Going to the doctor abroad

Going to the doctors in another country is always an interesting experience. We can find great similarities and parallels between visiting cafés or riding public transportation in America and Europe, or between grocery stores in the US and Japan, but going to the doctor always seems to remind you that you are in a foreign country and experiencing something unique to that area.

In all of my time traveling and living abroad, I’ve only ever visited a doctor in two foreign countries. I found my experience in France to be largely similar to what I am familiar with in the US. Everything looked the same and nothing was out of the ordinary as far as the standard of care. However, when I visited the doctor recently in Korea, I was caught off guard by how different the experience was. For the most part everything looked the same and I followed the same steps and procedures as everywhere else: check in, wait in the waiting room until I am called, and proceed to an examination room. It wasn’t these superficialities that surprised me, but the way that the medical team treated me.

In my experience, when presenting at the doctors office in America with a standard cold or flu, the doctor examines you, perhaps asks one or two questions, writes a prescription, and sends you on your way. However, in Korea my doctor spent a significant amount of time explaining his every observation to me. He didn’t keep his observations silently to himself, like I am used to with American doctors. He explained every single procedure before beginning, his reasons for doing them, and all of his resulting finds. This was surprisingly new to me and caught me off guard. The first time I went for an MRI in the US I wouldn’t have been able to tell you if the procedure involved the use of huge machines or tap-dancing mice, no one told me. I found out when I saw the machine. I’d gotten so used to having my state of health withheld from me that the difference of my experience in Korea really made an impression.

Maybe my experience is unique and I’ve just had lazy doctors in the States, but I think I like what I experienced in Korea a little better. Have you had a really different experience going to the doctors abroad?

(Image credit: madasafish.com)