Choosing a hospital during RV travels
Fulltime RVers are subject to the same health issues as their stix-and-brix counterparts; the problem is, when traveling you don’t always have the benefit of as much “local knowledge” as those who stay in the same place. When an emergency arises, you probably won’t have much choice about where you go for help–you may be limited to whatever happens to be in reach, or where the Medic crew hauls you.
But there are plenty of times when you know you need to get hospital help that isn’t as emergent. How do you choose a hospital that’s right for you? Provided your health care insurance will “work with you,” in terms of allowing a choice of hospitals, fulltime RVers have an advantage: They can go where they want. Still, how do you choose from among the thousands of hospitals around the US?
First, some simple things to look at: Is the hospital in an area convenient to your RV lifestyle? Can you find a suitable park or other location to put your RV? Some hospitals have RV spaces for patients and their families. Does the hospital recognize (and work with) your health care insurance plan? Is it accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting body–we’ll give you more on that later. Is the place clean? Look around in the waiting rooms, and then ask to see patient rooms.
In terms of accreditation, you can turn to The Joint Commission, a medical accreditation body that examines medical providers and hospitals to see if they meet quality care standards. Their website lets you search for hospitals based on zip code or city and state. You’ll find out what specialties (if any) a given hospital is recognized for, which can be real helpful if you have a major health problem you need help with. Check out their site at www. jointcommission.org and look for the “Quality Check” area.
Another web site that can help you sort out the good from the bad is provided by the magazine, US News and World Report. They publish an annual list of the country’s best hospitals by specialty. The outfit ranked on a variety of areas, but included in the evaluation process were patient safety issues, deaths, and a facility’s reputation. Drilling down to a specific hospital also shows how patients viewed their own treatment at given facilities, and these outcomes were measured against state and national standards. Visit the site at http://health.usnews.com/health/best-hospitals.
