gave us a lecture about the Costa Rican healthcare system, which helped us understand the current state of health care in the country. Over all this field trip was very insightful and interesting. It was truly a unique opportunity!

Hospital Clínica Bíblica

Good Ol'e Simon

Casual Wed. evening, doing spanish homework and lounging with el gato. One things for sure, we definitely overcame our fear of animals here. 

Sunday NerdDay: Visit to Museo Nacional de Costa Rica

Things had become a bit hectic, so we didn't get a chance to post up pictures from our Sunday visit to the museum. Mainly we wanted to go see the butterfly garden, since Costa Rica is known for its diverse group of mariposas or butterflies. Turns out there were not as many butterflies as we had imagined, but it was a nice museum. There were various exhibits about the history of Costa Rica and exhibits containing pre-colonization artifacts. One of the interesting exhibitions discussed how the country eventually abolished its army. Costa Rica also abolished its death penalty unlike many other countries.

Beautiful day in San Jose. The skies were so clear you could see the mountain peaks from afar. 

Modeling in front of the National Museum. The museum used to be a Army building where soldiers used to stay, and it was also used for guarding the city. 

Costa Rican street art we passed on our walk to the museum.

Standing inside the mariposa sanctuary. 

This is the area where the butterflies are left to grow. You can see the wings of the butterflies hatching out of the cocoon. 

One of the craziest things we saw. This was excavated from the grounds in Costa Rica. It was identified to be a molar tooth of a Giant sloth back during the pre-columbian time periods. Can you imagine how huge the sloth must have been! This is just its one molar. 

Nidhi's bedtime hairstyle

This just cracked me up so much I had to share it

She's rocking that up-do

El almuerzo

Maggie and knorr corn soup for lunch 

= so satisfying

Coffee break

The cafeteria here has really good cappuccinos for only a dollar, so we get a small cup during our break between classes 

Weekend Visit to Volcan Irazu

On our way to the Irazu Volcano, we stopped at another Volcano called Turialda.  These volcanoes in general are only about an hour away from San Jose. It was surprising how fast the climate changed in such a short time. Near the volcanos, it was extremely windy and cold. It was about 5 degrees Celsius. 

Riding up towards Irazu, we passed huge green fields with bright green grass. Everywhere around our bus there were blankets of clouds that covered the cities from above. 

This is me and Radhika at the highest peak overlooking the volcano. Standing from the highpoint, we could see three other craters. The diameter of these crafters was about 500ft. The air felt so clean and fresh.

Standing inside the crater of Irazu! 

We also visited an old historic Church in the city of Cartago from the colonization period. It was one of the most calming locations we had ever been to. It almost looked like it was from a fairy tale. People even today attend this church on a regular basis. 

Radhika standing on a hanging bridge overlooking a river commonly used for white water rafting during the summer. 

 

This is the tree from which coffee seeds are produced. When you bit these red looking berries, it is sweet because the coffee seeds are coating with a sugary substance. If you peel the outer coat, you can find these green seeds. Our tour guide told us that almost 70% of the coffee produced in Costa Rica is sold to Starbucks. In general, Costa Rica is known for its coffee.

On the way back, we had these Green Mango Ice sticks. It is a Costa Rican delicacy. The sticks come with a packet of salt, so you can flicker salt on top and eat it. There were pieces of green mango inside the stick. 

Good morning

For breakfast we usually have fruit, fresh juice, coffee and some thing else like pancakes, gallo pinto (beans and rice all spiced up), empanadas, cereal, and toast to name a few