Unbelievably good service in Germany

Running a website dedicated to sending gifts to people in hospital has taught us a lot about how hospitals operate and the kinds of difficulty they face.  And when we were on holiday in Germany earlier this month, we saw first-hand how part at least of the German medical system operates.

Julie’s shoulder unfortunately became very painful, and after a few days we decided she must see a doctor or a physiotherapist.  Our first port of call was a physiotherapist, and luckily he was able to see us later that same morning – at 12.20.  As it turned out, he wasn’t able to provide much help, but he did identify the problem as a frozen shoulder.  Very kindly he fixed up an immediate appointment with a doctor who specialised in sports injuries (which a frozen shoulder often is), and called us a taxi to take us there.

Dr Hecht’s surgery was very impressive.  There were large photos on the wall showing him with famous sportspeople and football shirts signed by the likes of Jurgen Klinsmann.  He saw us almost immediately and arranged for Julie to have an X-ray and an ultra-sound. 

Off we went down the corridor to the appropriate rooms, and both the X-ray and ultra-sound were promptly done.  Back with Dr Hecht, he confirmed the problem was indeed a frozen shoulder, and gave Julie a pain-killing injection and some tablets. 

By now we were wondering how much this very efficient service would cost us.  The normal price, it seems, would have been around 160 euros, but as a gesture of German-British friendship, we were charged half price – or around £50!  Bearing in mind how much private medical treatment of this sort would cost in the UK, this seemed very reasonable indeed. 

As we walked out of the surgery, we looked at our watches.  It was still only 2.20!  The efficient, reasonably priced treatment at Dr Hecht’s surgery had only taken a little over an hour.  If we ran our hospital gifts website in Germany, we’d have to be even quicker at despatching the gifts!

A Visit to the Cuddly Toys

Anyone visiting the Friend in Need website recently would have seen a notice saying that no orders could be despatched until mid-September because of staff holidays.  Well, we’re back now, and ready to despatch more hospital gifts!

We spent three weeks touring round Germany and Austria.  We had a great time, though the weather in Austria was decidedly wet, and we even had a little snow – in early September!!  We tried out the new pet passport scheme for the first time and took our dog with us.  She thoroughly enjoyed herself too – especially being allowed into all the shops and restaurants!

One of the highlights was a trip to the Steiff factory and museum in Giengen, Germany.  Cuddly toys are one of our most popular lines at A Friend in Need, so it was particularly interesting to see their range, and their displays of cuddly toys are spellbinding.  It really is worth a visit if you’re ever in that part of Germany.