Experiencing a crisis
- Thread starter Heather
- Start date
Heather
Dagobah Resident
Thanks, Lilou and Felipe4. I still feel unsettled, but that's probably from lack of sleep. Also, I just don't like this whole brain injury thing. There is a lot to it, so it has one on edge. But, as was pointed out in the Natasha Richardson related article I linked to, it's to be very attentive to symptoms, which is what the hospital staff was doing, and which is what my husband needs to continue doing. If adverse symptoms arise after such a head injury one needs to act on them quickly.
As for relative costs..
When in India as a Westerner one is always doing the math in one's head, calculating the dollar amount of rupees. But this is somewhat of a misconception since, of course, as long as the dollar is strong you are usually making out very well as an American in this sense. On most items, at least. But what one needs to do is to get a sense of what a rupee buys in India, apart from what its exchange value is. Then you can see whether you are paying a reasonable amount, or are getting ripped off in some cases (since Indians know you're making out well anyway given the exchange rate).
The 150 dollar amount I cited is approx 10,000 rupees. As to the value of 10,000 rupees to an Indian, one needs to look at the cost of food, gas, typical wages, etc., to start to get a sense of what that actually means to an Indian.
When my husband feels better I can ask him about this, since he's more versed in doing business there, and has a better sense of the price of things from an Indian perspective.
But, let's say a decent meal there is $10 US -- a very good price from our perspective -- and so it's 6-700 rupees. So, we're talking maybe 14 to 15 decent meals (out in restaurant) comes to approx 10,000 rupees, which is the cost of this medical emergency.
Here, in the US (or New York City, say), a decent meal -- not too expensive a place -- might be twenty-five dollars (probably more with the tax and tip). Multiply that by 15 and you get $375 dollars. So, let's say that the price of 10,000 rupees in India for these medical services is comparable to our paying $375 for medical services. [I could be all wrong in how I'm doing this, but hopefully not.] Anyway, the point is, an American -- as you just pointed out, Lilou and Felipe -- is faced with astronomical medical expenses, which are never entirely covered by whatever health plan one has, which is why so many go bankrupt if met with a serious medical emergency, or health condition. In this instance, if in the US it was just a matter of having to pay $375 dollars out of pocket, this would not be the case.
But, again, I might not have enough info here to really evaluate what the 10,000 rupee amount means to a middle class or poorer Indian, let's say. Also, Goa has the highest per capita income in India, so it's not terribly representative in that sense either.
--oh. Just remembered. The medical bill my husband received is I believe somewhat higher than what is charged an Indian there. This is also why they welcome Westerners since they can charge an amount that's a good deal for both parties involved, and so the Westerner -- in Goa especially, which has a lot of tourism (including "medical tourism") -- really does help keep medical costs more affordable for Indians, with everyone benefiting. I've not researched this, however this has been our personal experience and understanding.
As for relative costs..
Lilou said:
Felipe4 said:
When in India as a Westerner one is always doing the math in one's head, calculating the dollar amount of rupees. But this is somewhat of a misconception since, of course, as long as the dollar is strong you are usually making out very well as an American in this sense. On most items, at least. But what one needs to do is to get a sense of what a rupee buys in India, apart from what its exchange value is. Then you can see whether you are paying a reasonable amount, or are getting ripped off in some cases (since Indians know you're making out well anyway given the exchange rate).
The 150 dollar amount I cited is approx 10,000 rupees. As to the value of 10,000 rupees to an Indian, one needs to look at the cost of food, gas, typical wages, etc., to start to get a sense of what that actually means to an Indian.
When my husband feels better I can ask him about this, since he's more versed in doing business there, and has a better sense of the price of things from an Indian perspective.
But, let's say a decent meal there is $10 US -- a very good price from our perspective -- and so it's 6-700 rupees. So, we're talking maybe 14 to 15 decent meals (out in restaurant) comes to approx 10,000 rupees, which is the cost of this medical emergency.
