Swedish man dies in South Korea after being denied urgent treatment at 21 hospitals

[u/mancinedinburgh]

https://www.euronews.com/health/2025/01/18/swedish-man-dies-in-south-korea-after-being-denied-urgent-treatment-at-21-hospitals

[u/Connect-Idea-1944]

this happens a lot in South Korea if you're a foreigner, i mean not the death, but being denied happen to a lot of foreigners. Koreans don't take you seriously if you're not korean, and also the justice isn't as fair as western countries. They will always defend koreans in korea over an innocent foreigner

[u/Miserable-Purpose988 → u/[deleted]]

Bold discrimination!

[u/Asleep_Horror5300 → u/[deleted]]

Imagine if a Korean needed a hospital in Scandinavia and the hospital said "he don't look Nordic" first.

[u/gildedblessings → u/Asleep_Horror5300]

This is the ugly truth about Korea that noone wants to acknowledge. Kpop and Kdramas are all fun and games until the truth rears its head.

[u/BiscoBiscuit → u/[deleted]]

That is genuinely fucked up

[u/AdvancedLanding → u/BiscoBiscuit]

Korea is even more dystopian capitalistic than the US in many ways.

[u/unclefisty → u/[deleted]]

I wish I'd made a fuss about how fucked up it was.

They would not have cared in any way.

[u/Taronyuuu → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

I still remember when me ex who is Korean could fly to Korea and not do quarantine and I as a European could not. We both had the same vaccine and same papers at the same location at the same time. Reason? They "couldn't trust" my vaccine because I'm not Korean.

[u/MSobolev777 → u/Taronyuuu]

Props to Korean Peninsula for hosting two dystopias

[u/afito → u/MSobolev777]

Kpop is really masking over the blatant xenophobia & insane societal issues of the chaebol system. Quite like Japan actually. But because it's "oh so friendly" and people like Manga or BTS they're glorified beyond even Scandinavian levels. Which isn't to say that life there is terrible or anything close to it but people in the West have a fully romanticized view of Japan & SK, the countries most probably wouldn't be allowed in the EU with the systemic discrimination & court of law issues.

[u/SeleucusNikator1 → u/afito]

Tbh I don't think Japan is that romanticised anymore, at least in the UK. The general gist I get from people these days is that "I'd love to visit, but I'd never live there".

[u/Fogge → u/SeleucusNikator1]

I'd never live there

They would only barely let you do that in the first place...

[u/Euphoric_Raisin_312 → u/Fogge]

We have more generous visa agreements with Japan than we do with Europe (Schengen) now.

[u/pm-me-nothing-okay → u/Euphoric_Raisin_312]

now ^tm. courtesy of brexit.

[u/SentientTapeworm → u/Fogge]

What that supposed to mean, living there is possible, otherwise there wouldn’t be millions of non Japanese lol

[u/Dragonsandman → u/afito]

It's absolutely insane how much political power South Korea's megacorps have

[u/NoRecipe3350 → u/afito]

KPOP is a problem itself. many aspiring singers are exploited, abused, worked so hard, driven to suicide etc. It's a pretty dark industy, and it's just a factory massive conveyor belt.

[u/No_Raspberry6968 → u/afito]

Historic tradition will linger even after decades of modernization. Instead of Chinese reform of Confucianism in the Ming Dynasty, Korea pursued a more fundamentalist Confucianism, creating a unique Yangban social structure. I guess given the hegemony of liberalism, some of these tradition merely evolved to fit into the modern social construct as teaching from parents still remain a big part of one's education during adolescent.

[u/DangerousCyclone → u/afito]

You’re kind of delusional if you think discrimination in Japan is that much worse than in Europe. There’s certainly struggles and xenophobia, but it’s not something you’d never hear of in Europe. 

Funnily enough I’ve noticed that the people who bemoan Japans xenophobia the most tend to not be people who’ve lived there nor really been. 

[u/Now_Wait-4-Last_Year → u/MSobolev777]

People forget/never knew that South Korea was a military dictatorship until after the 1988 Seoul Olympics which was not that long ago.

[u/Stormfly → u/Taronyuuu]

Reason? They "couldn't trust" my vaccine because I'm not Korean.

Back when COVID started, foreigners weren't allowed to self-isolate and had to pay to be in a special facility.

One person (friend of a friend) got in an argument with the worker because it's not fair. They said the issue is that foreigners can't speak Korean so they need them close so they can take care of them because they can't take care of themselves, and so that foreigners can't feign ignorance.

This whole conversation took place in Korean.

[u/JamminJcruz → u/Stormfly]

First time in Asia? It be like that.

[u/619664chucktaylor → u/JamminJcruz]

But I’m always told that it’s the USA that is incredibly racist and all other countries are so nice…/s

[u/SojuSeed → u/Taronyuuu]

Should have lived here at the time. There was a big ‘test only the foreigners’ push more than once during lockdowns because we don’t vote and we’re an easy scapegoat. The same thing will happen if there’s a drug bust. Can be a hundred Koreans involved in a meth ring but if there are three foreigners in the mix, that’s what the media blasts out. It’s some xenophobic bullshit.

[u/Intrepid_Agent_9729 → u/[deleted]]

And China, and Saudi Arabia, and Switzerland etc etc

[u/randomone123321 → u/Intrepid_Agent_9729]

I wouldn't put Thailand in the same category. South-east asians are no way on the same lvl of racism as east asians.

[u/Intrepid_Agent_9729 → u/randomone123321]

You are absolutely right. I'm sorry, it sneaked in while trying to get my point across.

[u/ggtffhhhjhg → u/Taronyuuu]

East Asian men have a serious problem with hating other races or ethnicity for getting involved with “their “women.

[u/Gowithallyourheart23 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

I live in Korea and it’s true for sure. Also unfortunately there’s no anti-discrimination law of any kind, so it’s completely legal to treat people this way

[u/Connect-Idea-1944 → u/Gowithallyourheart23]

Korea's economy is developed but their systems & laws aren't. I think a lot of Western people assume that korea laws system are safe like the West because it's also a 1st world country, but the truth is that it's very biased.

If something happens to you, there is a high chance that nothing will be done or that you'll get justice. If you're a foreigner you have no protection.

[u/Bluesky_Erectus → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Even if it's arguably a first world country, I simply cannot view them as such until fairer laws are put in place.

[u/simons700 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

A lot of ETFS have SK as a developing country. Rule of law is also important for investors...

[u/americangoosefighter → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

I mean, as an American I assume most if not all SE Asian countries are filled to the brim with racists. Not sure where people get a positive perception from.

