For a first visit to a doctor in Korea, start with a clinic (의원, ui-won). The Medical Service Act describes clinics as places that mainly treat outpatients. The same article describes hospitals as places that mainly treat inpatients. Find a clinic on a government map and bring your Alien Registration Card (외국인등록증, ARC). If you need medicine, you leave with a prescription for a pharmacy.
The law says a clinic’s name must be in Korean. Two signs that both show 내과 (internal medicine) can also mean different things. This guide shows how to read the sign and how to find a clinic on the government health map. It also shows what you get at each step of the visit. Every rule comes from the Korean text of the law, and the search steps come from the Korean screens of the map.
Which kind of place to go to
Rules verified October 2026 · Medical Service Act, Articles 3 and 42 · Enforcement Rule, Article 40
Korean law sorts medical institutions into types. Each place may use only the name of its own type (Article 42). On the sign, that type name comes last, after the place’s own name (Enforcement Rule, Article 40). So the last word of the name tells you what kind of place it is.
| Last word | In English | What the law says |
|---|---|---|
| 의원 | Clinic | Mainly treats outpatients |
| 치과의원 | Dental clinic | Mainly treats outpatients |
| 한의원 | Korean medicine clinic | Mainly treats outpatients |
| 병원 | Hospital | Mainly treats inpatients |
| 종합병원 | General hospital | Mainly treats inpatients. It may also show only 병원 on its sign |
| 상급종합병원 | Tertiary general hospital | A general hospital the Ministry of Health and Welfare has designated. It may use this name only while the designation lasts |
If the name ends in 의원 alone, it is a clinic where medical doctors see outpatients. The type of place also changes what you pay. At the largest hospitals, health insurance applies only with a referral letter, with some exceptions.
Dental clinics and Korean medicine clinics are separate types with their own names. A name that ends in 치과의원 or 한의원 is not a 의원 (medical clinic).
How to read a clinic sign
Rules verified October 2026 · Enforcement Rule of the Medical Service Act, Articles 40, 41 and 42
A department name can appear on a clinic sign in two ways. Each one tells you something different.
So ○○의원 with 진료과목 내과 tells you the clinic treats internal medicine. On its own, it does not tell you the doctor is a specialist. The law lists 26 department names for clinics and hospitals. The table below gives 14 of them.
| On the sign | In English |
|---|---|
| 내과 | Internal medicine |
| 가정의학과 | Family medicine |
| 소아청소년과 | Pediatrics |
| 이비인후과 | Ear, nose and throat |
| 피부과 | Dermatology |
| 정형외과 | Orthopedics |
| 안과 | Ophthalmology (eyes) |
| 산부인과 | Obstetrics and gynecology |
| 비뇨의학과 | Urology |
| 신경과 | Neurology |
| 정신건강의학과 | Psychiatry |
| 외과 | Surgery |
| 재활의학과 | Rehabilitation medicine |
| 영상의학과 | Radiology |
These names describe fields of medicine. Which field fits your problem is a medical question, and this guide does not answer it. To check whether a clinic treats a field, use the third sentence in the counter section below.
How to find a clinic near you
Screens verified October 2026 · Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, health map
The Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA, 건강보험심사평가원) runs a health map (건강지도) of clinics, hospitals and pharmacies. It opens without a login. The search runs on the Korean-language site, so the steps below give each Korean label.
Both 종류 and 진료과목 are required, so choose one of each before you search. Each result shows the distance, the phone number and the address. Under 기타 (other), two boxes help with timing. 실시간 문 연 병원 means “open now”. 소아 야간 진료기관(20시이후) means “children’s care after 8 p.m.”
What happens at the clinic, step by step
Seoul National University Hospital publishes its outpatient order. You register and see the doctor. Then you pay at the desk, and the desk also gives you the prescription. After that, you go to a pharmacy. The order can differ by clinic. The five steps below follow the same path.
Step 1 — Register at the reception desk with your ID
When a clinic treats you under National Health Insurance, it must check who you are and whether you are insured. It does this with your health insurance card or an ID (Article 12 of the National Health Insurance Act). The ARC is on the list of accepted IDs. Give it to the staff at the reception desk. The hospital costs guide covers the other accepted IDs. It also covers what happens if you forget yours.
Step 2 — See the doctor
The doctor examines you and decides whether you need medicine. If you and the doctor cannot understand each other, a phone interpretation line may help. The Danuri Call Center (다누리콜센터) lists hospitals among the places its interpreters can call. The law created it for a specific group, and the guide below explains who.
If you need a prescription, ask the doctor here not to write the disease code on it. Step 4 explains the code. When the doctor gives you an injection, the law lets the doctor prepare that medicine directly (Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, Article 23). For other medicine, the doctor writes a prescription (Medical Service Act, Article 18).
Step 3 — Pay and take the receipt
When a clinic treats you under National Health Insurance, it must give you a bill and receipt (진료비 계산서·영수증). The rule is Article 7 of the Rules on the Standards for Medical Care Benefits. A clinic may use a shorter receipt form for outpatient visits. The standard receipt form has no box for your diagnosis.
Keep the receipt. The insurance claim guide above lists the other papers an insurer asks for.
Step 4 — Get your prescription
If you need medicine, the doctor writes a prescription (처방전). The doctor must give you two copies (Enforcement Rule of the Medical Service Act, Article 12). The doctor also writes a period of use (사용기간) on it. The period starts on the day the doctor issues the prescription. Take it to a pharmacy within that period.
The prescription form has a box for a disease classification code (질병분류기호). This code stands for your illness. If you ask, the doctor must not write the code. That is why Step 2 tells you to ask in the exam room.
Step 5 — Take the prescription to a pharmacy
A pharmacist prepares the medicine from your prescription (Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, Article 23). You choose the pharmacy. The clinic may not instruct or encourage you to use a particular one. If you ask, it may give you a list of the names and locations of pharmacies in the area (Article 24).
The pharmacist must explain how to take the medicine, by speaking or in writing (Article 24). If you do not understand, ask again before you leave.
What to say at the counter
Show the Korean line on your phone, or read the romanized line aloud.
Frequently asked questions
Official sources
Every rule here comes from the pages below. Laws change, so open the article before you rely on it.