I Finally Saw a Cardiologist 10 Years After My Dad Died

But I had to move to Spain first

Author’s first cardiac exam! All photos by Shawn Forno

On January 26th, 2015 my dad died from complications of congestive heart failure. He’d just turned 64.

I’m not writing this piece for sympathy or to overshare. I’m not even writing it to mark the grim 10-year milestone of the day when everything in our family changed.

I’m writing this article because there are currently 6.7 million people in the US over the age of 20 who have congestive heart failure. And many of them might not even know it.

Thanks to unaffordable US healthcare costs and predatory insurance pricing, millions of Americans can’t afford basic tests, preventative screenings, and diagnoses from a range of specialists when it’s early enough to make a difference.

And that’s unacceptable.

So I’m going to honor the memory of my father by sharing the details of a recent visit to see a cardiologist in Spain. Because the quality of care that I received — for no extra charge — made me realize two things:

1. Healthcare is a basic human right
2. Even basic medical care is out of reach for tens of millions of Americans

Here’s what it’s like to see a cardiologist in Spain for free.