Hank Med, MD- Mexican Version

On our recent trip to Mexico, I had the pleasure of getting sick and using the hotel's concierge doctor. I had only ever seen concierge doctors on TV shows and movies, the most famous being the USA show Hank Med, MD set in The Hamptons in New York.

After 5 hours of being sick and nothing stopping the sickness, even the bucket of ice, 5 bottles of water and crackers we ordered from the front desk to soothe my tummy, we pressed the little 'red cross' hospital button on our room's phone. We were immediately directed to the front desk. With panic in their voices and assurance that the doctor will be here in 30 minutes we hung up and waited. Of course I started to feel better, but I knew I needed something to stop making me nauseous and kill the infection so we waited and waited. It took a good hour and a half for the doctor to show up, even though the front desk was repeatedly calling him and then calling us to give an update every 20 minutes.

Once the doctor arrived, I knew everything would be fine. Dr. Yuri Ayax Real Ramirez was a short man who epitomized the look of a doctor on TV and lived up to his ridiculously long name. He had two fashionable hospital bags with all sorts of medicine and tools which were exactly like what you see on TV. He was very professional and kind and gave me a thorough exam while I waited for the magical shot to stop my nausea. As he filled the massive syringe with meds, he point by point told me what he was doing and what I will need to do in the coming day in regard to antibiotics. The shot worked like magic but the injection spot hurt for the rest of the trip. Ouch. I had a good time saying to John, "My a** hurts" and seeing the hilarious reaction on the faces of other guests.

To our surprise, at the end of the exam Dr. Yuri asked, "cash or credit?" I just about laughed out loud when he pulled out his mobile credit card machine with a big smile. Of course we wanted credit! With pride he swiped our card and told us how they had just gotten the credit card machines and how great they are and how fun it is it use. I was glad we could entertain him at 4am. Although the concierge doctor was expensive, it was well worth not ruining our trip over a Mexican bacterial infection. The total was $355, including the doctor visit, shots and medication. I would recommend using the concierge doctor to whomever needs convenient and reliable service and can afford the extra cost. Its much cheaper to go to the local clinic but at 3am, it was the last thing I wanted to do. The next day, the hotel manager called to check on me and ask what had happened, what I had eaten and if there was anything the hotel could do. It was nice they took the time to call, even though I knew they called just to cover their butts and to see if a full on outbreak was occurring (luckily it didn't).

After two days of antibiotics I was back to normal and ready to enjoy our wonderful trip. Two thumbs up for concierge doctors!