Health Check for Foreign Visa

Part of obtaining your E-2 Visa in Korea is a health check.  Before coming, you must fill out a self-health assessment and then, after you arrive in Korea, go to the hospital for a check-up.  If everything goes well, you can move on and obtain your Alien Registration Card.

Health Statement for E-2 Vis

Documentation given after you receive health check in Korea

Application for Alien Registration Card

Wednesday, January 5, 2011, my employers took me to the hospital. We walked in and followed an arrow on the floor which lead to a room where: they weighed me, measured my height, took my blood pressure, had a hearing check, and an eye check (in which I started to guess letters when they were actually numbers).

We then proceeded to a room where they took a chest x-ray.

Then to an area where they took my blood and I was given a cup (3 oz Dixie Cup) for my urine test. Which I barely filled halfway. I was so dehydrated and I had peed just before we left to go to the hospital. On a side note... No one was monitoring me. I was in the public hospital bathroom. I could have put anything in the cup.

All finished, now just have to wait for my results on Monday.

Monday, January 10, 2011.  Boss Lady tells me something came back strange on my chest x-ray and we have to go back for '"closer examination."

Tuesday January 11, 2011 we go back and after walking around in a circle we find the "closer examination" waiting area.  When our number is called, Boss Lady and I go into the room. The doctor does not speak English, and despite the many English words I see on his computer for possible causes, he uses none. He explains to my Boss Lady the discrepancies between my X-ray photo and what my X-ray photo should look like.  I can only watch his hand gestures as he points to various spots in white and black.  Then he turns to me and ask "are you a smoker?" Which I only understand after about the 4th or 5th time.  He's pronunciation was HORRIBLE.  He then says something along the lines of "alsdjfl;. lsdj  lksd sd respiratory klsdj sdfj l" which I deduced to him asking me if I had asthma or any or problems of the kind. Again, after about the 5th time he asked and seemed to be getting impatient.

He and my Boss Lady converse more. Then she says, "CT scan, you need." I say okay.  The doctor then points at the photo, says "left" and then "right", and squeezes out something along the lines of this white spot is too big and the space between what connects your lung and heart is big. and the other side doesn't match. I'm not really sure. It was very, very hard to decipher.

We then exit.

My Bosses fill out more sheets, and ask more questions and... fill out more sheets.

Boss lady says they need more blood, so back to the blood taking area. We take a number and wait. She pokes me (almost in the exact same spot as last time, which makes me cringe) and we are done. Boss Lady says the blood check will be available in the afternoon and if everything is good, I will have a CT Scan at 2:30 on Wednesday.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011 I miss my 2:10 class. Boss Man takes me to the hospital.  I read about CT scans on the internet via my smart phone. I don't like what I see about injecting me with contrast dye and radiation. If its not natural, its probably not good for you. I look for risks envolved with CT scan. It says, 'no immediate risks.' Which means, most people don't kill over right afterwards, so... we guess there is no risk.  They don't know yet.  They call me into the room and my Boss Man along with 4 other Koreans try to explain to me what to do in Korean. Basically, they are going to inject dye via your veins, lay this way, breath, hold breath and release acording to the lite pictures, and my voice, and it will only take 10 min. The only English words they used were 'input,' 'output' (My Boss referring to breathing) and 'Ten Minutes.'  I lay down. She puts the needle in my right arm. Which was unusually painful and I she directs me to put my arms over my head. After about 6 minutes, the same nurse come out and makes me hold the arm out to the side. The dye wasn't getting into my system. As I extend my arm I feel the dye rush through my body from right arm to my toes in about 3 seconds. I feel my body go flush and think I may pass out. I don't. Then the radiation again. This time it felt different. I don't know if it was from the dye, the radiation, or both. Before, I presumed I did not like the CT Scans. After, I know I don't like them and I can only hope my ignorance does not give me cancer 30 years from now.

Friday January 14, 2011 during the school day Boss Lady tells me my results are "okay". My something is just a little large.

I still don't really know what the hospital was looking at, but I don't really care. Mandatory Modern Medicine is trifling for someone who believes all actions have consequences and trying to outrun the consequences will only make you tired. The ripple from my descent into the ocean of the dead will be no different if it happens now or 80 years from now.