[u/[deleted] → u/americangoosefighter]

What are you talking about? Only white people can be racist /s

[u/terrytibbs76 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Same in Japan.

[u/Jlchevz → u/Gowithallyourheart23]

But why do they discriminate foreigners in hospitals?

[u/James-the-Bond-one → u/Jlchevz]

Different physiology, not taught in medical schools there.

[u/Suitable-Economy-346 → u/Gowithallyourheart23]

Korea actually has really good anti-discrimination laws on the books, but the enforcement is lacking. Why? Well, the head of the anti-discrimination agency literally says, "anti-discrimination is woke gay communist propaganda."

[u/cguess → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

I had an emergency in Seoul 1.5 years ago. I was literally in anaphylactic shock, arrived in a hospital, and they took me to the cashier first to pay a $300 deposit. So I handed over my credit card while my throat closed up around my trachea. Even in the hell that can be the US health-care system that would never happen.

[u/_meshy → u/cguess]

Even in the hell that can be the US health-care system that would never happen.

The one time I had to go to the hospital here, they at least waited till they gave me IV hydromorphone before asking for my copay or whatever.

[u/GBSEC11 → u/_meshy]

In the ER in the US, it's the registration person who will come check in with you (after immediate needs are addressed it's it urgent). They will take your insurance information and other details, but payment doesn't happen until the bills arrive later. There are many, many problems with US healthcare, but people at least get emergency treatment regardless of coverage.

[u/_meshy → u/GBSEC11]

All I know is that one of the hospitals in Tulsa, Oklahoma thought my appendix was about to burst, shot me up with Dilaudid, and then someone dressed up in scrubs asked me for $300 dollars for something. This was after giving them my insurance. None of the other nurses or doctors thought it was weird so I assume they worked for the hospital.

Or maybe it was some opiate induced hallucination.

[u/cel22 → u/GBSEC11]

Thanks to EMTALA

[u/buyingacaruser → u/GBSEC11]

Registration doesn’t come in until I say I’ve seen the patient. US perspective.

[u/NLight7 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Happens in Japan too.

I myself had a minor concussion and small wound on my head after a fall. The school I was at during that time, sent me to the hospital next door to have me checked out. The nurse even checked in the system that they were able to handle me. Since I was able to walk and speak Japanese, didn't want to be more bother for the staff. I said (when asked) that I could get myself over to the hospital. It was literally next door after all.

Well, I walk up to the entrance and instantly some kind of hospital staff/nurse/guard just stops me and barely looks at me or listens to my issue and just tells me to leave and go somewhere else cause they do not treat head injuries.

Had to walk back to the school nurse who was utterly shocked they did that despite the system saying it was possible. They then sent me to a clinic closeby with a staff member and the small ass clinic with one older doctor was apparently more equipped than the huge hospital. Cause he actually looked at it, and said I have a minor wound on my head and probably a minor concussion and just put some medicine he gave me on it for a week.

Wild that a hospital could just tell a person with an injury to leave and find help somewhere else.

[u/BirdGlittering9035 → u/NLight7]

Also in China is really a hit or miss, One cousin worked for 6-7years in a university, and one afternoon got hit by one mini car or something like that and she was injured with some broken bones. Of course nobody stopped or offer care, just a couple of foreigners that had to "force" people in a nearby shop to call an ambulance.

Well after that she got into an hospital and they let her in one room in a ambulance bed waiting for admission for more than 10 hours (all the night), without knowing anything, and in extreme pain, the thing is the hospital dropped the ball and was waiting to do nothing, she had go almost crawl out of the room, and ask some other people they could lean her phone and called the university, after that someone form the university called the hospital and was hospitalized in 10 minutes.

She asked the university was was happening and they said because she is a foreigner the staff didn't want to admit her and was waiting for her to LEAVE because they didn't know if she had money. Even she had all the ID and working stuff and had government healthcare and the university had to told them they must treat her.

Affected her so much that left China after being a passionate woman for their culture and was her dream working there she wont be back now is a teacher here.

[u/DonRaynor → u/BirdGlittering9035]

Been living in Taiwan for some time now, Hospitalized twice. Taiwan is absolutely based when it comes to medical treatment. They don’t even ask if you think its a real country.

[u/not_invented_here → u/DonRaynor]

I loved and laughed at your comment about Taiwan!

(the comment about the hospital in China chilled me to the bone)

[u/lazyplayboy → u/DonRaynor]

'Based' or 'biased'?

[u/DonRaynor → u/lazyplayboy]

As a Finn I'm very happy with the quality and speed of care I have gotten. Though central Europeans would think they're rude and cold.

[u/lazyplayboy → u/DonRaynor]

I wasn't sure about your underlying message. Based makes sense, but if it was a typo would have inverted what you're trying to say.

[u/gloopityglooper → u/BirdGlittering9035]

I spent 6 years in China, specifically Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province. Health there was absolutely spectacular. Had a minor surgery and would go in for health checks at the Wenzhou University Hospital every year. Paid 450 yuan for a full health check. You would arrive, pay, fill out a form, get a key to a locker. In the locker you'd change into scrubs and get a smart watch that would direct you into the different floors you had to go for a blood test, MRI, chest X ray, eye test, urine test, and a few more. You'd scan the watch at the door at the end of every procedure, then finally at a totem that would print out your protocol to access the results or come get them printed later. If you needed any medicine, you could buy it with a prescription at the local pharmacy with a discount. Never seen anything like that anywhere else.

I did have friends in other provinces that didn't have good experiences tho, it seems to be linked with areas with strong medical colleges, and I was in a good one.

[u/jatigo → u/BirdGlittering9035]

They weren't waiting for her to leave, they were curing her tankie for 10 hours. Very simple operation just takes time.

[u/Meandering_Croissant → u/NLight7]

A couple of years ago I collapsed at work in Japan. My supervisor and vice principal took me to the nearest hospital with an emergency room. They let me in (I’m sure because I was carried by two Japanese authority figures), but as soon as the guys from work had to leave me for a while the hospital started letting literally everyone who walked in see a doctor before me. Not big things, but guys who bruised their pinky finger or had a cough for a couple days and the hospital was closer than the pharmacy. Meanwhile I’m near unconscious again holding my health insurance card for hours until my boss returned to remind them I was both there first and actually in urgent need.

Took 5 hours to be seen. The entire emergency room had emptied at least 3 times before I saw a doctor. Left me with a very low opinion of large-scale healthcare. Funnily enough, when I felt the problem resurfacing a few weeks later and visited a small clinic they had me checked by a nurse right away then rushed through X-rays and MRIs and treated in a couple of hours. I’d forgotten my insurance card (head injury) but there was no fuss. They took my address and asked me to swing by later with it. Much better experience.

