NO POINT IN HAVING A DISCOVER MEDICAL AID

I am extremely disappointed in the pathetic service received by Melomed Private Hospital Team in Bellville this past Friday, 25 May 2018. I was rushed to the ER section Friday morning due to severe abdominal pain after visiting my doctor who could not assist me as I need a scan to be done. The below was not explained by any medical assistant: a) Access fee to be paid for a "casuality" visit to the ER b) Ultra sound that needed to be paid upfront as my medical aid KeyPlus does not cover an unplanned or "casual" scan to establish why I was in severe pain c) Pathcare fee that needs to be paid in cash by me as KeyCare does not cover "casuality" blood test I was sedated at the time I was told that I need to pay the ultrasound of R1400 before they could conduct a test and during my sedation I clearly remembered asking while my partner was present if there is no other option and if I cannot be invoiced later for this and I was told no and they if I do not accept they cannot assist any further as they needed the test results.

I received a notification from pathcare are this afternoon asking me my email address so as to forward me the invoice for my blood test.

I called in to discovery and as per the agent, the hospital should have explained the T&C's before assisting so that we could decode to accept or not. not only is my issue with the hospital's pathetic communication channel but also with discovery as I am questioning *** am I paying over R2000 pm for if I cant even use it in a case of emergencies. When changes occur in benefits at hospitals no coms get sent out to clients from Discovery or the hospital and even worse the medical assistance and admin people don't inform you about this. what's even worse is that I did not sign to pay cash for these things and ta the time they left me and partner no choice but to pay every cent to receive help. According to discovery only planned hospital and specialist bills are covered under keycare. then what's the point of having this PLAN!!!!

Melomed has all this information and only God knows why they do not follow a procedure and explain it to the patients first before telling the, "please go straight through". This is no different to the service received by local day hospitals.

On a lighter note, I would like to thank the Dr and nurses who assisted me promptly and did the best they could. however, Melomed will not be recommended on to my family, friends and corporate colleagues or clients and yes, my email might not phase some of you as the lose of one client may not be a great lose but could lead to the lose of many and many patients visit the ER via recommendations as well as opting for medical aid through discovery for emergencies should one not be financially able to pay.