Medical Checks: "Rural" vs. Urban

I went and got my medical check today.

Perhaps I should provide some background first.

About 2 years ago, it was discovered that an American teacher in southeast asia (Thailand, I believe) was a primary suspect in a sexual molestation case in the U.S. It was subsequently discovered by the Korean government that this teacher had previously taught English in South Korea. Also, at around the same time, several cases of English teachers being arrested for illegal drug use (especially marijuana) in Korea received widespread national news coverage here.

So, in what was widely viwed by the foreign English-teaching community here (numbers vary, but maybe 10,000+) as a knee-jerk reaction, the Korean authorities decided to institute both criminal background check and medical testing requirements for English teachers on E-2 visas.

Last year, when I worked in a small city (app. 130,000), I was required to get a medical check for the first time. I went to a hospital, had a 2-minute chat with a doctor, and was given urine and blood tests (HIV, TB, drugs).

Today was a bit different. I am now living in the Seoul area ( 10 million +), so I wasn't too surprised, but the testing was definitely quite a bit more thorough.

This was the process:

*Initial blood pressure test

*Hearing test

*Height/Weight check

*Vision test

*Urine test

*Blood test

*Chest x-ray

*Final blood pressure test

Whereas before the hospital simply mailed the results, this time I have to return (no big effort as the hospital is two blocks from the school) with two passport photos to retrieve my results.

Maybe I should be relieved that they are more thorough here, since, in the case of an emergency, such might translate (no, not literally) into better care.

Yet, since they are essentially looking for a reason to kick me out of the country, it makes me wonder if they could turn up something I am not aware of; then again, that could be a good thing.

Oh well, I'll just have to wait for a few days to find out.