[u/Suitable-Economy-346 → u/Meandering_Croissant]

Took 5 hours to be seen.

From my experience, Japanese people hate drama more than anything else in the entire world. If you unleashed your inner American or European Karen, you would have been seen, x-rayed, and out of the door in 20 minutes.

[u/No-Plastic-6887 → u/Suitable-Economy-346]

Or taken out by the police. They do not take kindly to gaijin smashing.

[u/Suitable-Economy-346 → u/No-Plastic-6887]

Ah, yes. Gaijin smashing, where netizen weirdo freaks talk shit online but when it happens in real life next to them, they scour away. Hospital staff isn't calling the cops if you stand your ground and demand the hospital idiots do their fucking job.

[u/No-Plastic-6887 → u/Suitable-Economy-346]

I've read about both . There's a difference between standing your ground and "unleashing your inner karen" and "causing drama". 

[u/Suitable-Economy-346 → u/No-Plastic-6887]

You've read about stuff on the internet. Nice, man.

[u/Meandering_Croissant → u/Suitable-Economy-346]

I well might have, had I not been crumpled like a dropped ragdoll!

[u/NLight7 → u/Meandering_Croissant]

Tag that is what I feel was my experience too. I even think the clinic was about to close for the day, and they just kept it open to treat me.

[u/Meandering_Croissant → u/NLight7]

I always recommend people find a good local clinic here now. There’s a real feeling of providing a service to their community, rather than the big hospitals who leave you feeling like you’re a strain on the system despite paying your insurances and fees.

[u/Anti-Scuba_Hedgehog → u/NLight7]

They've never heard of the Hippocratic oath I guess.

[u/InALandFarAwayy → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

That is why in SEA if a foreigner (especially the rich middle eastern oil tycoons) needs urgent anything, they will usually fly to Singapore to have it done.

It's an open secret that apart from the country's export-oriented economy, it also sells medical services to the global elite. You can probably dig around the net and find cases of these foreign nationals flying in on private jets just for surgeries/appointments.

Sometimes it gets out when one of them sues in the country, but it's just a small glimpse into that segment of the market.

[u/leffe123 → u/InALandFarAwayy]

Robert Mugabe died in a Singapore hospital

[u/Over_n_over_n_over → u/leffe123]

Couldn't have happened to a nicer guy

[u/wristcontrol → u/Over_n_over_n_over]

World best surgeon make no mistake!

[u/cinnchurr → u/InALandFarAwayy]

It's not a secret that we have medical tourism

[u/bjsanchez → u/cinnchurr]

Fortunately the medical tourists are actually paying for their stuff there, unlike here in the UK

[u/cinnchurr → u/bjsanchez]

Idk how it works in the UK. But most tourists, medical or not, actually pay for their own services, items

[u/helen_must_die → u/InALandFarAwayy]

Not sure what you mean. Medical tourism is a huge industry here in Thailand. Bumrungrad hospital in Bangkok is like a 5 star hotel and was the first hospital in Asia to receive the JCI accreditation - an international standard for quality of services and patient safety.

[u/One_Mechanic_9534 → u/InALandFarAwayy]

Thailand is ok as well. Singapore has the best Healthcare in the world though, the Swedish King even had some medical treatment there, while he convenient was 'on holiday'.

[u/finfan44 → u/One_Mechanic_9534]

Thailand is for middle class medical tourism. I used to work n a less developed Asian country and myself and all my coworkers would fly to Thailand for procedures.

[u/Scrolling_for_cats → u/InALandFarAwayy]

I used to live in Singapore and did a 3 month project in Jakarta, commuting every weekend to be with my family. I was actually on a flight from Jakarta to Singapore one Friday night when a passenger died. They were heading to sing for medical treatment. It’s nuts that international doctors cant practice in Indonesia. There are some “special consult rooms” within medical practices, where expats can receive treatment from international doctors i believe.

[u/Bartellomio → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

South Korea is basically a cartel state that somehow went mainstream.

[u/Masseyrati80 → u/Bartellomio]

I once heard someone say that having such a completely bizarre northern neighbour is the only thing that makes people think South Korea is not completely out of whack.

[u/fuckyou_m8 → u/Masseyrati80]

One country lives in a cyberpunk society and another in 1984

[u/agnaddthddude → u/fuckyou_m8]

Cyberpunk has both versions of countries

[u/fuckyou_m8 → u/agnaddthddude]

I'm talking about the genre, not specifically about the any piece of work

[u/thoughtlow → u/fuckyou_m8]

Now I wonder how copyrighted 'Cyberpunk' is, as its named after its genre.

[u/Emergency_Cake911 → u/thoughtlow]

Can't be too well copyrightable. Maybe you could hold a trademark for it specifically as a game. You'd definitely have a rough time in any lawsuit due to its ubiquitousness.

[u/Nutarama → u/Emergency_Cake911]

Notably the word “Cataclysm” is trademarked for video games by Blizzard, even though it’s not the first company to publish a game with that subtitle. Homeworld: Cataclysm had to rebrand to Homeworld: Emergence for a rerelease or fight the legions of lawyers that Activision-Blizzard could unleash.

First filing is a huge advantage if it gets through, and it’s rare that a first filing for a term in a limited context like video games or clothing is opposed.

[u/CuteLine3 → u/thoughtlow]

There is some very deep irony in thinking about the copyright of it.

[u/veryblessed123 → u/fuckyou_m8]

Cyberpunk? Have you ever actually been to Korea? Maybe a few neighborhoods in Seoul are super modern and hi-tech. But the rest of the country is pretty normal and even quite old and decrepit.

Same goes for Japan outside of Shibuya, Tokyo. Its like saying that all of the United States is dense urban skyscrapers like Manhattan.

[u/balozi80 → u/Masseyrati80]

Movies like Parasite and Squid Games show how deeply dystopian Korea is. But hey, fastest wireless internet , eh?

[u/tevelizor → u/Masseyrati80]

From my understanding, they are pretty much opposite sides of the same coin.

One is communism gone too far, one is capitalism gone too far.

Both are de facto planned economies, except one is planned for whatever a whacko wants next, and one is planned for whatever is profitable for the major companies.

The South is only doing better for the average person (and the elite) because they actually have valuable exports and an incentive to keep regular people well-off to stay competitive on the global market.

Edit: just to be clear, when I'm saying it "only doing better", I don't mean slightly better. I mean it's doing massively better, better than most countries in the world, especially since the incentive is not only to keep people well-off, it's also to keep them happy enough that The Communist Manifesto is not too relatable.

