Two patients limped into two different American medical clinics with the same complaint. Both had trouble walking and appeared to need a hip replacement. The first patient was examined within the hour, X-rayed the same day, and scheduled for surgery the following week.
The second patient sees the family doctor after waiting two weeks for an appointment, then waits eight weeks to see a specialist, then gets an X-ray which is not reviewed for another month, and finally has his surgery scheduled for six months from that date.
Why the different treatment for the two patients?
Answer:
The first is a golden retriever, the second a 75 year-old man on Medicare.
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