We are conditioned to accept the default path, especially if authority presents it as the only option.
But blindly accepting the default option can be a catastrophic mistake.
Once I've eaten something nasty which made me sick with horrific diarrhea for days. I was completely miserable, had a constant high fever and dehydration. I called an ambulance two nights in a row, they got my fever down with an injection. Then and there I gave up thinking it would clear on its own and called the doctors, they said they're taking me to a hospital. I've asked which one (suspected they're going to take me to the old infamous hole instead of a decent new one), I've asked is there a way to take me to a new one and they said no. Judging by the reviews and photos the difference between them is like a five star hotel with PS5s and an Alcatraz. Right at that point I should've refused hospitalization if they wouldn't take me to a new facility, but I didn't.
I've decided to try and accepted it. The bumpy ambulance ride ended at a decaying building. Paint was peeling from the walls everywhere, and a heap of clinical waste bags blocked the hallway. There was no light in the elevator, meaning I couldn't see anything, complete darkness (that elevator ride felt like a near death experience and I wish I was joking about it). The filter room was filled with other sick people and the air with the stench of a sewer. Once I was admitted, I needed to go to the bathroom. But I didn't really take much stuff with me. It turns out you have to take your own roll of toilet paper with you! I would've prepared well if I wasn't sick, but I couldn't imagine that.
If that wasn't the worst you go into a public shit bucket and the toilet room doubles as a shower room.
I remember being so disgusted that my diarrhea changed it's mind. I've said to the receptionist: "I'm checking myself out."
They looked at me like I was insane, but I think I was the only sane one.
And I walked from the hospital to the metro station and then back home, I almost shit myself midway. The exit from the hospital territory itself was a maze, I've gone around it two or three times before I found an exit. At home, after some days of rest I managed to heal. If I would be in this situation again, I'd act the same. Thankfully I wasn't dying, my condition was poor, but my pride was higher than whatever that hospice was.
The default option would be to stay.
I didn't tell you all this to scare you from going to the hospital. Be an active participant in your own care. Your health is your responsibility, and you have every right to ask for options and question the default path if it seems suboptimal.
Even in distress, advocate for yourself, you have agency. Even if no alternative exists, create it. If situation is unsafe or unacceptable, you have the right to make a change.
Aftet all, what could they offer that I wouldn't manage myself? Advanced monitoring? Injections for the fever? Perhaps. Maybe the IV drop for feeding and nutrition to prevent further dehydration and starvation. But I wasn't at this point (yet), and I wasn't even sure they'd provide all of that at a decent enough standard. I judged the risk and fled.