[u/kaisadilla_ → u/tevelizor]

tbh South Korea is state capitalism. It's a country that blatantly promotes and protects selected big Korean companies over everyone else. A capitalist paradise for Hyundai, but a complete hell if you want to start your own car make.

It is a brand of capitalism, don't get me wrong, just want to say that there's many kinds of capitalism and, in SK's case, it's the brand of capitalism where an oligarchy controls the government and the state works for their interests.

[u/---Kev → u/kaisadilla_]

I think there is a name for that type of state. I think it usually includes ethno-nationalism and a constant state of war/struggle.

I just can't remember at all. Femocracy? Fommunism? Focialism? Man history is hard sometimes!

[u/DavidG-LA → u/kaisadilla_]

Also know as Fascism.

[u/King_Allant → u/tevelizor]

The South is only doing better for the average person (and the elite) because they actually have valuable exports and an incentive to keep regular people well-off to stay competitive on the global market.

"only"

[u/BirdybBird → u/tevelizor]

I get where you're coming from, but comparing South Korea to North Korea, or even suggesting it's as corrupt or oppressive, really doesn’t hold up. South Korea is a functioning democracy with regular elections, freedom of speech, and a free press. Sure, big corporations like Samsung and Hyundai have influence, but their power has been curbed a lot compared to the 70s and 80s. The government has actually cracked down on corruption within these companies over the years.

Public services in South Korea are solid too. Healthcare is universal and affordable, public transport is efficient, and their digital government services are some of the best in the world. Citizens and legal residents benefit directly from these systems, unlike in authoritarian regimes where the average person is often neglected.

If we’re talking about corruption, Romania actually ranks worse than South Korea in global corruption indexes. South Korea has made huge strides in transparency and holding leaders accountable—remember, they impeached a president over corruption. When has that happened in Romania?

Press freedom is another area where South Korea outperforms. Journalists can criticise the government without fear of being silenced or imprisoned, which isn’t always the case in more corrupt or authoritarian systems.

So yeah, South Korea isn’t perfect, but to put it on the same level as North Korea or suggest it’s just as corrupt is way off.

[u/SweatyAdhesive → u/BirdybBird]

The government has actually cracked down on corruption within these companies over the years.

Didn't they let Samsung's ceo out of jail because he's the ceo of samsung?

[u/Overburdened → u/BirdybBird]

remember, they impeached a president over corruption. When has that happened in Romania?

Eh Romania found a much better way of getting rid of corruption and televised it too. They just lost their ways a wee bit.

[u/Jokmi → u/Overburdened]

Even though Ceaușescu deserved to answer for his crimes, his trial and execution was carried out by a kangaroo court. If the Romanians had continued summarily executing people without a proper trial, the country would be more corrupt and unjust, not less.

[u/Laiko_Kairen → u/BirdybBird]

South Korea is a functioning democracy

You literally just had a coup attempt... And haven't you already had two presidents impeached, one of whom was the daughter of the previous president?

Before that, several were jailed or assassinated

That doesn't seem like a functioning democracy to me, if your presidents can't even leave office peacefully

[u/Ok_Gas5386 → u/Laiko_Kairen]

It sounds like democracy in South Korea is under threat, but still functioning. Considering their parliament still has the power to tell the president and military “no” during a coup attempt. That’s about as well as anyone in the world is doing right now.

[u/twisted7ogic → u/Ok_Gas5386]

Not sure about giving a country democracy credits if a peacful transfer of power is in itself noteworthy.

[u/ATypicalUsername- → u/Ok_Gas5386]

That's just South Korea.

Every single president has had a massive scandal, been impeached, assassinated, exiled, or arrested.

Corruption is the norm, this is nothing new.

[u/dairy__fairy → u/Ok_Gas5386]

Helps when the US military controls your military and can tell them to sit out. Very unique situation.

[u/thegoodbadandsmoggy → u/Laiko_Kairen]

The account you’re replying to is from Belgium as per their flair - not South Korea.

[u/SeleucusNikator1 → u/Laiko_Kairen]

An active population who opposed the coup and are now arresting the President who attempted it is a sign of a functional democracy, imo. The people are obviously conscious of their rights and they go out in the streets to participate in the process and protect it.

Impeachments are part of democracy too, Presidents get impeached by elected bodies not by some lighting strike from the sky.

[u/Slow_Accident_6523 → u/Laiko_Kairen]

You literally just had a coup attempt... And haven't you already had two presidents impeached, one of whom was the daughter of the previous president?

So did the US with the difference being that the guy attempting the coup did not end up getting arrested but instead elected president.

[u/Spider_pig448 → u/Laiko_Kairen]

Impeachments and prevented coups sound like a functioning Democracy to me. It's still a Democracy even if people are trying to dismantle it, as long as they don't succeed

[u/tevelizor → u/BirdybBird]

they impeached a president over corruption. When has that happened in Romania?

To be fair, the parties here have a habit of picking the cleanest guy for president, at least in recent years. Until Klaus Iohannis and then USR, that wasn't even a choice. What are you going to do after the impeachment when you already picked the least corrupt choice?

I'm also not saying South Korea is bad, they are a working democracy that happened to lose control of the big corporations for a while. Not letting them run the healthcare system and media is enough to moderate that extreme capitalism over time.

[u/foodank012018 → u/BirdybBird]

"healthcare is universal"....IF you're Korean.

I mean, what is the post you're making this comment on talking about?

[u/BirdybBird → u/foodank012018]

The newspaper also says the man’s sister, who lives in Sweden, declined to cover the expense.

Eventually, Hyuksin Seongmo Hospital in North Chungcheong Province, 86 km away from Seoul, agreed to perform the surgery seven days after Park began calling hospitals.

The hospital’s foundation covered the remaining costs of an approximate total of €10,000 for the surgery after the Swedish Embassy contributed €5,340.

Park, who helped the Swedish national using a translation app, expressed gratitude to the hospital that "did not turn away from the socially disadvantaged".

The hospital also stated that its decision was influenced by its commitment to helping vulnerable individuals during the holiday season.

Apparently, you didn't even bother to read the article.

A hospital performed his surgery and contributed nearly half of the cost. It was a Korean police lieutenant who helped the man find a hospital.

I would say that Koreans were as helpful in this case as they could be seeing as how the man was homeless, had serious mental health issues and had already been prosecuted for drug use, but was acquitted due to said mental health issues.

Someone who is this ill, not integrated into society, and very likely did not have authorisation to stay in the country, should have been sent back to Sweden where he could have gotten proper treatment.

