Sanjum Singh Dhaliwal had it all: a UCLA degree, a lucrative private equity job, and a home in Beverly Hills. To many back in India, he was living the American dream. But despite his success, he chose to walk away and return to India, sharing the real reason behind his life-altering decision.
The Hidden Side Nobody Talks About
Yes, the young man had prestige, pay, and a lifestyle worthy of social media. According to Dhaliwal, it wasn't his job or homesickness that drove him away, but healthcare. In a video shared on Instagram, he described his frustrating journey through America's healthcare bureaucracy.
“I've broken my wrist twice in my life. Once in India and once in the US. In India, in 2017, I was playing basketball and broke my wrist. My coach dropped me off at the hospital and left. I went to reception myself, got a nurse to see me immediately, a doctor treated me right away, and they put me in a cast. They took care of me first and asked for documentation later. There was zero mental stress; only physical pain,” Dhaliwal explained.
However, in the US, the experience was starkly different. “Similarly, I was playing basketball and broke a finger in my palm, the fifth metacarpal. I had to wait two whole days before a doctor or nurse even looked at my hand. They didn't treat it; just diagnosed it and put me in a temporary cast that I had to change daily with one hand. I had insurance, costing about a thousand bucks every semester, one of the best in the country. The next day, I asked a nurse to retie it. She asked if I had an appointment. When I said no, she told me to get out. This was at the end of April. The first available online appointment was in the second week of July. They wanted me to wait over two months for a fracture to be looked at?”
Finding a Loophole for Medical Care
Despite having insurance, he couldn't secure an appointment. Desperate, he had to work around the system. “I had to find a loophole. I woke up at 7 am for three consecutive days to find a night clinic appointment, the only way to get a same-day appointment. Only then, after about 10 days with an uncured, unprotected fracture, was I able to see a doctor and get it fixed,” he revealed.
Dhaliwal acknowledged that the lifestyle, weather, and amenities in the US are great, but he refuses to return. “So you can keep arguing about why the US is better, with more amenities and nice weather. I would never live there. That's my number two reason for moving back to Punjab. Number one is still Amritsari Kulche,” he concluded.
Public Reaction
The video garnered comments from Indians and NRIs alike. One user wrote, “Middle class in India will always have better access to healthcare than the middle class in the US.” Another shared a similar experience: “This literally happened to me with my ankle.”
However, a dissenting voice argued, “What you explained is actually the privilege you hold in India. You went to private hospitals while the rest of the country goes to government hospitals, where documents are asked for first, just like in the States. Would a poor person in the USA have better access to healthcare, or would a poor person in India be better off at government healthcare centers?”
Another commenter quipped, “Hahahaha healthcare in India is tops, and now fast moving from sick care to medicine 3.0. How to live at optimum, not wait to be sick. And the kulchas: you have your head and your gut in the right place, brother.”
Disclaimer: This article is based on an individual's personal experience shared on social media and reflects subjective views. Healthcare systems in countries like the United States and India vary widely depending on factors such as location, type of facility (public vs private), insurance coverage, and individual circumstances. The views expressed do not represent a comprehensive comparison of healthcare systems in either country.
