Korean Job Discussion Forums

[merkurix]

I'm thinking about it. I hear it's way cheaper than in North America. Any personal testimonies or stories out there? Or am I better off just paying through the nose when I return stateside, for this is my precious eyesight we are talking about?

[Rteacher]

There have been several threads on it here. Based on what I've seen posted and what I've heard from Korean teachers who have had it done, I think that there are many competent doctors in Korea who perform the various corrective procedures...

There is always some risk, though; and I personally have always balked at having it done here because I wouldn't be able to sue for big money in case they did screw up...

[tatu]

had mine done here 4 years ago. It was 1.7 million won then. Havent had any complications and I can easily say it was the best money I've ever spent.

[xenok]

LASIK has gotten a lot cheaper in the US (i don't know about Canada), so you might want to check prices over there first.

a friend of mine finished up his studies in the US and came back not too long ago (he came back at the end of last year). according to him, the US prices are now cheaper and he now regrets not getting it done over there.

[cdninkorea]

A Korean woman who had it done told me it was two million won here (she had it done about seven months ago). In Canada, in January, I remember seeing ads in the newspaper to have the procedure done for fifteen hundred dollars.

I'm sure clinics in the US have websites- look at their prices and compare them with the clinics here.

[Rteacher]

Those prices are much higher than what I've heard from Korean teachers. They say it cost them (with the national insurance) less than 200,000 won total...

[wylies99]

It's covered by insurance?

[Rteacher]

That's the way I understood it (but there was a partial language barrior ...) One of them (whose English was not good at all) said yes when I asked if Lasik surgery was covered by our insurance, but I think one teacher (whose English was better) told me that they had really low prices without insurance ...

[Wondering]

One thing to think about....how many Koreans vs. how many westerners wear glasses? And how much LASIK experience do you think a Korean doctor has vs. a Western one for that simple reason?

I wanted to get it done, but the doctor ended up recommending against it. I am nearsighted, but can read fine without glasses. He said that should continue well into my 60s. I'm 32 now. If I had LASIK, he said that there was a very strong chance I'd need reading glasses by my early forties, a mere 8ish years later. He still would have done the surgery if I'd insisted on it (though probably would have made me sign waivers), but I opted out.

In any case, get your eyes examined here. It's FREE! Yes, that's right, free. I went through MANY different tests and although I opted not to have the surgery, didn't have to pay even 10 won. I doubt that is the case in the States. It would have been very disappointing to pay a lot for the exam and then find out I couldn't/shouldn't even have the surgery.

[dogshed]

One eye doctor pointed out that glasses protect your eyes.

There have been many time where my glasses have saved
me from an eye injury.

[skookum]

I had surgery done (for cataracts) in America - a year later I had a detached retina. Consider that surgery leaves your eyes more vulnerable to detachments. Still, the fact that my car hit a deer the day before might well have been a factor, though I didn't notice being particularly knocked around at the time.

- Seukukeum

[merkurix]

Thank you everyone for all of the good advice and testimonies. I think I am going to wait a little and inquire about prices in the states. As Rteacher said, if someone screws something up, it might be easier to sue, while here I may not have that luxury.

Skookum, I hope they were able to restore your vision.

[PeterDragon]

I've seen Lasik for under $1000 in Minneapolis, MN.

Me, I'm holding out for another ten years, cuz I don't think anyone knows the long term effects for certain yet. Plus in ten years, it'll probably be like $300 in the states.

[potin14p]

I had it done in Daegu in February, and it was the best 2.2 million that i have spent. The doctor spoke good English, the clinic did all the tests I expected (and I did A LOT of research before I went). I had bad eyes and astigmatism. My vision is now 20/20, and I have no night vision problems (which is sometimes an issue for people with astigmatism) .

[Bondgirl]

I had mine done in NZ 5 years ago. It really does feel like a miracle, suddenly you can see. You sit up in the surgery and look around the room, and although it's fuzzy at first, you can read the clock on the other side of the room. I was driving the next day, no glasses! And I could hardly see 30cm infront of my face previously. ( I also had astigmatism). There's no pain, you hardly feel any discomfort, it only takes a few minutes. It's far and away the best thing I have ever spent money on. Mighty costly in NZ, though, $2000 NZ per eye. (about 2.8 million won). I would reccommend finding a talented and experienced doctor here, you know. They would surely have the best equipment and have probably done more surguries than my NZ doctor, whose work was impeccable.
By the way...as for the comment on 'long term effects...', what the surgery actually does is correct a misshapen eye -so they remove a little of the material that was distorting the eyes' abiltiy to focus properly. Once the shape has been corrected, you have a 100% perfect eye that now operates exactly as it was intended to do. So there is nothing that could ever 'go wrong' in the future, except that your eye will age naturally, like any one elses ( you may later become short sighted, for example). So go for it, don't wait. It takes 45 minutes, you leave feeling amazing, you'll never regret it!