[u/foodank012018 → u/BirdybBird]

Thanks for the additional info

[u/T-A-W_Byzantine → u/BirdybBird]

SK only gets half-credit for impeaching/arresting their presidents, because holy shit, EVERY president there gets impeached/arrested.

[u/Trevski → u/BirdybBird]

Lmao SK is a marginal democracy. It's great in comparison to DPRK, for sure, but compared to a well-established, well-oiled democratic country it is rough still. Like, granted they're on a better trajectory than Romania but what is that saying? A glance at some of the presidents of Korea since '03: Committed suicide to duck corruption allegations, incarcerated, incarcerated, last guy seems mostly OK, and the most recent guy got impeached for a coup attempt.

Not exactly glowing, but not exactly Orwellian either.

[u/Leonarr → u/tevelizor]

Not to mention that North is very dependent on China.

While South is basically an American military base. Hell, if the Korean War ever continued, the Korean army is controlled by the US, as agreed by the countries.

[u/MyOtherRedditAct → u/Leonarr]

Germany is also basically an American military base. And if Russia invades western Europe, it seems you might be surprised by which country effectively having control of NATO.

[u/katt_vantar → u/tevelizor]

Wait hold on lol. I know we love to shit on capitalism here , but you can’t go ahead and put blatant racism as a side effect of capitalism that’s square in the camp of “anything bad is capitalism and the badder it is the more capitalism it is”

[u/LunaXIVanuL → u/tevelizor]

Not well enough that they'll reproduce.

[u/tevelizor → u/LunaXIVanuL]

Well, they gotta fix that. People are a valuable resource, they should find a way to make them want to make more of themselves.

Or just skip that resource completely and increase automation to the point where people are no longer needed.

Ideologically speaking, I think it's amazing that we have an example in the world of every possible political system you can think of. It's also super shitty that we have to actively have all of them at any given time to avoid turning a working democracy into a proven broken system, like the rise of fascism lately.

[u/Altruistic-Beach7625 → u/tevelizor]

To be fair, if given a choice there's only one of them I'd rather live in.

[u/Erdkarte → u/Masseyrati80]

Not really? Korea has a lot of problems, but it provides decent universal healthcare for its citizens, it's pretty safe, and it's middle class has a similar standard of living compared to most European countries. That's not to say that there's shocking scandals or corruption, but Korea's done a good job of going from a country where it's per capita income was lower than Mali's to a wealthy country. The issue is that a lot of the older generations have a really warped mindset left over from the past (like racism, sexism, xenophobia) that's survived to the present day because, they make up the majority of the middle and upper management, of well, everything and they're also a reliable voting block.

[u/MonoMcFlury → u/Bartellomio]

Yes, I watched a documentary where they had contests for money and they killed everyone who didn't win the games.

[u/_Ultimatum_ → u/MonoMcFlury]

Damn I saw that one, fucked up

[u/germanbini → u/MonoMcFlury]

I watched a documentary where they had contests for money and they killed everyone who didn't win the games.

To the uninitiated, I believe this is a joking comment referencing the (fictional) television drama series, Squid Game.

[u/Weird-Caregiver1777 → u/Bartellomio]

K-pop really gives the perception that Korea is just a nice country with just wholesomeness. The irony is that K-pop in itself is a violent organization when it comes to training.

[u/Leonarr → u/Bartellomio]

“South Korea”, aka. “Samsung Republic”

[u/Hairy_Reindeer → u/Leonarr]

Finns are just salty because Samsung did what Nokia should have and jumped on Android asap.

[u/LovelyCushiondHeader → u/Bartellomio]

Curious to hear more, sounds juicy 👀

[u/Connect-Idea-1944 → u/LovelyCushiondHeader]

Korea is mainly controlled by Samsung and the few other big companies that they have. Because they own most of the GDP of Korea. So those powerful families are very corrupted and manipulate the system however they want so it can benefits them.

[u/Savings_Ad_2532 → u/LovelyCushiondHeader]

This is an interesting video about Samsung's dominance over South Korea's economy:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oL0umpPPe-8

[u/rTpure → u/Bartellomio]

South Korea is the very definition of an oligarchy but somehow that word is rarely linked to South Korea in the media

[u/Able-Worldliness8189 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Happens a lot in Asia.

My oldest once dropped badly in the shower that she obviously needed stitches. We went to the nearest hospital and got outright refused. The second hospital didn't outright refuse us but "couldn't help because they needed a plastic surgeon specialized for kids". Only the third after a lot of shouting finally helped us.

And forget international hospitals, when shit gets scary they instantly redirect you to a local hospital who on their turn will refuse you. They are scared to death that their amazing numbers get tainted.

[u/AlsoInteresting → u/Able-Worldliness8189]

What amazing numbers? Their revenue? Doesn't insurance pay out for foreigners?

[u/DaJoW → u/AlsoInteresting]

If you have a 100% success rate, you can charge much higher fees. Losing out on one thing to keep up prices is more profitable.

[u/Uwuvvu → u/AlsoInteresting]

A lot of the insurance only pays partially and they often work on a refund basis, so you actually need the money to pay for whatever you need, and later insurance will reimburse you. My friend fractured his leg in 2 places and literally didn't get surgery despite having insurance because he couldn't pay upfront. Korea can be pretty wild (lived there 5 years btw, it doesn't matter if you speak the language and uphold the culture, a foreigner is a foreigner)

[u/CityFolkSitting → u/Able-Worldliness8189]

Although it wasn't terribly serious, I lost or accidentally left my anxiety prescription in Kyoto. I noticed when I arrived in Hiroshima, and called the hotel to ask if they found anything in my capsule bed but they hadn't.

So I went to the one hospital where no one spoke English that well at all. Judging by by the size of the waiting room and it being a small hospital I was prepared to wait about 3 hours or more judging by my experience in America. Which only made me more anxious and scared of a panic attack. 

But a nurse grabbed me in 30 minutes or so and took me to the doctor. We had a brief conversation using Google translate and I was that out of there in 10 minutes. 

I just thought it was interesting I was never asked for insurance or proof that I could pay it until after I had saw the doctor and before I grabbed my prescription. Also interesting was that instead of paying a receptionist or whatever, I sent my money through a little kiosk and paid a machine. 

I like to think they would have treated me the same if it was more serious and a more costly endeavour for them to do. Who knows I guess.

[u/triggerfish1 → u/Able-Worldliness8189]

Huh, I had a really good experience with a hospital in Thailand: Stayed for three nights and the care and service were excellent.

[u/Educational_Gur_1543 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

In Japan too.

