I've lived in multiple places, so I'll talk about all of them.

Brazil

I lived in two places there, essentially you can choose between public or private systems.

Under the private system you would book an appointment with whatever doctor you wanted, usually one or two weeks in advance, pay them (which is relatively expensive depending on the doctor), have the consultation, they might ask for some exams (some of which are paid, others included), possibly get a prescription (that you would have to pay for yourself), possibly go back for a follow up appointment (included in the price you already paid).

On the public system you book an appointment, wait some time (months in some places, days in others), have your consultation (if the doctor is in that day), possibly get a prescription (that you would likely get for free), possibly go back for a follow up appointment.

Ireland

There's a public system, but you have to be below a certain income level to use it, otherwise you have to go through the private system. You have to register with your GP (most of which don't have available spots), for anything you first need to contact your GP (which usually takes a week), and pay €60, explain your problem and if they choose to forward you to and specialist (even if you go and say I need to see a cardiologist they might say "no, you do not", although that's unlikely), then they send an email to the specialist who only then accepts that you book with them (usually for a week or so later), then you have to pay the specialist (which is usually >€300), they might ask for some exams (which you have to book and pay on your own, some blood work I did was €700), they might give you a prescription (which is paid but there's a €80 cap on medicine per house per month, which is the only nice part of the whole system), and if you need a follow up it's usually €150. If you have health insurance (or at least mine was like this) they give you back 50% of all your expenses up to a certain limit.

Spain

I'm not too familiar with the options here because I have private insurance through my work and as you'll see I've had no reason to look elsewhere, but I've been told the public system is fairly similar. Whenever I need an appointment I open my insurance app or call a doctor office and ask if they take my insurance, book an appointment (usually for a week or two in advance), go there, show my id and insurance card, go to the appointment, if they ask for some exams I do them, if they give me a prescription I take it to a pharmacy and pay it out of pocket (this is the only part I know public system exists and is somewhat better because you get the drugs for free, but since I don't take any recurring prescriptions I haven't bothered to check), if I need a follow up I book it and go back. Never had to pay one cent for anything other than medicine. I'm still waiting for the other shoe to drop and getting billed for all of the Dr appointments, but so far it hasn't happened hahaha

Poland:

If I'm sick or it's the 1st step in getting something diagnosed: I call the (public) clinic to book an appointment, get a date within like 3 days max. I usually leave with a prescription and paid doctor's leave for work. The visit costs nothing. If it's urgent you can walk in without an appointment or call the ambulance/go to the ER in your local hospital. This is free.

Sometimes the doctor gives you a medical referral to a specialist or for a certain test. This can be realized in the public health system, or at a private clinic.

Wait times vary a lot - some things like a blood test are very quick, but some specialists in the public system have very long wait times. Like, 6 months to a year. Some surgeries in the public system can take even longer. The public system is free, or has a small symbolic fee.

The private system is much faster for certain specialists - dentists, psychologists, dermatologists, injury rehabilitation, ect. but it also can't do everything. In my experience, almost all serious and niche surgeries are done in the public system for example.

Overall it's a decent experience, but the system is severely underfunded. This isn't really a case of mismanagement imo, it's genuinely just a lack of money in the system. Some surgeries can get delayed because money allocated for them ran out for the year.

I was on vacation in Portugal and twisted my ankle badly. It was in remote area, so hospital was not the best. But experience was ok. It was in a town with around 25k people. 2 hours of waiting. x-ray and doctor visit costed me 55 euros.

In my home country I pay 20 euros per month for private health insurance. This includes basic dental insurance. I guess, most expensive procedure I had is MRI of brain, but it was also fully covered so I’m not sure what was the price. There is free healthcare but I only had to resort to it once

Ireland here. I have been relatively lucky with my health since I've been here (last 10 years). The GP I go to gives a small discount because of where i work. I pay 50 euros a pop to see the doc (usually 60 I think) but the last two times I needed to see the doc it was a same day appointment. I paid for insurance the first year I was here, tried to use it when I saw a GP and they laughed in my face. Also frequently had my daughter seen (for free), they seem to keep increasing the age for which kids are seen for free, now up to age 7?

I usually book an appointment. Appear on the proper day. Get my exams done, leave, no money spent. If it's like a screening for something that can be done in a public health clinic, I'll go, spend about 30 mins to one hour waiting, talk to the doc, get whatever prescriptions they give me, get discharged and go home, no money spent.

Swede here, if it's something minor I can get an appointment within a few days, if it's more major there's some open clinics I can turn to, but if I have to see a professional I have to get in a months-long line.

