Finding an English speaking dentist in Korea can be a daunting if you don't understand the language. You may experience challenges with cultural dissonance when navigating the Korean healthcare system in regard to dental health. SOS Public Health is working to compile a list of English-accessible dental clinics in and around the Songdo area. This list will continue to grow as SOS Public Health volunteers discover new locations.

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Going to the dentist can be an intimidating experience, particularly in a new environment. Equipping yourself with some information about dental care in South Korea can make the process less intimidating. Recently, I visited Elisha International Dental Clinic in Songdo, Incheon, for an oral checkup and deep cleaning procedure covered by the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS). This dental clinic was recommended by the University of Utah Asia Campus. This blog post details my experience visiting Elisha International Dental Clinic as a female international student from the United States who wears a hijab. Listen to the BlogCast Don’t want to read? Listen to the South of Seoul BlogCast which provides accessible content through the use of AI technology. We don’t have time to read each article but we do our best to make more of our content accessible. If you would like to join our Accessibility Team apply to volunteer with South of Seoul. Please note that the pronunciation of some Korean words may be inaccurate due to AI technology’s limitations. Disclaimer The information in this blog post is not sponsored content. The organizations listed below are provided based on community recommendations and direct research. South of Seoul does not receive monetary compensation for posting this blog post. Importance of Dental Check-ups Brushing and flossing at home generally do not provide enough protection on their own to maintain oral health. As stated in the NHIS Health Screening pamphlet, it is important to have a dental professional perform a checkup for the “early detection of oral diseases, such as dental caries, periodontal diseases, and so on.” What Is A Dental Cleaning? Dental deep cleaning, often called scaling in Korea, is a procedure to remove dental calculus (also known as tartar) and plaque that builds up on the teeth over time and cannot be removed by brushing alone. According to Elisha International Dental Clinic, professional dental cleaning is recommended every six months, but more frequent cleanings may be necessary depending on how quickly tartar accumulates on a person’s teeth. NHIS Dental Coverage National Health Insurance Services (NHIS) subscribers can receive oral checkups as part of the general health checkup provided every two years for no additional cost. The NHIS partially covers a scaling appointment once per year. The final price of dental scaling will depend on dental clinic pricing. The NHIS does not cover X-rays as part of scaling appointments. Elisha International Dental Clinic Elisha International Dental Clinic is located near Incheon National University Station in Songdo, across the street from Lotte Mart and Songdo Convensia Center.  Recommended by the University of Utah Asia Campus, this dental clinic provides dental health services in English and Korean from a team of licensed professionals. Dr. Sun Kim received her D.D.S. from Columbia University in New York. Dr. Kim has extensive experience practicing dentistry in the United States and South Korea. Making a Dentist Appointment Elisha International Dental Clinic provides two modes of contact: messaging through KakaoTalk or calling the clinic at 032-831-0027 or 032-831-0053. Learn more about KakaoTalk and other useful apps for living in South Korea. I utilized the clinic’s KakaoTalk messaging service because, like many people my age, I don’t like making phone calls. I scheduled an appointment for an annual dental checkup and scaling. In less busy areas around Korea, you may be able to schedule an appointment in person or receive treatment as a walk-in patient. Required Information When Making a Dentist Appointment Elisha International Dental Clinic requested the following information when I scheduled an appointment through KakaoTalk. Note: These requirements will not be true for all dental clinics in South Korea. Contact your dental clinic to find out what documents they require from their patients. Appointment Day The day of my appointment finally arrived! I was initially nervous because I went to the same dentist in the United States for most of my life. So visiting a new dentist in a different country was a big change for me. Required Items for Arrival at Dentist Appointment When I arrived at the dental clinic for my appointment, a receptionist asked for the following information. The required documents may differ at other dental clinics. Contact your dental clinic to confirm what documents patients need to bring. Identification Health Insurance Payment Intake Procedures I filled out an electronic intake form on a tablet. The instructions on the form were in Korean and English, which may not be available at other dental clinics. Reading the information in English helped ease some of my initial anxiety about experiencing a language barrier when visiting a clinic in Korea. The requested information on the intake form included name, birthdate, phone number, address, insurance information, brief dental history, and any medical conditions of note. There was even an option to select how much pressure