Here, in the US (or New York City, say), a decent meal -- not too expensive a place -- might be twenty-five dollars (probably more with the tax and tip). Multiply that by 15 and you get $375 dollars. So, let's say that the price of 10,000 rupees in India for these medical services is comparable to our paying $375 for medical services. [I could be all wrong in how I'm doing this, but hopefully not.] Anyway, the point is, an American -- as you just pointed out, Lilou and Felipe -- is faced with astronomical medical expenses, which are never entirely covered by whatever health plan one has, which is why so many go bankrupt if met with a serious medical emergency, or health condition. In this instance, if in the US it was just a matter of having to pay $375 dollars out of pocket, this would not be the case.
But, again, I might not have enough info here to really evaluate what the 10,000 rupee amount means to a middle class or poorer Indian, let's say. Also, Goa has the highest per capita income in India, so it's not terribly representative in that sense either.
--oh. Just remembered. The medical bill my husband received is I believe somewhat higher than what is charged an Indian there. This is also why they welcome Westerners since they can charge an amount that's a good deal for both parties involved, and so the Westerner -- in Goa especially, which has a lot of tourism (including "medical tourism") -- really does help keep medical costs more affordable for Indians, with everyone benefiting. I've not researched this, however this has been our personal experience and understanding.
Hi Heather,
I just caught up with your thread. I'm sorry to hear about your husband's accident! I'm glad the scan didn't show anything wrong and that he is doing alright. I would also stress the importance of continuing to look out for any symptoms; headache, concentration problems, memory problems etc. and to of course rest well and to not engage in any heavy physical activity. I found this article on Traumatic Brain Injury with more information. There's this bit on severity:
Do you know how long he was unconscious for? The longer the time, the more important to look out for any symptoms that could pop up, which might not be evident immediately. Having said that, it's good to hear he's not alone and I'm certain that your care for him is helping him through it! Maybe take some melatonin an hour or so before bed which could help you fall asleep. Take good care, keep us updated and I'll keep him in my thoughts and prayers.
I just caught up with your thread. I'm sorry to hear about your husband's accident! I'm glad the scan didn't show anything wrong and that he is doing alright. I would also stress the importance of continuing to look out for any symptoms; headache, concentration problems, memory problems etc. and to of course rest well and to not engage in any heavy physical activity. I found this article on Traumatic Brain Injury with more information. There's this bit on severity:
Do you know how long he was unconscious for? The longer the time, the more important to look out for any symptoms that could pop up, which might not be evident immediately. Having said that, it's good to hear he's not alone and I'm certain that your care for him is helping him through it! Maybe take some melatonin an hour or so before bed which could help you fall asleep. Take good care, keep us updated and I'll keep him in my thoughts and prayers.
Palinurus
The Living Force
Hey Heather,
First off: glad to hear the damage seems minor for now. Let's all hope it stays that way.
What you're trying to do is called Purchasing power parity analysis.
A popular form of it is called the Big Mac Index which compares prices of Big Mac (or an equivalent like the Chicken Maharaja Mac in India) all over the world in order to get an estimated guess of local purchasing power compared to the US dollar, or any other mayor currency. The Economist was the inventor of that index in 1986 and still publishes a regularly updated interactive overview like this one from the end of July 2016.
First off: glad to hear the damage seems minor for now. Let's all hope it stays that way.
What you're trying to do is called Purchasing power parity analysis.
A popular form of it is called the Big Mac Index which compares prices of Big Mac (or an equivalent like the Chicken Maharaja Mac in India) all over the world in order to get an estimated guess of local purchasing power compared to the US dollar, or any other mayor currency. The Economist was the inventor of that index in 1986 and still publishes a regularly updated interactive overview like this one from the end of July 2016.
Heather
Dagobah Resident
Oxajil said:Do you know how long he was unconscious for? The longer the time, the more important to look out for any symptoms that could pop up, which might not be evident immediately. Having said that, it's good to hear he's not alone and I'm certain that your care for him is helping him through it! Maybe take some melatonin an hour or so before bed which could help you fall asleep. Take good care, keep us updated and I'll keep him in my thoughts and prayers.
Hi Oxajil. Thank you for the information, and for your well wishes.
I asked my husband how long he was unconscious. It seems it was off and on in the ambulance. He remembered some things, not others. He remembered waking up in the hospital. So there are pieces missing from when he was in transit, so it seems it couldn't have been for very long. Oddly, just after the accident, he had the presence of mind to call his mother, whom he had just left since he was giving her old motor bike a test ride.
