must we be so cynical?
Staying on the hijacked track; I don't know anything re. the Pto. Plata hospital or its doctors, but:
the indication for surgery is contingent upon a number of clinical factors and not necessarily due to insurance reimbursement schemes. Depending on the type of injury and its complications (e.g. internal bleeding, open wounds, co-morbidities like diabetes or heart conditions, etc.), prompt surgery is often the optimal therapy but it may be deferred for a variety of reasons.
Assuming that surgery was indicated but not emergent, then immobilizing the limb to await surgery was the appropriate management. With the data available from the case presented, I see nothing wrong with that choice, especially if the patient indeed was a tourist and would, like most people, prefer to have the operation and recovery at his/her home rather than spending a very uncomfortable vacation in a foreign land.
-Tordok