Sick in Korea

One of my favorite episodes of the PBS show Frontline is titled “Sick Around the World”. It delves into what work, and what doesn’t work, in the health care systems of 5 capitalist democracies around the world. I find it really interesting to see how other countries deliver health care, since I strongly believe American health care is backwards. You can watch the full episode by clicking here.

Today, I experienced how health care is delivered in Korea.

Last Friday I had a fever and soar throat and general “oh hey I am in a new country with new germs” cold. The worst symptoms only lasted a day, thank goodness. However, for the past few days I have been getting massively dizzy. Like- focus on breathing so you don’t lose the contents of your breakfast on the person sleeping next to you on the bus- dizzy. This resulted in the experience of the nurses office, oh so wonderful and warm and cozy. Well, today I decided I needed medicine to get better because I can’t put up with feeling dizzy and congested for another week. I asked one of my Korean coworkers to take me to the doctor.

I was slightly concerned about how much it would cost, since I haven’t filled out any paperwork for health insurance yet. Do they turn away uninsured patients like they do in the states? I didn’t even have an acceptable form of ID, since my passport was at the immigration office being processed so I can have an alien registration card. It was a stressful thought, because if they turned me away from the doctors office I would have to deal with being dizzy for the next eternity.

So, what happens in Korea if you don’t have insurance? The doctors visit will be, in the words of my coworker, expensive. 10,000 – 20,000 won, or 8-18 USD. Without insurance. And, I didn’t even have to pay that much, because the doctor I went to is generous. He only charged me 3,200 won. Did I mention I don’t have health insurance?

What about the wait to see the doctor? It must be horrible, right? Because it costs so little to see him? Wrong. To quote my coworker again, the wait is very long because the doctor is very busy right now. Translation, there were 4 other people waiting to see the doctor, and I had to wait fifteen minutes until it was my turn. Also, a minor detail, you don’t wait in an exam room. You wait in the waiting room, then go to the doctors office when it is your turn. This way, the amount of space the doctors practice takes up is much less than in America. I suspect there are exam rooms and rooms with more specialized purposes, but for a quick visit to the doctor you just go to his office.

It was a much more thorough visit than the time I have gone to the doctor in the US with similar symptoms. The doctor spoke to my coworker. She explained my symptoms in Korea, and then he turned to me and started asking more questions about my condition in English. He did regular doctor things, looked in my nose and throat, and even took pictures of my ear canal so I could see what was going on. When he sat at his desk, he drew a diagram for me to explain why my ears are inflamed. I have never gotten such a clear explanation about how things are working in my body. He took his time explaining so that I understood every medical term through his heavily accented English. He wasn’t in a rush to dismiss me, and that made me feel extremely comforted. Now, this probably isn’t due to the way Korean health care is run so much as this particular doctors way of doing business

That is an important point. Every doctor is in competition with every other doctor because insurance in Korea does not limit what doctors office a person can visit. The doctors here try to make their offices as nice as possible. Tea and coffee is provided in waiting rooms, and waiting times are kept short to keep the patients happy. And doctors take time with their patients, because it makes the patient more comfortable and more likely to return. I am sure there are doctors offices like this in the US. I just haven’t been to them.

Ok, so the doctors visit was cheap and fast (but not too fast). What about the pharmacy? The pharmacy was just as good! When we walked in, we were both given free vitamin C drinks in small brown bottles. My coworker handed over my prescription and we sat and drank our vitamin C while my prescription was filled. It took a total of five minutes. I received 2 bottles of cough syrup, antibiotics, and 5 other assorted types of pills. Everything is wrapped up in single dose amounts, so all I have to do is rip open a little bag and take the contents after every meal. I got enough pills to last 5 days.

Amazingly, this large amount of prescription drugs cost me a little more than 6,000 won. And have I mentioned that this is without medical insurance?

My verdict: the health care system in Korea is more concerned with my health rather than my money, and it restores my faith in humanity knowing a system like this is in existence.

It may only be 7:30pm, but my meds are kicking in and making me drowsy. Goodnight Korea, thank you for taking care of me.