Member-only story
Crying in the Waiting Room
Re-entering the American healthcare system
When you’re on the UK’s National Health Services (NHS), well care is aggressively scheduled. You’ll get a text that you are “invited” for X type of care at such and such time and date. Call if you need to reschedule.
As an American, I find this charming — much better than several hours’ phone hold trying to get an appointment.
As a new mother, I wasn’t excited to get a text “inviting” me to a pap smear two months postpartum.
I was tempted to blow it off — I was tired, baby needed me, we were packing for America — but it’s important to look after my own health, so I accepted the appointment.
Robert took the day off work to watch the baby, and I waddled my still-healing body to the local clinic.
“Oh, hey,” I laughed when I saw the practice nurse. “I just saw you last week for my son’s two-month vaccinations!”
“Oh.” The practice nurse paused. “We can’t do a pap smear until you’re at least three months postpartum.”
So she rescheduled for three months (just before my trip to the States) and sent me home.
A month later, back at the clinic, she asked if I wanted the standard blood tests that go with the pap smear.