Korean Job Discussion Forums

[machoman]

i went to the doctors twice. they say it's just the flu, but they didn't check for anything. they just checked my temp and looked inside my mouth and gave me 5 pill and some syrup. 1 pill was a digestive pill, the others were for my cough, and one was for a stuffy nose. i told the pharmacy i don't have a stuffy nose so the woman at the pharm called the doc and the doc said it's for cough as well. i dunno, i don't trust korean docs. but that's what they tell me.

the fevers have went away, but the cough is persistent and the night sweats started about a few days ago.

[le-paul]

my advice to anyone is always -

'go to see 2 doctors, one you know and one you trust'.

I firmly believe this rule but usually got o 3 separate hospitals here. Dont take any one doctors advice - they are general practitioners, not specialists.

[madtownhustl]

I had chest congestion late last week. went to the doc's, didn't even take my temp.. gave me some medicine. as soon as i took the meds, i had nightsweats, achy body and chills. only lasted for 2 days, which by that time i had stopped takin the meds... I rested all weekend and drank tons of OJ and water.. feelin better now.
ya never know what your getting with doc's here. some of the meds could actually be hurting whatever you may have... not to say dont go to the doctor, but make sure you know what your takin as far as meds....

[kitekid]

[mmstyle]

Whatever you do, don't go to Seoul National Uni Hospital. They are horrible, and they will sign you up for as many tests as they can get you to pay for, whether you need them or not. They did this to me the summer before last, and each doctor acted more ignorant than the last. After completing a test, one doctor would not give me any advice, only tell me that it was "clear" and I was set up to see another doctor for the test results. When I showed up to see her, she asked me what I needed from her (why are you here?).

Well, duh! They did the same thing to my husband last week. He went for the medical test (which is cheaper there, but still more than koreans pay) but also had an ear infection. It turned into an almost all day affair, and a big chuck of change. All he needed was some medicine, and they had actually set him up for tests on 2 additional days-all of which we promptly canceled.

One of my Korean coworkers agreed when I said they seem to set things up so that they can squeeze as much money out of you as they can.

I repeat...DON'T GO TO SNUH!!

[rookieglobetrotter]

[Illysook]

Do you live or work very closely with someone else who has TB? If not, then it's unlikely that you have TB. It's a very slow growing bacteria that compared to other bugs, is relatively difficult to catch. You are not going to get it from riding public transportation or anything like that. You would need more prolonged contact with someone who had an active case.

[English Matt]

[northway]

It sounds kind of like when I had whooping cough. Yes, whooping cough does still exist.

[kitekid]

[Illysook]

I understand very well how TB is spread. A person with an active case will typically spread it to 10 to 12 people in a year. Were it spread as easily as the common cold, that number would be much higher.

[nero]

[machoman]

an update for anyone who cares...

i went to a bigger hospital, told him i'd been coughing for 2 weeks straight, had a fever the first week then night sweats the following week. then i asked him if he thought it could be tuberculosis. he laughed and said no. he just prescribed some more medicine (none worked btw).

and he also didn't do any tests, only looked at my throat with a flashlight and popsicle stick thingy.

anyway, i still have the cough, it's the third week. it is, however, getting better, and i no longer have night sweats. this is the probably the most sick i have ever been in my 28 years of life.

[Globutron]

Pfft, I've been sicker and I'm only 23. TWICE of the three major sicknesses in my life were in Korea.

One time I was still at work because its a hagwon and being absent is out of the question, so I taught via my head on the table crying as the kids sat there confused, and getting up to vomit in the bathroom every 10 minutes or so.

The other time I actually couldn't not take a day off and the same thing happened, but out both ends. Thankfully they were both only a couple of days long.

The long one was in England. I vowed if I ever got the same sickness again I'd commit suicide before I had to endure it again. Can't go back on my own word...

[balzor]