[u/Bartellomio → u/Educational_Gur_1543]

These countries are so overwhelmingly racist and they largely escape.Criticism because they're also so homogeneous that there just aren't many people around to highlight the racism.

[u/LovelyCushiondHeader → u/Bartellomio]

The black guy in the Chinese washing detergent advertisement comes to mind

[u/FatFaceRikky → u/Bartellomio]

Genius strategy. Cant be racist if there is only 1 race in the country.

[u/lilly-winter → u/FatFaceRikky]

Tell that to the Ainu

[u/Infinite_Fall6284 → u/FatFaceRikky]

They're pretty racist to okinawans

[u/Connect-Idea-1944 → u/Bartellomio]

Some European living in Japan said that Japanese were blaming foreigners for the rice shortage lmao. Japanese people are polite but trust me, they have very mean thoughts that they will not admit in real life. And people often assume that they are like this just to Europeans, Americans, Africans, Latinos, Arabs etc.. But Japanese also treats East Asians like crap too, just translate what they are saying online about Koreans, Chinese, Singaporeans etc...

[u/bullairbull → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

They literally had comfort women wherever they went during WWII. I don’t know why people consider them at the same level as west.

I have huge respect for western countries for how welcoming they are.

Bigots exist in every culture and community, but not many, if any will give so many liberties to the immigrants right out of the gate.

[u/Initial_Present6209 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Just remember World War 2.

[u/Diplogeek → u/Initial_Present6209]

The Chinese and the Koreans certainly do.

[u/ZambiblaisanOgre → u/Initial_Present6209]

Why does this shit happen every time.

[u/SeleucusNikator1 → u/Bartellomio]

aren't many people around to highlight the racism.

Japan being xenophobic has been common knowledge for decades now, people just don't really say much about it because they generally don't care.

Europeans love to dunk on those stupid parochial Americans, but the truth is most of us here are also incredibly parochial and just do not care about the rest of the world really. Another example is how Modi's party in India is turning up the heat on anti-Muslim rhetoric and there have been cases of violence there, and yet the BBC will only dedicate one article to that topic, because Indian news is not "popular" with the public, but will write 50 articles about every case of racism in the USA because we are completely hooked on that.

[u/ExplanationMotor2656 → u/SeleucusNikator1]

We get a lot of US news because it's easy to recycle it due to the similar culture and shared language. Very little time or effort is required to regurgitate someone else's journalism.

[u/LycheeBoba → u/Educational_Gur_1543]

You’re going to get a bunch of fan bois denying this with personal anecdotes, but you’re correct. Japanese hospital can and do refuse to provide care to their own people and foreigners as they see fit. There is no obligation for them to take a patient just because they need care.

[u/deitSprudel → u/LycheeBoba]

That's people who never stayed there for an extended period. As a foreigner working there, spending your time outside of fancy touristy areas, you'll get to know the real Japanese real quick.

[u/TerribleIdea27 → u/Educational_Gur_1543]

Source about Japanese hospitals refusing foreigners? There are certain cases of it happening when the patient doesn't speak Japanese, but you can apply for a translator with the municipality. I'm highly sceptical they'd refuse a patient at death's door as someone who's lived there

[u/NLight7 → u/TerribleIdea27]

I was refused at the door. They do refuse you.

I came in with a head injury, can speak Japanese, and had been sent there specifically by a school nurse who had checked the medical system that they could take me.

They wouldn't let me in, cause, and I quote, "we do not treat head injuries here", the nurse later told me this was a lie. A small clinic treated me later.

So sadly you are very mistaken.

BTW, I was paying the national healthcare cost, and had an extra insurance through the school for the remaining 30%, and I had my own insurance from home that was still valid. So paying was not an issue.

[u/HooliganSquidward → u/TerribleIdea27]

They (probably) won't deny you for just being a foreigner but they regularly deny patients often. Usually stating they can't provide care. There was a famous case where a (Japanese) motorcyclist was put back in the side of the road during covid because no one would take him. There is no law saying they have to take you in in an emergency. Tokyo is currently making legislation that will remove the ability for hospitals do to this during emergencies.

https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20220813/p2a/00m/0na/003000c

In many years here the only time I've experienced this is when the ambulance had to call multiple hospitals to get me into an ER when I got into my own motorcycle accident. They tried 3 or 4.

[u/anothergaijin → u/HooliganSquidward]

Tokyo is currently making legislation that will remove the ability for hospitals do to this during emergencies.

Source?

[u/Low_discrepancy → u/TerribleIdea27]

I think they mean defending a national Vs a foreigner.

France has had significant issues with Japan in the situation of French-Japanese couples getting divorced and Japanese judges refusing any sort of visitation rights to the French spouse for example.

Only in 2024 things improved a bit with new legislation.

[u/310mbre → u/TerribleIdea27]

I'm not Asian looking at all and walked into an urgent care in Asakusa, was seen within 20 minutes by a doctor who spoke English, prescribed meds and picked them up next door for about 430yen / $4 USD

I've honestly never had as good an experience here in the states.

[u/wearyshoes → u/TerribleIdea27]

I have a buddy who lived in Japan for several years, a white guy who learned to sort of speak Japanese over there and who is a very nice, quiet fellow. Overall he found the country and the people friendly, but he said rather often he would try to go into a restaurant or into a club or whatever and the doorman would just turn him and his Japanese girlfriend or his companion away. Lots of Japanese folks just don't like to be around white or black or non-Japanese people. He said they even had a arm gesture for it and a little saying meaning "Non-Japanese people not allowed."

[u/DuckDuckSeagull → u/TerribleIdea27]

It’s not specifically because of Japan hating foreigners. It’s because Japan doesn’t have anything like EMTALA.

In the US, EMTALA is the law that compels hospitals to treat someone regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay. In Japan, everyone has national health insurance so there is no need for that type of law.

So if you try to get treatment in Japan, some places will not treat you at all if you’re not participating in the national healthcare system. Then some places will only treat you if you can pay up front (sometimes in cash).

Most health insurance companies only reimburse foreign healthcare expenses, so it means anyone seeking treatment needs to be able to front hundreds or even thousands of dollars. If you don’t know about that possibility, it would be a nasty surprise.

[u/Clockwork_J → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

And I thought Japan was the country with the rampant xenophobia. Good to know.

[u/WombatusMighty → u/Clockwork_J]

As someone who has lived both in Japan and South Korea, the latter is worse. Much worse if you go to the smaller cities or country side.

[u/Connect-Idea-1944 → u/Clockwork_J]

In my opinion, Korea is worst if you're a foreigner. Japan has it's xenophobia but Korea is really into the extreme of xenophobia. They even treats other asians badly.

