Does POSTECH Have Perfect Medical System?
Does POSTECH Have Perfect Medical System?
  • 김수민
  • 승인 2018.03.07 13:20
  • 댓글 0
이 기사를 공유합니다

▲Nurse's office in Student Union Building
▲Nurse's office in Student Union Building

When Postechians get sick, how many choices do they have? They usually choose going to the hospital near Hyoja market or Pohang’s City Hall. And, if they have paid for a Student Medical Co-op Plan and their medical expenses exceed 10,000 KRW, they can get a deduction for medical expenses. It is the best way, but many Postechians have schedules during the opening hours of hospitals. Even if they do not have any schedule, considering the time and expenses for traveling there, some just go to the school health room. Located in the Student Center, they usually just get some medicine from the school nurse and the given medicine is just a small dose because of the public health law. Because of the law, it is also forbidden for non-practitioner to prescribe medicine, so stocking first-aid medicine is not allowed. In many cases, if students do not have any time to treat their sickness, they just suppress their symptoms.

Then, how about other universities? There is the KAIST Clinic on the campus of KAIST. It was founded in 2010 for promoting physical, mental and the social health of the KAIST community. It consists of; department of family medicine, internal medicine, neurology, ophthalmology, women’s health medicine, radiology; a dermatology and stress clinic, and a dental clinic. The opening hours is from 9 AM to 5:40 PM on weekdays. Advance appointments can be made online and by a phone call. Moreover, KAIST Clinic offers health checkup service for members of KAIST. If a student pays 40,000 KRW, he or she can receive the basic program. Faculties can get it with 50,000 KRW. It also offers plus, comprehensive and light programs, recruitment health checkups, and health checkups for studying abroad.

In SNU, there is Seoul National University Health Service Center (SNUHSC). It was founded in 1957 for fostering physical and mentally healthy college students by providing the best medical services, research, and education. It consists of; departments of family medicine, ophthalmology, gynecology, otolaryngology, psychiatry, dermatology, orthopedics, and dentistry. The opening hours is from 9 AM to 5:30 PM on weekdays. Advance appointments can be made only by online. SNUHSC offers free health checkup for SNU students once a year. They can select additional test items with extra charge based on their individual health needs. Faculty can receive health checkups costing 20,000 KRW. It also offers various vaccinations. Its website provides information about costs per one shot, vaccination schedules, and other details.

In HKUST, there is a Medical Clinic and the a Student Dental Clinic. The Medical Clinic provides FREE Out-patient Service while specialist services are available subject to certain charges. Specialist services may include Allergy, Dermatology, ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat), /internal Medicine, Obstetrics & Gynecology, Ophthalmology, Respiratory Medicine, Surgery and Physiotherapy. Advance appointments can be made by phone. The opening hours is from 9 AM to 4:45 PM on weekdays and from 9 AM to 11:45 AM on Saturdays.

In KAIST, SNU, and HKUST, students can get full-scale medical treatment right on campus, not just medicine from the school nurse. Moreover, several departments which are located a short distance from POSTECH are located in their campus. It provides a lot of convenience to their students and faculty. Of course, POSTECH has some better points such as providing better deductions of medical expenses. If POSTECH wants to be a top research university, the researchers’ health should be considered.