I would like the dental hygienist to use for the scaling procedure. However, this question might not be asked at other dental clinics. The front desk confirmed my appointment details: an oral checkup, X-rays, and an annual scaling treatment. I read and signed a consent form detailing the scaling procedure in Korean and English. Oral Exam/Checkup After the intake procedure, I was asked to remove any metal around my head, including my earrings and hijab pins. A dental hygienist then performed X-ray imaging of my whole mouth. The X-ray machine appeared similar to the ones used in the United States. The dental hygienist then seated me in a dental chair and took bitewing X-rays with a portable unit. The dentist, Dr. Sun Kim, joined us and reviewed the X-rays before she performed a visual oral exam. The visual oral exam included checking the state of my teeth, gums, and tongue for any signs of oral cancer. Dr. Kim dictated notes to the dental hygienist about issues that needed to be addressed (dental caries, wisdom teeth, sugar intake, etc.). We decided to complete the scheduled scaling treatment and discuss treatment options for the dentists’ concerns after. Scaling The dental hygienist began the scaling treatment by adjusting my chair and covering my face with a piece of fabric that only left the mouth exposed. The fabric functions as a shield for the eyes against bright light. It was a new experience for me since I wear goggles at dental clinics in the United States. The clinic does offer glasses/goggles if preferred. The dental hygienist used an ultrasonic scaler and other dental hand instruments during the scaling. These instruments help remove tartar and plaque builds up on the teeth. The next part of the dental cleaning was brushing, and it ended with a thorough flossing. Consultation Following the scaling treatment, the dental hygienist discussed treatment plans for the concerns noted during the doctor’s initial exam. The hygienist provided an overview of the issues, the corresponding treatment options, and their costs. Due to NHIS coverage limitations, some treatments were out of my budget. I consulted the dentist about delaying treatment for those concerns until I returned to the United States since my US insurance would cover dental fillings. For the treatments that NHIS partially covers, such as wisdom teeth extractions, I scheduled follow-up appointments. After the consultation, I paid for the completed treatments with my Korean debit card at the information desk. I paid 25,400 KRW after NHIS insurance for an oral checkup, dental scaling, X-rays, and consultation at the end of my visit. This cost may vary depending on the dental clinic you visit. Call your dentist to confirm how much your insurance will cover before your visit. Schedule Your Appointment To schedule an appointment at Elisha International Dental Clinic (엘리샤인터내셔널치과의원), call 032-831-0027 (or 032-831-0053) or send a message on KakaoTalk messenger at Kakao ID elishadental. To find a dental clinic near you, copy and paste 치과 의사 (dentist) or 치과 (dental clinic) into Naver Map or KakaoMap. Click here for information on how to use Naver Maps. Helpful Korean Dental Terms & Phrases Knowing some common dental terms before your visit to the dental clinic could come in handy. Additionally, Korean dental terms can often be used to search for specific services on Naver or Kakao maps as well. Some terms may or may not show intended results when copied and pasted into Naver Maps. However, the following list of dental terms and treatments could be useful when asking for services at a dental clinic or contacting BBB Korea for assistance. Visit this blog post for more information about finding an English speaking dentist in Songdo or how to search for one in your area. NHIS Dental Care Coverage Several dental services may be covered by Korean National Health Insurance. You can check which oral health services and procedures may be covered by National Health Insurance Services (NHIS) by calling their foreign languages hotline at 033-811-2000. Follow SOS Public Health for More Resources Follow us on Instagram or Facebook to stay updated on SOS Public Health Initiatives. If you have questions about healthcare in Korea, visit the Health and Wellness in Korea Facebook Group, or feel free to message SOS Public Health with any questions or concerns. Apply for an SOS Public Health Practicum Opportunity Are you a graduate student looking for practical experience in public health? Apply for an SOS Public Health Practicum! Click below to learn more about the SOS Public Health Practicum Program. Research Design & Implementation Team UX/UI Supervisor & Editor Research Compliance Supervisor & Editor Primary Researcher & Author Zahra AlsafiZahra Alsafi is pursuing a Master of Public Health degree at the University of Utah Asia Campus (UAC) in Incheon, South Korea. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Microbiology with a minor in Women and Gender Studies from the University of Michigan. Ms. Alsafi was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, USA to Iraqi refugee parents. Inspired by her community and international experiences, she hopes to pursue public health dentistry with a focus on preventative care for immigrant and refugee populations. She is particularly interested in disseminating educational information through accessible formats. Ms. Alsafi’s public health practicum with South of Seoul Public Health will focus on dental health education for school-aged children and adults in South Korea.

