Wait times in the US are also ridiculous. A couple years ago I tried to make a doctor's appt, at the clinic where I was regularly a patient, and had decent insurance, but it was for check-up stuff and to ask some questions. I called in July; the first available appointment was December.
On the other hand, when I've gone to that clinic with urgent issues, they see me the same day.
I gather it is much the same in systems with decent healthcare systems; just much, much, much less likely to bankrupt you just for being sick.
I'm seeing this trend as well. It is getting to the point that I can not see my primary doctor without a 2-3 month lead time and specialist referrals are often 2-3 months as well.
Hell, I recently had to find a new dentist because the one I had been going to for years suddenly had 4-6 month lead time if I needed to reschedule a routine cleaning.
It takes like two years to get in with a rheumatologist, or get a psychiatric evaluation where I am in the US, and other, less in-demand specialists are easily 6-9 months from your initial referral from your primary physician. I think it took about ten for my first dermatology appointment.
I've been through this with a broken finger joint. I don't know if I'm a smooth talker or she remembered me as non-problematic, but the MFA at the clinic quite frankly told me: Don't try to go there without an urgent emergency, and ideally a document from a doctor confirming that it's an urgent emergency. If I wanted an appointment without confirmed urgency, I could have one in January - and it might be postponed for urgent cases. That's how booked they are. On the other hand, if my surgeon raises the correct alarm bells, I could also be in surgery next week. It's a roller coaster.
Even though this does make sense if you think about it as a tiered support system. If my finger joints don't come back up, my general practitioner can see that, poke at the fingers a bit and decide if guided physio makes sense - no need for more expertise. If there are subtle breaks in the joint requiring attention - more expertise is needed.
On the other hand, when I've gone to that clinic with urgent issues, they see me the same day.
I gather it is much the same in systems with decent healthcare systems; just much, much, much less likely to bankrupt you just for being sick.