Medicare and The Ninja Warrior
I am the proud owner of a sporting injury! Yes, you did just
read that correctly! I may not be able to walk properly, or sleep through the
night without waking up in pain but I got it via sport!!
Now those of you who know me are probably saying “is this
our girl?” “maybe Shelley has been abducted by aliens!!” “who is this imposter?”.
Let me assure you this is me, and the sports injury is part of my healthier
Aussie lifestyle.
I haven’t ditched the coffee or the bread, I still love Gin
and binge watching English TV, but the love for women’s strength training has
taken over me. Now I know this doesn’t sound like fun but let me explain it a
little more.
In April this year I found myself walking past our local gym, it
may have been the loud music coming from inside (I love a bit of Taylor Swift),
or the amazing outfits I saw the girls in, but I was hypnotised into walking
in… Half an hour later and a few hundred dollars lighter, I had a swipe card,
an appointment with a personal trainer and the overwhelming knowledge that this
time next year I was going to be a ninja! A few days later I met with Annie the
PT and spent the next 40 minutes complaining like a pommie girl who doesn’t
like exercise. I explained to Annie that I have a car so I don’t need to run
and I’m never going to find myself in a row boat in the middle of the ocean so
I don’t need to row…. You get the idea….
Annie was not put off, in fact she looked at me with her
crazy look that I now know means I should be afraid and took me over to the
weight’s area. This area was a bit smelly and had lots of men grunting and
bending over in crazy positions. Now, I’m not sure that Annie understood my
accent, maybe she had misheard when I said I didn’t do weights…. Or running ….
Or rowing…….
I’d love to say that this is where I was struck by
lightening and the magic happened, however I’m from Yorkshire and we don’t do
fluff!! It simply happened that Annie showed me a few moves, each week we added
a few more on and as my confidence grew my love for the sport did. It’s amazing
what a fantastic personal trainer can do for your confidence.
I now find myself at the gym in the middle of the day when I’ve
been working nights, or when I can’t sleep, or when I have a problem that I
need to think about. I once read that the only way to quieten a busy mind is to
tire the body and this is very true. And don’t even start me on the gym wear I
have bought! Who would have known that this gymphobe would have a whole section
of her walk-in wardrobe dedicated to gym wear! Super G has taken to asking me every
time I put something on for the gym if it is new, and of course I use the line
“this old thing, nah I’ve had it years”
Now back to the sports injury! According to Annie the PT
guru I have bursitis of the hip due to my new love of exercise. I was totally
thrilled with the diagnosis and asked her to repeat the phrase “you have a sports
injury” about 11 times before she got bored of the game. Annie told me I should
check out the injury with a GP who would be able to discuss the ways in which
to treat the said sports injury.
This leads me to a very important topic which every
newbie needs to know about – Medicare.
In Australia there is a system similar to the NHS called
Medicare. When seeking a GP if you do not want to have to pay for the consultation
it is a good idea to find a practice that directly bills the government for
your appointment, this is called bulk billing. A simple phone call to practices
in your area will quickly help you find a bulk billing practice. I am lucky
that in my local area we have a number of GPs that bulk bill. You will find
that usually they will be able to fit you in quickly as they are run as
businesses and you are able to visit any you choose. It is probably a good idea
to find one and stay with them as then all your records will be at the one practice.
A quick phone call to my local GP on Tuesday got me appointment within a few
hours. I turned up at my appointment with a coffee and was quickly seen by the
doctor. We chatted about my injury, about my mum who visits him and the dentist
each time she visits (she is accident prone like me) and he was quickly able to
confirm Annie’s diagnosis (I told you this girl was good). The doctor
recommended that I have a couple of scans to confirm the diagnosis and printed
me out a referral. He also gave me a script for a course of medication to
relieve the pain and treat any infection. I left the doctors after showing my Medicare
card to the receptionist, without having to pay and called in to the pharmacy
next door for my script.
It is common practice in Australia for all chemists to
charge a different range of prices for the same medication, so it pays to shop
around. However, I have been using the same Terry White chemist
clinic got me an appointment the same day. Fast forward
a few hours and I was at the radiology clinic 😊 I showed my Medicare card which entitled me
to have all the scans for free and once finished I asked for the report to be
sent to my GP. On my way home from the radiology clinic I called the GP
practice and made an appointment to discuss my results later that afternoon.
After all this driving showing off my sports injury I was exhausted
so I called for another coffee before heading back to see the GP. I flashed my Medicare
card to the doctors receptionist again like a badge of honour, chatted with the
GP who stated that the scans confirmed his diagnosis and I was ordered to lay off
the gym for a week or two, rest, take the drugs he had already prescribed and
have a few injections of cortisone into the area for a speedier recovery. I’m
also sure I heard the words holiday and cocktails but Super G doesn’t believe
me….
The diagnosis and tests and treatment cost me a total of $11
and was all done in the space of a few hours and was powered by a lot of
coffee. I know that the process of Medicare can be confusing for many people
and when combined with the debate of should I get private health insurance it
feels like a minefield. This is just my recent experience with Medicare and
because it didn’t involve any hospital admissions or services my private
healthcare wasn’t used. I promise to discuss health insurance in a future post,
once I have drunk rather a lot of coffee and I’m feeling super alert (it can be
pretty confusing).
Until then I must go and tell anyone and everyone about my
sports injury while prancing around in my pink gym leggings.
Feel free to comment below on your public medical experiences in Oz.
Until Next Time
Shelley The Ninja Opal
www,opalrelocations,com.au
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