Kinda depends on if you have the 500 quid to begin with. If it's between having a roof over your head and food in your belly, and your kids', and seeing an ophthalmologist who's just gonna make a referral to another specialist which you have to wait another month for, it's a shit question no matter how you juggle it. The question though is how do you want to pay for the £2,500 laser surgery (per eye) that comes out of meeting with the ophthalmologist? Say, instead, you've got a kidney something or other and need dialysis. A single £500 session to get things tip top shape doesn't sound too bad. It'll hurt but I can get £500 together for an emergency treatment if I hit up everybody I know including rich uncle Joey. But let's say now it's a chronic condition and you need that dialysis three times a week for the rest of your life. Uncle Joey better be real rich and feeling really generous.