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Business: Y Dental Neighborhood: Songtan In the South of Seoul App search: Y Dental Sometimes we randomly get contacted by a business that finds us online. We don’t always go check them out because we have jobs and lives to live, however, if the business seems to might offer something that our local community needs we go check them out. Since those of us that run and volunteer at South of Seoul do it for the community, karma, to battle boredom, and to keep our job skills relevant it takes something pretty important lure us into action. Which brings us to the point of this blog. Recently a gem of a business, that meets a need in our community, found us and asked us to stop by and we accepted. Y Dental Clinic is new to the area this month and the dentist in charge speaks FLUENT English. That’s right, we FINALLY have a dentist with a super cute, new dental clinic near Osan Air Force Base and Seojeongri! This is fabulous news for teachers AND air force families who have had to commute for their dental needs. Those days are over. Daniel Yoon D.D.S. actually grew up in the US and English is his first language. Twenty years ago he moved to Korea (he is Korean) and has been living and working in the southern part of Korea. However, with Pyeongtaek booming he moved his clinic north and decided to open in a spot that was comfortable for both Koreans and Foreign clients. At South of Seoul we prefer businesses like this. Ones that serve both communities. It creates a more stable and reliable business. Easy to miss from the outside because of how busy outside, the Y Clinic is beautiful inside (Be sure not to visit either of the dental clinics to the left or the right of Y Dental. It’s easy to go in the wrong door). Everything is super new and the staff is very nice. There is even free wifi in the waiting room. It’s quite lovely and relaxing. This matters to us. We want our dental visits to feel as stress-free as possible and waiting room snacks and Netlix can keep away the jitters. Plus, when we said we weren’t eating sugar and would be going for espresso after we stopped by (so we could have the energy for the going to Von Fitness, the new gym we are obsessed with in Seojeongri), Dr. Yoon made us coffee from beans he roasted himself. Mind blown! A kind dentist who roasts their own coffee, speaks fluent English, offers free wifi, and is only a short walk (or taxi) from Osan AF Base or Songtan Station is a find worth sharing. Don’t take our word for it though. Go check it out yourself. We have confidence you won’t be disappointed. In fact, we have already loaded Y Dental into the app and we look forward to your reviews. If you go be SURE to review him because it helps the new people that arrive and Dr. Yoon. It’s the gift that keeps on giving. You can download the South of Seoul app from Google Play or the Apple App Store. We provide English language information on Pyeongtaek, Cheonan, and Asan. NOTE FOR TRICARE USERS: They are currently working on getting Tricare setup but have not completed the process. They will work closely with you to help you submit the right kind of paperwork you need to file a claim yourself. Tri-care allows you to use any dentist when you are living outside the US. 