UK.

Until recently, if I wanted an appointment I had to phone the GP surgery the moment it opened at 8:30 in the morning, wait in a phone queue for ten minutes or so before I got to speak to a receptionist who'd give me an appointment with which ever GP had some free time that day. It wasn't usually possible to book an appointment several days in advance.

A couple of months back they switched to an app which gives much more flexibility, allows you to choose which doctor you want to see and allows you to book appointments in advance. I do worry that they're going to push everyone to use that since old gippers are likely to struggle with the app unless they're semi-tech savvy. Also, it's obvious to me that they're setting this up to use AI to triage requests if they're not already doing that.

Appointments always used to be face to face but since covid they're increasingly phone consultations especially for follow-ups. If it's a first, diagnostic appointment it's still likely to be face to face though.

For face to face, the wait time is generally less than half an hour from the point I get to the GP surgery.

Obv. it's free at the point of use. I've paid my taxes.

Edit to add: if you're on low income, or are a child, old, etc you get your prescriptions free. Otherwise you have to pay for them at £9.90 per 2 month prescription. I'm on a shitload of medication and that would normally cost me well over £500 a year, but I get a prepayment certificate which costs me £114.50 a year and covers all medication.

Germany

Had 3 surgeries (wisedom teeth, nose bone correction and a refilling tooth surgery), an X-Ray, MRI, and i think 4 doctor visits plus all 3 months a psychiatrist to get my adhd medication.

The only thing i had to pay was 50€ for a none concret filling on my tooth, and 30€ for 6 days in hospital.

Hospital food was better than i expected and always heared about.

Had to wait a year for that surgery but the other specialist appointments were really quick in only a few months. Especially the wisdomtooth was in 2 weeks after the call for an appointment

Wait time was only a few minutes.

But had an appointment at a dermitologist and there i waited 3 hours!! Almost walked out. And i wanted was more info about my skin type and laser hair removal.

Everything is covered by the insurance though it needs a huge reforms. There is a two class system and government workers dont pay into it at all but get the Premium benefits. And that the insurance companys are covering less and less with dental now only 1 check up every half year.

Yes i am outrages that only concret to fill holes or build up a tooth is free. Fucking concret!! It is an outrage!

Germany.

Well, the health system is great, as long as you don't get sick. Or need life-saving emergency care immediately.

But not for many things in between.

Example ADHD: The GP can write a referral to get diagnosed, for free, but no psychiatrist or psychological therapist (the only ones allowed to do that) will take you. So best bet is to pay out of pocket in a practice that does it over video and is recognised in Germany. Can be done under 1k EUR that way, at least (~ 2k EUR with a private, out-of-network therapist). Recurring prescription and private doctor is about EUR 150 per month; a therapy session costs EUR 200. It is absolutely realistic to get the prescriptions and meds covered by a doctor in the insurance network, though. Therapy through insurance is also a possibility if it's not urgent and you don't ACTUALLY have ADHD or depression so you can do many phone calls, like 6 - 12 months, and you don't care who treats you.

Glasses are also not covered, e. g. workplace glasses > EUR 500 out of pocket. But, randomly, a write-off. Treatment by a homeopathic practitioner - covered, just for the lulz.

But yes, about to die within 48 hours? As long as you can convince them that this is the case (got to self-diagnose and be a persistent ass if it's not obvious), you'll get help, it might be at a very decent level even compared to many other 1st world countries, and it'll be completely covered by insurance.

Also, the monthly premium is EUR 1100 (includes nursing care insurance; there isn't much nursing happening either way though). Employer pays half, freelancers pay full. It's not legal to quit and be "uninsured". Also, you can have it lowered if you can prove that you make under 66k per year (to 19 % of income).

Oh, and only the insurance premium is a tax write-off. What you have to pay out of pocket (talking about treatment that your GP deemed essential, not dental bleeching) is paid for by your net income.

Some other random things also work out within a month and are covered, such as a quick eye checkup, dental checkup / very basic dental filling (pay out of pocket for most filling materials, but not the time), anything a GP or family doctor can do in 10 minutes.

Canadian here.

This one time 10 years ago I drove to my family doctor's office without an appointment and got lucky that it was a walk in day.

I saw my doctor within an hour of arriving and it cost me nothing.

Netherlands here, I call, have an appointment the same or next day, insurance covers all costs.

If they proscribe meds, I pay a part up until a maximum of 385 euros per year (called "own risk") , anything above that is covered as well.

