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What a difference a country makes

 Yesterday I went to the Ophthalmologist to see about my cataracts.  In the UK you can't even see a GP.  In France I saw 4 people, went in 4 different rooms, each with different pieces of equipment and had at least 4 lots of drops put in my eyes.  They love their drops.  At one point I was given drops, told to sit in the corridor and then as someone was passing she whipped a bottle of drops out of her pocket, told me to look at the ceiling and put a few more in.  Some of them actually went in my eyes.

After 2 hours of constant attention the Ophthalmologist declared that I needed to have my cataracts done.  With no messing about, forms were produced, dates agreed, a letter sent to my GP and payment made.  Yes in France we have to pay.  Right at the last minute, with me as blind as a bat because of all the drops in my eyes, a form was placed in front of me and I was told to complete it.  You have to be kidding!  I asked someone to direct my hand to where I had to sign, although I could have been signing over all my worldly goods for all I knew.  I proffered some semblance of a signature and handed back the form, telling them to complete it themselves.

By the time I went to bed last night I still couldn't focus on anythhing.  By the way, the doctor said as I was leaving her office, you can have a nurse come to the house after the operation to put drops in your eyes.  I think I will do it myself.

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