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Written by Lanae Rivers-Woods, South of Seoul Volunteer Edited by Jessica Lister, South of Seoul Volunteer If you know Sam at Attractive Coffee, you have heard that his aunt is bringing her Seoul dental clinic to Anjeongri. No need to make a big trip to Seoul for dental anymore, it came to us.  The new clinic is called Columbia Dental and it’s opening over the top of where Sam’s new coffee shop will be next to Brown Stone Apartments. As you can imagine, he is super excited and asked us if I could meet his aunt and help welcome her to the neighborhood. Of course I can’t say no to Sam, so we went to meet her and see the new space. All I have to say after my first visit is, “YASSSS! OMG so fancy.” Yup, I’m so articulate. Also, as it turns out, Sam’s aunt has a name, Dr. Jina Lee Linton. She is extremely accomplished and went to what my sister and I call “fancy school”. She studied dentistry at Columbia University in New York, with a specialization in Orthodontics, and received her D.D.S. and her Ph.D from Yonsei (a fancy Korean school). She is licensed in the US, Korea and China. Dr. Linton has also done plenty of research and published many articles. It’s a ridiculously impressive resume. She has been running dental clinics for 26 years. Her English is also flawless and she was incredibly easy to talk to and welcoming. We are so lucky to have her here. Her partner in the practice, Dr. Jung is also very accomplished and very friendly. His focus is on implant dentistry so the Dr’s practices compliment each other well. We didn’t get to talk much but he was super smiley and friendly and gave off a warm inviting vibe. His daughter also works at the practice with them and was lovely. Dr. Jung will certainly make you feel very comfortable. Sunny getting oriented to the new office. The other staff that I met at Columbia Dental were also really friendly. Dr. Linton and Dr. Jung know that many of their clients won’t speak Korean so they have prepared well. A number of their technicians speak English and I also met their English speaking patient representative, Sunny. She will be helping foreigners when we come to the clinic. It’s great that they have a designated person for this roll. I think it will make it much more comfortable. It’s already scary enough going to the dentist, adding a language barrier to it can be too much. Anyway, they gave me a lovely tour of the clinic and it was soooo friggin pretty. It resides on two floors and has elevator access. The 3rd floor of the building is where their reception and primary customer care areas are. They will eventually even have a little, covered play area for kids on the outside deck (It’s not finished yet, but someday). The 4th floor has some work spaces, the sterilization room (as a germ freak I geeked out a little when I saw how nice it was) and staff offices. Sterilization room is so pretty. The staff have a nice view. The space has a modern, mixed western and Korean style; super clean and sharp. The equipment is all brand spanking new. Some of the dental chairs are in an open shared space with nice views of the area parks. This is where many of the kids get treatments. This open layout is very common in Korea where space can be limited. (When I first moved here it was shocking to me, but I’ve since realized it’s a great use of space.) I think it’s important to point out that the clinic is excited about serving families. They like kids, they are looking forward to kids, and they took them into consideration in planning the clinic layout. Don’t be shy about showing up with the little ones who need dental care. When I asked about insurance they said they take Korean National Insurance and they also direct bill Tricare (which is great news for military). They have been direct billing Tricare since 2006 so they have tons of experience with it. When I asked about prices they said they follow the Tricare recommended costs and then often charge a bit less. So basically their costs are structured to make sure they work easily with the insurance carried by the majority of their clients. It was good to know they have a standard that they follow to keep things consistent. I always feel better when a business can tell me a clear system they use for pricing. I honestly didn’t know what to expect when Sam asked if I could meet his aunt and who wants to spend their free time at a Dental clinic when they could go home and cuddle with their puppies? However, after visiting, I’m glad I didn’t listen to that voice in my head because I truly enjoyed my visit. I honestly like this group of people. I can see where Sam got his charm and warmth. I’m now looking forward to the dental work that I’ve put off an embarrassingly stupid long time. In the past I have had dental work done in Korea and it was excellent. No pain, no stress, and affordable. The problem was that the clinic was in Seoul and it was too much of a hassle. I researched other dentist in Pyeongtaek and found some great options (which are in the South of Seoul app) but, for a variety of reasons, I just never went. Now I have no excuses. My ideal clinic has come to me. I will absolutely be booking my appointment at Columbia Dental. You can call them at 031-692-3768 or 010-6692-3768 to make an appointment. There will be someone available to help you in English. We have also added Columbia Dental to the South of Seoul app. WAZE links (including where to park) and additional information available there. Now it’s time to go try them all and leave your reviews in the South of Seoul app. Just go the app, open the listing, and click the star in the banner. You can tell us all what you thought. Remember to include useful tips like where you parked, if they had chairs for kids, or other details you found important. Reviews help us build a beautiful life together. One Star reviews with no explanation may be rejected. For address and WAZE directions to anything on this blog download the South of Seoul App from either Google Play or Apple App Store.  Why we do this: We made the app to accompany the blog because it’s easier to keep update with current information. In the past we’ve tried keeping the information on the blog but it’s too hard for us to maintain the information in two places at once over time. Since we compile and write blogs around a full time jobs without compensation, we need to do it the most efficient way possible with as few steps as possible. 

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