Wednesday, February 3, 2010

At the IMSS Progreso Clinic

This is just a brief update on our foray into the Mexican public health system.  As reported, we received our paperwork and were told to report to the IMSS clinic in our town of Progreso.
Here we checked in and presented our paperwork fully expecting to get our primary physicals and assignment to a primary physician.  It was not to be.
What we did get was our permanent medical record books.  They are color coded, the brown ones indicating that we are over 60 years old.
On the inside, they make use of another one of the extremely flattering photos they require on everything official here....
So if you're keeping track, we have now utilized 4 of pictures that came in the packet from the photographer's place.  The first page also contains, among other things, our social security number, our address, and the fact that our first visit will be at Consultorio #1.
The rest of the booklet has pages dedicated to various reasons for any visits and is a record of your health that you bring each time.  You also hang onto all other patient records including x-rays, lab results, etc. that may occur.  IMSS does not store them for you.
Here's a look at the inside..
As I looked through the booklet, I couldn't help sensing something oddly familiar about this whole thing.  And then it hit me:
It's the same system our veterinarian uses!!!
So all of us in the family now has a health booklet.  We just have to make sure we bring the correct one when we return tomorrow morning for our physicals.

More later,
Larry

7 comments:

Unknown said...

Facinating!

Karen

Jay and Marie said...

Thanks Larry for sharing this info, we will be applying soon for IMSS here in Merida. Our dogs also have their cards that resemble it! :) Keep us posted...

Jay and Marie

Ron said...

Bravo!!

Nancy said...

Wow, Larry. It was a way different thing when Paul and I got IMSS here in Mazatlan. Everything in Spanish and no helpful English speakers but we brought our FM3 and Passports, that was it. We had with us our utility bill and fideicomiso but didn't need to show them.

We did have to leave and come back after paying the bank and did have a group doctor visit with our friends we applied at the same time. How much we drink, do we have any health conditions, take medications, etc. Then we came back a few days later for our booklet. Very easy and amazingly quick.

The chairs and room and signage look amazingly identical. But no need for any messing around with birth certificates.

We signed up almost a year ago, and like you only plan on using it if it seems like something will be too much for us on our own.

Thanks for the post!

Beth said...

Larry, as usual your post made me giggle. "Larry is Indra's bitch"....

BajaJohn said...

Great work. Thanks for sharing your experience with IMSS with us.

MeridaGOround said...

Fun tutorial. Thanks for sharing!

~eric.