I'm also covered for physiotherapy (18 sessions without "own risk"), psychological therapy, dentistry and a variety of alternative medicine!

I pay a pretty hefty premium, like 170 euros a month, but that's because I have the lowest "own risk" and I blow through that in the first month or 3 with my rickety ass body 😂

Definitely beats footing the bill completely, I've seen what dentistry costs 😱

I'm in France in a small village but I'm quite lucky with the doctor situation.

If I'm sick I go online, see what shot is available for my doctor and book it, usually in the best few days. If it's urgent I can call or go there and I'll usually get an appointment during the day with my doctor or one of the other two doctors working there.

Then I walk there since it's 400m away.

US expat in Colombia

For the general population, if you're sick you go to urgent care and maybe wait for several hours. If you need to see a specialist, those appointments can take a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending on the type of specialty. Either way, the cost is about $3 (all prices are rough equivalents in USD) per visit to see a doctor.

My employer signed me up for private insurance that gives me "concierge service," so I have access to a different network of doctors with shorter wait times. If I'm sick, I can get a same-day house call. If I need a specialist, I can usually get an appointment in a two-week time frame. I pay about $50 per month for that (in addition to my normal taxes, which are used to fund the public system). My copay per visit, regardless of the type of doctor or procedure (exams, MRIs, etc.) is about $10.

One time, I paid out of pocket for an ultrasound because I didn't want to wait for the insurance company to approve it and go back for a separate appointment. It cost me about $25.

Netherlands. I can call to make an appointment, or do it online. Then i walk/bike there, its in the neighbourhood. We have about 10 minutes for an appointment. The doctor either refers me to a specialist, prescribes drugs (most doctors have a pharmacy attached), or does small procedures. For jabs, check ups, stool samples, that type of stuff, the assistent takes care of it most of the time. You can leave without paying.

We pay a monthly insurance that pays for everything, basically. im over simplifying, its not that straightforward, but its what it boils down to.

One of the few things I liked about Russia is the healthcare system.

If you have money, and I don't mean like you're in the top 1% or 10%, you just have an average salary, you can get any doctor any procedure within 2 days. Neck MRI is $120; ultrasound is about $30; regular appointment is also $20-30; PET $400.

When it comes to the free healthcare tier, it's kinda tricky. In an emergency you could be delivered either in a new medical center with boxes and wifi, or they could throw you in an old hospital where various infections were living for centuries and doctors just hate this place and everyone who's around.

Haven't been there for almost 5 years, if we exclude a short two month period where I haven't interacted with the healthcare system. I heard that due to sanctions there's a lack of basic medicine right now: antibiotics, infusions, and even paracetamol.

Depends on who you're seeing, what time, etc. for a GP you're waiting as long as the ones in front of you take. I actually don't mind that so much, in my case it's because my regular gp hates metrics and doesn't give a fat shit what the clinic wants. He takes as long as is needed with each patient (and bills them all as standard consults) Unfortunately he also sees a lot of little old ladies, so sometimes it blows out.

Recently found out we were inadvertently exposed to a shitton of lead dust. Monday we decided to get tested, yesterday (Tuesday) morning i got the consult, gp wrote me up the paperwork, I scooted the while four meters to the phlebotomist, they took blood and urine, should hear back today /tomorrow, already received my medicare refund. Same with hubs, although he tacked on getting his flu/rsv and latest covid vaccinations done at the same time. Australia here for the record.

Italy

If it is a routine visit, one week. If you are sick a prescription is done via phone, you will find your needed medications already in the pharmacy or it will be coming in 3 days max. Your health records, allergies and needs are already in the doctor's database and your prescription will account for that.

Practices done in public infrastructure is free, and most presciption medications are too,

But we do have a very serious wait time problem with specialist visits. In the worst cases it can take more than a year if you need special visitations. There just aren't enough medics specialized to fill those positions, and who is available prefers less stressful and overworked positions.

Call the place, if it is infectious they put you on sick leave and you don't have to infect all ppl at the doctor. If the sick leave runs out, most often 3 days or so mainly to get you to the next weekend. If the issue persists you got to them. Doesn't cost anything beyond what you pay in taxes. Anything that's more involved than the typical issues might have you go to several offices (general offices then to more specialised) until someone makes a decision on what it is and how to deal with it. Also no extra cost; those come when you have something that could be dealt with but is not needed. Like you will have a decent quality of life if they patch it every now and then instead of fixing it. Then you might have to pay for that special extra pls just fix it. At least that's been my experience in Germany.