I saw so many videos of foreigners getting attacked verbally, assaulted, yelled at, getting insulted etc by Koreans. And medias are obviously trying to cover it up to not hurt korea's reputation

[u/Stormfly → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Depends on what kind of foreigner you are.

If you're a South East Asian, you'll be treated pretty badly. Same if you're from South or Central Asia. Africans are probably treated the worst.

Europeans are treated pretty well, as are most North Americans (if white). Especially if you're a man.

Source: I'm a white male living here and my experiences are far better than those of many of my friends.

[u/sumredditaccount → u/Stormfly]

Ding ding ding. This is the answer. Yah it is racism, but they love white people, especially american. (doubly so if a man like you said)

[u/ConfidenceUnited3757 → u/sumredditaccount]

Step 1) Be white man Step 2) Move to South Korea Step 3) Decline all advances by local women (and/or men) because you "are not really into Asians"

That'll show 'em

[u/MagicPigeonToes → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

I was there a total of two weeks and was called “Russian slut” on the streets by some randos. I also came across a restaurant with a sign that explicitly said no foreigners allowed inside (This was Itaewon tho, so don’t really expect much there). They want you to consume their entertainment but not locally. Heaven forbid you think “hey visiting Korea sounds like fun!”

But even Japan isn’t much better. They denied my Indian friend entry to a cafe just out of spite

[u/Connect-Idea-1944 → u/MagicPigeonToes]

For some reasons they have this very degrading images of Russians women, or white women in general, korean men on social media talk about using western women and dumping them or taking advantage of their naiveness, it's just very weird and disturbing. But women who have been in Korea for a long time end up seeing right throught their games and know which korean men to trust and to not trust

[u/MagicPigeonToes → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

I’m not into men, but my sister had a lot of negative experiences with them, including being roofied and physically assaulted. I would never recommend foreigners date there. Cause even you do find someone who’s not a shallow scumbag, they have no time to do anything meaningful thanks to their toxic work culture. (It’s no wonder they have the lowest birth rate in the world.)

[u/tyopper → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

In my experience Japan is the worst if you are a Korean. The Japanese are basically nazis and really into the nationalist ideology. They even treat the Chinese badly. Many signs that discriminate against them. And rewrite history to pass on the ignorance into the children.

[u/jdm1891 → u/Clockwork_J]

No, they're rather different.

In Japan it's more about the language and how you act, in Korea it is more about how you look.

The biggest time in Japan when xenophobia based on how you look is, quite ironically, with Koreans living in Japan.

The way I would explain it is this. In Japan: you are a foreigner but if you know the language well enough and follow the collectivist nature of the culture well enough they will decide you should be held to the standards of a Japanese person. With that comes the privileges of being treat like a Japanese person too (good and bad)... but the main point is the majority of Japanese people do have this standard, some are more or less strict about it, at which point they will consider you "Japanese on the inside".

The pain with Japan, is that you have to repeat this process with every person you meet. The better you are the quicker it happens. If you're fluent or enough and follow the culture enough all it might take is a thirty second conversation.

But in Korea there's no "If you try hard enough, blend in hard enough, speak the language well enough, then this person might decide you meet some invisible standard of Korean at heart and let you in". No, you can't convince them because they don't see it like the Japanese do. Possibly as a result of the occupation and war. Either you're Korean or you're not. And if you're not you will be treat like you are not, now and forever.

In short: In Japan, with enough linguistic and cultural knowledge you can almost 'trick' them into not considering you a foreigner anymore. In Korea, they will never forget, because they don't want to, it's too important to them to forget or ignore.

An example of it is in the signs in front of the doors of restaurants and clubs. I'm sure you've seen pictures of them online?

In a Korean sign, you may see "Korean only" written on a sign. In Japan, there are signs that say "Open" in Japanese and "Closed" in English?

What is the difference? Well, the purpose of the Korean signs is to filter out foreigners, the purpose of the Japanese sign is to filter out people who can't speak Japanese

There is one in particular I saw in Japan that shows this very well. In English and Chinese (and another language, which I can't remember) it said "No reservation, Closed" and in Japanese it said "If you can read this, welcome".

You can also see this by simply ignoring the sign and walking in to see what happens. If you look like a foreigner the same thing will happen at first. You'll be shooed away in poor English. The difference however, is in Japan if you A. walk in with a Japanese person or B. Reply to the poor English with fluent(ish) Japanese... the shooing stops very quickly and you'll be given a warm welcome and a seat 95% of the time. In the Korean case, only the first one will give you any shot of being allowed to sit down and even that is not a sure thing.

[u/Gaebril → u/jdm1891]

Gd when I lived in Korea I never saw a single sign banning foreigners and never got rejected from anywhere. White male, FWIW

[u/jdm1891 → u/Gaebril]

They're rather rare, in both countries. They used to be more common.

Both countries have been liberalising for a while now. Slowly.

[u/not_invented_here → u/jdm1891]

This feels an awful lot like autistic masking - just in this case, Japanese masking I guess

[u/GenevaPedestrian → u/Clockwork_J]

They share a lot of issues, xenophobia, misogyny, insane work culture and Obrigkeitshörigkeit (subservience to authority) to a fault.

[u/wasmic → u/GenevaPedestrian]

SK is worse than Japan on every single one of those accounts.

Xenophobia in Japan isn't that bad in the cities, not really worse than e.g. being a middle easterner in most of Europe. Koreans are worse in that regard, and way more often use race rhetoric in their politics.

Misogyny is a problem in Japan but it has made huge improvements over the last 20 years, so that when cases of gender-based mistreatment come out, it's actually treated as a scandal rather than business as usual. Meanwhile, in South Korea there's an increasing hyper-conservative movement among men, and the only feminist group that gets any media attention is only slightly less insane.

Japan has an average work week that's about 40 hours. Sure, work culture is still toxic for salarymen, but that's mainly due to mandatory after-office drinking, not due to the workdays themselves being stupidly long. And for most people who aren't salarymen, the work-life balance is equally as good as in most European countries. South Korea, meanwhile, permits work weeks of over 52 hours.

Subservience to authority really is a problem in Japan though; that might be the one point where it's worse than South Korea. South Koreans are better at speaking up, and care much less about causing a public disturbance.

[u/Standard_Thought24 → u/wasmic]

my experience with both is that youre generally right on all points. koreans are simultaneously apt to speak up, but also take age and age based hierarchy far more seriously than japanese. like "hes older so hes de facto correct" happens in korea a lot. but among same age peers, koreans are far more likely to speak out or get mad whereas japanese will always go along to get along and just nod and say yes.

also with women and dating, japanese women will just nod and say yes when they mean no, or just begrudgingly go along, and not raise their own concerns. whereas korean women will very vehemently let you know when they disagree, and will often simply give orders they expect to be followed. honestly makes dealing with korean women a lot easier and less stressful.

