Annals of Government Medicine

So far, our Annals have come from the United Kingdom, but this one is from Sweden. It suggests that the human spirit has not been entirely extinguished by decades of socialism. One Swede, at least, had the courage and presence of mind to sew up his own wound when no doctors or nurses were available:

A 32-year-old took the needle into his hands when he tired of the wait at Sundsvall hospital in northern Sweden and sewed up the cut in his leg himself. The man was later reported to the police for his impromptu handiwork.
“It took such a long time,” the man told the local Sundsvall Tidning daily.

Well, that’s what happens when medical clinics aren’t competing for your business.

The man incurred the deep cut when he sliced his leg on the sharp edge of a kitchen stove while he was renovating at home.
“I first went to the health clinic, but it was closed. So I rang the medical help line and they told me that it shouldn’t be closed, so I went to emergency and sat there,” the man named only as Jonas told the newspaper.
After an hour-long wait in a treatment room, he lost patience and proceeded to sew up his own wound.
“They had set out a needle and thread and so I decided to take the matter into my hands,” he said.

The story does not end happily. Hospital staff turned Jonas in to the police “on suspicion of criminal dispossession (egenmäktigt förfarande) for having used hospital equipment without authorization.” So goes socialism. It’s a horrible system when applied to public rest rooms; let’s not let it ruin our health care.

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