I did stress with him the importance of monitoring symptoms even now after having returned from the hospital. He was told that the dull head-ache he's experiencing would probably last about a week, but I suggested to him that if it were to worsen he should again get things checked out.
Overall he feels he's improving bit by bit.
I wonder, though, if there shouldn't be some form of follow-up, which wasn't anything that was mentioned at the hospital. I wonder about blood clots. Things like that. I suppose I'll need to continue with my research.
As for myself, I do take melatonin regularly so that's always a great help.
Palinurus said:Hey Heather,
First off: glad to hear the damage seems minor for now. Let's all hope it stays that way.
What you're trying to do is called Purchasing power parity analysis.
A popular form of it is called the Big Mac Index which compares prices of Big Mac (or an equivalent like the Chicken Maharaja Mac in India) all over the world in order to get an estimated guess of local purchasing power compared to the US dollar, or any other mayor currency. The Economist was the inventor of that index in 1986 and still publishes a regularly updated interactive overview like this one from the end of July 2016.
Hi Palinurus. Thank you for the well wishes. And thank all of you for all your hugs 'n flowers 'n things (!) (Sweet.)
Now that you bring it up, I think I've heard of the Big Mac Index. How telling they would use the Big Mac. I would say that fast food in India still revolves around rice 'n dahl 'n chapatis. Things like that. Although I'm sure McDonald's is present. I can't say I recall seeing one though in the sections of Goa I'm familiar with. Anyway, if I want to get more serious about this I now know where to start, so thanks for this.
By the way, to those of you interested in Indian culture, this film (The Lunch Box) is lovely. Its location is Mumbai, and the love story it tells revolves around the Dabbawalas who deliver the home-made lunches from the home to the husbands at work through a highly efficient system, which in this rare instance fails, and so one man is being delivered another man's lunch. Eventually, notes are exchanged, since the stack of tins the lunches are delivered in are always returned home; and the story proceeds from there.
Also, it's refreshing to see an independent, realist film when Bollywood is still mostly producing those (godawful) musicals (!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qdn6nVJHyfM
(this doesn't seem to want to embed, for some reason; it's the English version trailer)
Lastly, thank you, 3D Student, for the well wishes and the lovely purple flower (!).. (I'll put it with my heather on the hill).
Palinurus
The Living Force
Heather said:
Funny you would say that because neither have I, LOL. I just picked that up from the wikipage about the Big Mac Index:
Just caught up with this thread either. Sorry to hear about your husband's accident, Heather. Yes, these Indian roads can be crazy - have visited the country as well in 2006 (Northern India). Crossing a main road was quite an act - it often felt like you nearly hadn't a chance to cross the road and survive.
But good to hear that everything turned out good so far for your husband. Hopefully his recovery will be stable further on. Thus, an follow-up appointment, as Oxajil suggested, sounds like a good idea. You both are in my thoughts as well
But good to hear that everything turned out good so far for your husband. Hopefully his recovery will be stable further on. Thus, an follow-up appointment, as Oxajil suggested, sounds like a good idea. You both are in my thoughts as well
Heather
Dagobah Resident
Palinurus said:
Hi Palinarus. Interesting about Iceland, considering (unlike Greece) they successfully broke from the IMF/WTO nightmare, and were able to re-build their economy on their own. But then given how small it is as well as other internal factors this perhaps was more plausible for them than for other countries. I'd have to research the details. But, in any event, that they would have discontinued McDonald's doesn't surprise me, even just symbolically speaking (!)
Also, thank you for the link to the TBI info. It's very informative.
Thank you Learner for your thoughts and kind words. And I think you both may be right, he should have a follow-up. He's been reading up on post concussion symptoms himself and was feeling discouraged since they can persist for weeks if not longer. Although I just spoke with him briefly (it's his bedtime) and it sounds like he had a better day than he'd been having, so maybe gradually things are improving.
Edit=Quote
Heather
Dagobah Resident
Thank you all for all the support and information concerning my husband's motorcycle accident in India. He is doing remarkably well, and is celebrating the New Year with friends as I write this.
And here's to the "interesting times" ahead. May they be more of a good challenge than a hardship.
Heather
And here's to the "interesting times" ahead. May they be more of a good challenge than a hardship.
Heather
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