I have not had a serious illness while in Korea, but many of my friends have. Starting from roughly one month in, I began to hear stories about the Korean medical apparatus. For one thing, it seems that Korean doctors are shot happy. My perception so far is that a doctors visit and a shot in the ass are inextricably linked. Everyone I've spoken to got a shot in the ass when they went to the hospital. What's even better, like any good medical practitioners, Korean doctors then immediately 'spank' you afterwards. While I know it's for medical, and not masochistic or erotic purposes, an ass slap is universally hilarious. I have one incredibly lucky friend whose girlfriend is notorious for the regularity of her ailments. Thus, he has - on many occasions - witnessed female nurses 'spanking' her post shot. What a guy.
Furthermore, Koreans are obsessed with hospitals. Mention a headache; they'll refer you to a hospital. Mention a constipation; they'll refer you to a hospital. I have one friend who put it perfectly when he said, "When I have a cold the best thing for me is to sit alone in bed drinking orange juice. I do not want to hang out with a bunch of other sick people until a doctor tells me to go home and drink orange juice. Plus, I'll get a shot in the ass." This line of thinking would be unacceptable to a Korean.
But beyond ethos, it seems to me that the entire Korean hospital experience is much different than the one I'm used to. One of the most glaring contrasts - and my personal favorite - is how patients routinely sojourn from hospital grounds while still admitted. Here's what I mean. It is not at all unusual to see men and women, in full hospital pajamas and with their IV poles, sauntering around on the sidewalk outside of their hospital. The usual scene has men smoking and women coferring with family members. I was shocked by it six months ago, and I'm still shocked to this day. Then again, I am a firm believer that fresh air does a body good. I guess you could say my jury is still out on that one.
I recently visited a friend in the hospital to lend some support, and while there I saw that these contrasts run much deeper than I could have imagined. Let me say first that Korea has modified nationalized healthcare. A patient still pays for medical service, but the government inherently foots a large part of the bill. Basically, Korean medical service is very, very cheap when compared to the States. And the differences don't end there. It seems as if their management style is completely different as well.
Some of the contrasts I see start and end at simply cultural difference. I saw two examples of these. One; no hospital in Ulsan (and maybe Korea for that matter) has a fourth floor, as 4 is the 'number of death' in Chinese and Korean society. Literally the elevator reads 1-2-3-5. It's crazy. Two; doctors seem to have no problem being loose-lipped with your medical records. My friend's doctor openly shared her records with a worker from her elementary school. When asked how and why she could do such a thing, she simly said, "In Korea we are all bound by blood, and thus, nothing is secret." Korea is one of the world's most homogenous societies, so I can see where she's coming from. Perhaps not better or worse, just different.
Still, I did see contrasts that you simply cannot couch in culture. Korea's medical system has clearly effected that particular hospital, at least that's all I can attest to. Unfortunately, that one experience turned me off to the idea of any hospital stay in this country. First, doctors at the hospital almost never wore gloves. They told my friend that gloves are only used as-a-rule during surgery. Why? "Budget," they said. Second, they did not provide my friend with towels and a shower, which apparently is the case with all of their patients. In the end my friend's doctor brought her towels from her own personal collection. Why? "Budget," they said. Third, the hospital did not intend on changing my friend's bed sheets, but only did so after spilling medical fluids on them. Still, they went unchanged for three nights prior to the incident. Why? Well, you undertsand by now.
I want to make very clear that I'm not knocking Korean doctors. My one medical experience was brisk, effective, and incredibly positive. Koreans are perhaps the hardest working people I've ever seen in my life, and I'm sure their doctors fit the bill. Furthermore, the doctors that deal with us 'weigooks' (foreigners) have the double burden of dealing with people whose culture has conditioned differently, and then doing so in a strange, difficult language. My admiration is limitless for the doctors who put their pride aside for our sake. Our cultures our different, and so too are our styles of management. I have no problem with that. However, I saw some things in that hospital that defied plain old, culture-less, common sense... budget or no budget. So now I will make an effort to stay healthy. And if I get sick, I think I'll take my chances in bed with a glass of orange juice.
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