When the Ophthalmologist Becomes a Luxury

Anyone needing an appointment with an ophthalmologist in the French department of Gers primarily needs one thing: patience. Five-month waiting times – in some communities even longer – are no longer unusual there. For many, this initially sounds like a provincial problem, one of those minor mishaps of rural life. But a closer look behind the numbers tells a different story. A story about a health system that is supposed…