Getting sick abroad is a whole other experience unlike getting sick at home while in the United States. In the U.S., while running a fever and unable to eat or drink the patients are encouraged to use a fan to circulate the airflow and help regulate their temperature. Vise versa, if the patient is unable to maintain body heat they take warm baths and cover him or herself with blankets. In Italy, the people are suspicious of using fans believing that no matter what is wrong with the patient, having air flow will lead to pneumonia. While healthcare in Italy is universal, so all patients including international travelers are covered, going to the doctor can potentially complicate a patient’s healthcare plan, and so patients are often cared for by family and friends unless their condition continues to worsen or become too serious to handle without a physician. However, in the United States, where healthcare is privatized, it is culturally encouraged for patients to see a doctor no matter how minor or serious their condition is, just to ensure they will be all right. Though I have traveled extensively throughout the world, and have experienced varying illnesses in different countries, I have found one thing to be constant and true: no matter where you are, or in what culture, when you are sick all you want are your parents to make you feel better the same way they did when you were a child, even going so far as insisting your father take time off work and fly to a remote Italian village just to make you feel better. Sadly, when you become an adult those once honored requests are often laughed at.
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