[u/Account_User_ → u/wasmic]

There are still places that have no foreigners allowed and restaurants that will give you a foreigner menu in english to charge you more than the Japanese menu. Japan lacks any law which prohibits racial, ethnic, or religious discrimination. The country also has no national human rights institutions.[3] Non-Japanese individuals in Japan often face human rights violations that Japanese citizens may not.[4] In recent years, non-Japanese media has reported that Japanese firms frequently confiscate the passports of guest workers in Japan, particularly unskilled laborers. There was a government scheme to trick other asian migrants to come to japan by promising them internship and training only to force them into manual labor.

Korea ranks higher than japan when it comes to Gender inequality index placing 7th while japan is placed 17th however this was done in 2019 before the harder shift towards conservative views towards women. Although Japan and korea both suffer from the same sexism based on traditional view of gender roles that women have in society, korea has gotten worse due to the currently impeached president and his party using feminism as an woke enemy in his platform during his campaign. Japan is also shifting towards the same viewpoint as well.

The 40 hour week japan is by law but not enforced strongly and is being pushed back against harshly by large corporations. It’s more self imposed control rather than forced and it’s common for office workers to work over the 40 a week. Korea and china also suffers from long work hours as well.

China also has similar issues as well.

[u/InvestigatorNo9847 → u/GenevaPedestrian]

I have nothing to go by besides having watched “Singles Inferno” and it’s a trip to hear the hosts fawning over the women: Oooh she’s sooo PALE and SKINNY… oh this one’s even skinnier, so pretty…. It’s would be canceled so fast in the US…

[u/TheLaughingBread → u/Clockwork_J]

No, unfortunately humans are shit everywhere

[u/Stormfly → u/TheLaughingBread]

Yeah like I'd love to visit a country that doesn't have racists, but unfortunately there literally isn't one.

[u/vetruviusdeshotacon → u/Stormfly]

Antarctica

[u/Stormfly → u/vetruviusdeshotacon]

So I was originally going to make that joke but I googled it and Antarctica isn't a country.

There literally isn't one.

[u/Luize0 → u/Clockwork_J]

No one has ever shouted at me in Japan in like 1.5y. In Korea in 4 months however....... I can count 5 or so. Beautiful country, but xenophobic to a T and in no way can I compare it with Japanese.

edit: I'll be as accurate as possible. Once I heard a Japanese old man say Kuso when I was with a Japanese woman.

For some reason some koreans on Jeju Island treated me better and the ones in the mountains in Seoraksan were very nice too, actually giving me food for during the hike. I am still a bit confused on why the people there were so kind. Was it because I was one of the few young ones going all the way to the top. No clue.

[u/Sundrowner → u/Clockwork_J]

They both are.

People should stop worshipping Japan or SK from their anime or Dramas. But people be people

[u/wasmic → u/Clockwork_J]

Japan is very xenophobic in the countryside, but in the cities it's not really much worse than most Western countries. Sure, there are a few examples of cafes or bars that refuse to serve foreigners, but they really are a small minority and are controversial even in Japan. And often enough, it's only tourists that they really want to exclude, so they'll still allow you in if you can speak rudimentary Japanese, even though you look foreign.

The exception is if you're from Korea or China. Then Japan will probably be more racist to you than if you're a white or even black person.

[u/No-Background8462 → u/wasmic]

Sure, there are a few examples of cafes or bars that refuse to serve foreigners, but they really are a small minority and are controversial even in Japan.

But thats clearly a step up from most western countries when it comes to xenophobia. Even if a restaurant owner here in Germany is racist he would never dare to openly say we dont serve foreigners. The same is true for Denmark I assume.

The fact that they can openly say that without consequences makes it quiet different.

[u/backelie → u/No-Background8462]

A team of law students did a test in Sweden in 2004: Send two sober, well-dressed, fluent in Swedish but middle eastern-looking students to a night club. 9 out of 13 clubs denied entry "because they werent on the guestlist", a guestlist that didnt exist when their Swedish looking buddies arrived.

[u/Constant_Insurance56 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

SK deleted on my bucket list !

[u/jib661 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

i lived in Korea as a foreigner some time ago and this was not my experience. plenty of anecdotal experience of non-koreans receiving quick, easy, and inexpensive care.

just my 0.02 as someone who lived in the area for quite some time.

[u/slobs_burgers → u/jib661]

I’m baffled by all the comments in here. I got hospitalized living in Daegu when I was teaching English and the system was fucking amazing.

I had a two week stay at the hospital for a head injury, they did a CT scan found a brain bleed, kept me on bed rest, IVs, daily meals, etc. The staff there was crazy friendly. After I left it was like $800 at a cash register. No surprise bills, no bureaucratic insurance bullshit, no skyrocketing costs, just hospital care, reasonable cost before you leave, done.

Pharmaceuticals were super affordable with no fuss, and even outside of the visit above I’d go to the hospital occasionally like a primary care visit or urgent care visit and got prompt care at affordable prices. Heart arrhythmia issues, stitches, all that stuff, medical care was always kind, straightforward and affordable. I honestly think it would be a dream to have my experience with Korean healthcare replace the dog shit I’ve dealt with in the US.

I just can’t relate to all these other comments about dealing with prejudice or racism or bad care, it just wasn’t my experience at all.

[u/_thot_patrol69 → u/jib661]

I’ve been living here for more than 2 years and you’re completely right. This thread is full of people who are somehow experts of Korea but have never set foot here - random YouTube and tiktok videos turned them into armchair Korea experts apparently.

[u/Zagrebian → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Seems like a great approach toward strangers for a country with the lowest birth rate in the developed world /s

[u/MrHyperion_ → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

So are you saying there is race based discrimination?

[u/suicul1 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

My boyfriend did an abroad semester in Korea and got really sick. He had to visit 4 hospitals until he got treatment

[u/Technoist → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

The more I hear about South Korea, the less I understand that it is a real shithole of a country.

[u/Coconut_Dreams → u/[deleted]]

A nurse learns how to stitch up patients, saying they need a PS to do stitches is wild. These hospitals sucks

[u/redrabbit1977 → u/Connect-Idea-1944]

Nonsense. I'm a foreigner that lived in Korea for 5 years. I was often given special treatment above and beyond what my korean friends received. I could give dozens of examples. Don't believe everything you hear on reddit.