Going to the Doctor (USA vs. Korea)

I knew it would happen though as spring drew nearer I was hoping I would skip it this year.  I am referring to getting sick.  It usually happens to me once every winter.  This year, it turned out to be a bad sore throat with bouts of coughing.  Finally, after 5 days of not getting better, I made the decision to go to the doctor. 

It is interesting how living in a different country enables one to view their own country in a different light.  Sometimes, the comparisons allow you to view your own country more favorably.  This was not one of those times.  I should mention that I am basing these comparisons on only one trip to the doctor here in Korea, but I have a strong feeling that my experience was not a statistical anomaly.

Over-the-counter medication:  When I first started feeling sick, I thought I might be catching a cold or getting the flu.  When this happens in the United States, I can go to any retail store, supermarket, or convenient store and purchase medications such as pain relievers, cough medicine, and cold/flu relief gel caps.  In Korea, however, even over-the-counter medications can only be purchased in a pharmacy.  Considering that there seems to be 3 convenient stores every block, this is rather,well, inconvenient.  Currently, Korea is considering legislation to allow other businesses to sell basic over-the-counter drugs but until then, I have to say:
ADVANTAGE: United States

Getting in to see the doctor:  Five days later, I still wasn't feeling better so I wanted to see a doctor.  In the U.S, this would involve calling the doctor's office to make an appointment.  There rarely were openings available on the day I would call and almost never an available time over the next day or two that was convenient for me.  This usually meant that going to the doctor would involve missing work.  In Korea, you just show up at the nearest hospital with no appointment.  I gave the receptionist my ID, told her my symptoms, and into the hospital I went.
ADVANTAGE: Korea

Wait time:   Not once did I ever see my doctor on time in the United States.  I often had to wait 20-30 minutes or more beyond my appointment time to see the doctor.  Once, I had the first appointment of the day at 7:00.  I still did not see the doctor until 7:20.  At the Korean hospital, after I checked in with the receptionist, I was given a personal guide to accompany me during my visit.  I don't think this is typical but rather because I do not speak Korean.  Anyway, she took my up to the waiting area for the doctor and waited with me.  From the time I checked in without an appointment to the time I saw the doctor, I waited no more than 10 minutes.  
ADVANTAGE: Korea

Communication: The doctor spoke enough English that I was able to communicate with him and understand what he was saying although I did have to ask him to repeat himself a couple times.  The other staff in the hospital I interacted with spoke very little English but just barely enough for me to communicate what I wanted.  When I was finished with the doctor, he told me what I had.  I don't remember exactly what it was because he used advanced medical jargon that I couldn't understand.  Come to think of it, my doctor back in the U.S. does the exact same thing.  I just remember him saying something about my tonsils and using long compound words to describe them.
ADVANTAGE: United States (by a small margin)

Cost: After seeing the doctor, my guide took me to the cashier to pay.  The cost to see the doctor was around $14.  This was without insurance as I applied for the health coverage last week but have not yet received anything.  With insurance in the U.S, my co-pay was $20.  The prescription, meanwhile, was also approximately $14 for everything without insurance while back home, I was paying a $10-$25 co-pay per medication depending on what it was.  Again, this was with insurance.  Imagine what the prices in Korea are with the insurance!
ADVANTAGE: Korea

Filling a prescription:  After the cashier took my payment and printed out my prescription, my guide took me to a side exit and showed me the pharmacy across the street where I can get my prescription filled.  I walked in, handed the pharmacist my prescription, and had it filled in less than 5 minutes.  Also, the pharmacy took my medication and divided it into packets for easy consumption.  The instructions were to take one packet, 3x a day, along with 10ml of "gargle".  To be fair, pharmacies in the United States do not take much longer to fill a prescription.  I think 15-20 minutes was my average wait time back home.  
ADVANTAGE: Korea (by a small margin)

Let me first say that I believe the United States is the best country in the world and I am proud to be American.  However, I was never naive enough to think that America is the best at everything.  It is really a shame that many people in America are strongly against changing something that clearly needs improvement, such as our health care system.  I realize I am only making comparisons based on one visit to the doctor here in Korea, but I NEVER had a medical experience back home that even came close to the affordable, easy, efficient, experience I had this morning.  Other nations, including Korea. have learned ways to improve certain aspects of their own counties from the United States.  The United States also could learn a thing or two from other countries but many people are against just that.  I just wish more Americans were not so stubborn and ethnocentric as to prohibit our great nation from becoming even greater.