The Motorcycle Accident Diaries: Part I

I was teaching English in Taiwan and occasionally the need to escape the chaos and pollution of the city would send me and my friends into the lush mountainside for a leisurely motorcycle drive. It was on one of those days that, while riding on the back of my friend John’s motorcycle, we were hit head on by a drunk driver in a car.

You know how they say when you get in an accident everything slows down? Well, they aren’t lying. I remember looking over John’s shoulder and seeing the car driving down the wrong side of the road heading straight for us. Even though it all seemed to be happening in slow motion, there was no avoiding it. When we hit the car I was catapulted into the air, over an eight foot wall, and into a thick patch of bamboo on an embankment. The instant I hit the ground I started shrieking, “Help! Help! Help!” but, just as suddenly as I had started, I stopped. I began to have a very clear and logical discussion with myself. It went something like this:

“Okay, no one can hear you. Stop screaming.”
“I wonder if I’m paralyzed?”
“I should try to wiggle my toes.” I wiggle my toes successfully.
“Okay, that’s good. Not paralyzed”
“My leg hurts.” I lift my head slightly to survey the damage and discover that my leg has been shredded by the bamboo and is oozing blood and fat.
“Okay, that’s bad. Don’t look there.”
“Gee, I’m really glad that helmet law came into effect a month ago.”

At this point my friends who were riding behind us had arrived and were helping John, who was in much worse shape than I. He was a big guy and instead of flying over the eight foot wall he fell into it but not before hitting the front of the car first. My friends clamored up the embankment to reach me while kind motorists stopped to call 911 (119 in Taiwan) and help this distressed group of foreigners.

Here’s where the story of two very different approaches to healthcare begins. I am a Canadian and the Taiwanese system turned out to be quite an experience for me and my friend. Before I go into the details, I should say that all of this happened in the late 90's and things may have changed quite a bit since then but at the time this is what I experienced.

First of all, ambulances there weren’t much more than glorified taxi services. They had very little equipment and the attendants seemed to know less about first aid than my friends. Initially, the hospitals didn’t seem much better. The first hospital we arrived at was in pitiful condition, complete with stray dogs in the lobby.

Come back in two weeks to read about the author's experience in a Taiwanese hospital and the conclusion of The Motorcycle Accident Diaries.

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About the Author

Laura was an English teacher for 6 years and taught in Taiwan, South Korea and The United Arab Emirates.  She currently lives in Canada where she received her degree in Sociology from the University of British Columbia. Her interests range from reading and writing to sailing and camping but her greatest passion in life is her love of adventure and travel.