Korean Job Discussion Forums

[vitald]

I'm about to take off on a month long backpack trip through South East Asia. I went to a hospital today to speak with a doctor about getting an Epipen. A few years ago I was stung by wasps and had an allergic reaction, I believe it was anaphylaxis. Anyway, the doc said it's against Korean law for him to give a foreigner an emergency anaphylaxis kit. I told him all I want is an epipen, in case I have another allergic reaction. He gave me some pills instead, that are good for one week in case of a bee sting. The pills are in Korean, which I unfortunately don't understand, but they are called "Rhino" something.

Has anyone been able to get an epipen here? Where and how?

He also told me that if he was traveling through Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, etc, he wouldn't worry about Malaria or getting other vaccinations.

[djsmnc]

Why not wear one of these getups?

[nmh03]

It's not illegal--I got one. A family practice doctor at Seoul National University just wrote me a prescription and I picked it up from a special drug supply place near Jamsil. That place will deliver, too, but I didn't want to pay extra.

You might want to find a new doctor, given what he said about malaria

[young_clinton]

Go to Samsung Medical Center. It's the top hospital in Korea and its not that expensive. Also it it belongs to a group of hospitals that includes Cedars-Sinai Hospital in the USA. If its important I won't go anywhere else. Its easy to get to via the subway.

[ThingsComeAround]

The doctor you saw, OP, is an idiot.

Find a new one, stat!

[vitald]

I went to the Samsung Medical Center today. Unfortunately, it turned out my Korean health insurance was terminated on the last day of my employment at my old hagwon, which was Friday, even though I had paid for the entire month.

The doctor's consultation cost 70k won. I simply told him I had had an allergic reaction to yellow jackets three years ago and he wrote me a prescription. I then had to go to a specialty pharmacy near Seolleung station to pick up the epipen. That cost 98k won. Turns out they are legal and you can get them in Korea, but the doc told me they are rare here. I don't know what my first doctor was trying to pull though, saying its illegal to give them out to foreigners.

[freakyaye852]

Dude, an epipen is only for severe reactions, i.e. your airway closing and death in two minutes. If you got stung and felt a 'little funny' for a bit that is not anaphlaxis. But i'm no doctor.

[Greekfreak]

For years my wife had to live in fear of anaphylaxis because some arsehole doctor told her an epipen wasn't necessary--she'd get to the hospital in time (for them to do what? Give her a frikken epipen that she should have had in the first place???). Complete illogic, as per the norm here.

She was only able to get one through a friend who has connections with the army base.

Korean Doctors are like us--very few straight shooters, and far too many who shoot off their mouths.

[barnabybarn]

I went through the arduous process of getting hold of Epipen medication today and feel I should post my experience here to assist others in getting hold of this apparently 'illegal' yet life-saving medication here in Korea.

1. Make appointment at Samsung Hospital Gangnam - http://www.samsunghospital.com/global/en/main/main.do

2. Take along your existing/expired Epipen or worst case old prescription from back home as a reference for the doctor - after answering a bunch of questions the doctor will draw a prescription for you. Cost: 70k won or so for the consultation.

3. There is only ONE pharmacy in all of Korea that stocks Epipen's - they are specialist importers of seldom found drugs (the doctor told me if Samsung Hospital ever have a case of rabies they get their drugs from the same place). Luckily for the intrepid intravenous-adrenaline seekers amongst us it's not that far from the hospital (which, living in Hannamdong is a real ball-ache to get to).

4. Once you arrive at the Seoul Orphan Drug Pharmacy (located around 500m from exit 5 of Soelleung subway station - the doctor will give you a map) they should process the prescription and give you your drugs within 20 minutes or so. Cost around 100k won per Epipen (I got two today having asked the doctor to write me a prescription for same).

5. Done!

Still can't believe I managed to pull it off after being told for two years I would have to leave Korea in order to get hold of this life-saving medication. I am now the proud owner of two brand-spanking new Epipens - and it only cost me 270k won and an afternoon wasted out of the office traipsing around Gangnam. Don't believe what your regular doctor tells you and good luck!

[YailBloor]

Sorry to revive this old thread but I just wanted to post some updated information on this topic, as it is near and dear to my heart. I was able to get an epipen this past summer using barnabybarn's instructions. Here's a bit more specific information for anyone who's interested.

First, it seems likely that you can get an epipen from any of the big hospitals in Seoul with international clinics. In my case, I went through Soon Chun Hyang University Hospital just outside of Itaewon.

The actual prescription I got was for an auto-injector pen called Jext, which supplies adrenaline in the same 0.3mg dosage as the U.S. brand epipen. On my prescription this is shown in Korean as (급)젝스트(성인용) 0.3mg with the insurance code of 664000321. The doctor's consultation was about 15,000 won with national insurance.

After receiving my prescription, I was sent to the same Seoul Orphan Drug Center in Gangnam that barnabybarn describes. Here's the name in Korean, address and phone number.

한국희귀의약품센터
서울시 강남구 테헤란로 124
삼원타워 (구 풍림빌딩 9층)
02-2219-9839

Seoul Orphan Drug Center
124 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
SamWon Tower (Old PoongLim Building) 9th Fl.

As of 7/18/16 the pen has a list price of about 135,000 won. However, if you have national insurance it knocks the price down to only 40,000 won.

Lastly, I haven't been able to locate any other rare drugs pharmacies in Korea through Naver or Daum so Seoul may be your only option. I came in from Busan to get mine.

Good luck to all my fellow allergies suffers. Hope you get your pen easily and never have to use it!