F e a t u r e s
treatment and supply of medication is far from straightforward. The demise of Military hospitals has seen medical support being provided by a mixture of military and German civil agencies. Work colleagues and their family members have been vociferous in their criticism of the efficiency of the system.
Problems ranged from difficulties with prescriptions to individuals missing vital treatment. In a rare display of inter-Service unity, colleagues unanimously pointed the finger of blame at the military element of the support systems. So far, my only personal contact with the medical services was when my wife and children were due their annual dental check. Unfortunately, the Dental Centre was unable to carry them out, or even give a future date when they could. They did suggest using a local German dentist but we would have had to pay for this and would not be able to reclaim the money. Fortunately, we had forgotten to cancel our UK dental arrangements so my family use them when they visit the UK.
Single Personnel: One of my colleagues who is single lived in his own house in the
UK. On being posted to Germany he was informed that the Officers’ Mess was full so he would be living in a flat for the duration of his tour. Rather than leave his house empty for two years he arranged for it to be let. He then discovered that as he was single he was not entitled to have his furniture transported to Germany at public expense. He could however have it placed into storage in the UK for the duration of his tour and have that paid for, despite that being a far more expensive option.
My family an I are now well settled into life in Germany and it is a great place to live. Many of the activities we do and places we go will be very familiar to people who experienced RAFG. However, many things have changed. Even though it is only four years since I was last overseas, some things have changed dramatically, greatest of these is the value of the Pound against the Euro. Germany and the rest of Europe is now a very expensive place compared to UK. My advice to anyone moving overseas is begin saving for the move as soon as possible and do not rely on disturbance allowances or future LOA to cover costs.
www.raf-ff.org.uk
Summer 2010
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