Chapter 248
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 248
Chapter Title: Insurance-Covered Prescription
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Since Park Siha was so worried about the treatment costs, I started by explaining insurance-covered herbal medicine first.
"There are two main ways to prescribe herbal medicine that's eligible for health insurance coverage. Formulations tailored to the medicine itself, and decoctions tailored to the disease."
"Oh..."
It wasn't a term most people would be familiar with.
I skipped over decoctions for now since we wouldn't be using them here.
"When people think of herbal medicine, they usually picture decoctions customized to one's constitution, right? And that's often the case. But for convenience, clinics also prescribe these premade pills from pharmaceutical companies, just like Western meds. The government verifies the efficacy and safety of certain types and approves them for insurance coverage."
Most clinics that use insurance formulations handle acute, mild conditions like indigestion, colds, or muscle tension.
These are cases where patients need meds right away, and the prescription doesn't have to be perfectly precise for it to be effective enough.
Of course, some clinics skip insurance herbal meds altogether because the effects are milder or because the reimbursement cap leaves no profit margin.
When I first opened my practice, I considered stocking a few types from other companies but dropped the idea since the results were iffy.
I made my own standby meds by hand—or after An Joohee came on board, we had them prepared at an external decoction room and prescribed them for 2,000 or 3,000 won per pack.
But this time, thanks to PK agreeing to include all the ingredients I wanted exactly as specified, I was able to stock these formulations as standby meds too.
"Ah, so they're mass-produced and insurance-covered, which keeps the price pretty reasonable."
Park Siha let out a sigh of relief.
She must have already calculated the monthly costs in her head, because she looked completely at ease now.
Of course, chronic or constitutional conditions require precise, customized prescriptions.
If money weren't an issue, that's what I'd recommend.
But sometimes, keeping costs low even if treatment takes a couple months is the priority.
"Yeah, something like that. Don't worry too much about the cost—keep coming until I say you're good. It's not a huge issue right now, but frequent ovulation overworks the ovaries, which raises the risk of problems down the line."
"Gasp...! Could it lead to cancer?"
With her family history, Park Siha took it very seriously.
"It's higher risk than for someone with regular cycles. About the same as how daily drinkers are more prone to liver disease than teetotalers."
"Ah, got it. I'll give the treatment my all."
Park Siha nodded firmly, her resolve strengthened.
"Can you come in once every ten days?"
Herbs would be the mainstay, but I'd love to do acupuncture too and monitor her progress.
"Once a week is doable."
"Great. Then let's do weekly visits for acupuncture and pick up a week's worth of meds each time."
I'd been worried her schedule might make frequent visits tough.
But luckily, she said weekly was fine.
I also gave her a quick rundown on the prescription.
"It's called Gami Soyo-san. A go-to formula for women's health issues. It's used for pretty much any symptoms without discrimination."
Menstrual cramps, heavy bleeding, frequent periods, irregular cycles, PMS, postpartum depression, menopausal symptoms—you name it.
It's incredibly versatile.
Even for non-gynecological issues like insomnia, skin problems, or chronic irritability, it works wonders.
You can't ignore the main symptoms when prescribing, but differentiation based on qi, blood, yin-yang, and the state of the five organs and six viscera comes first.
It's counterintuitive, but the same formula shortens cycles in those who rarely menstruate and lengthens them in those who do too often.
That's because it's fundamentally for relieving liver qi stagnation, so resolving that naturally restores balance.
"I see... I feel like it'll work. Thank you for considering my situation and thinking this through."
Park Siha blushed slightly and bowed her head.
I'd gotten excited about testing these new formulations, so the consult had been fun for me too.
But the praise made me a little embarrassed.
"Acupuncture treatment, and 14 packs of Gami Soyo-san, please."
"Yes, ma'am~."
I instructed the staff on the prescription and headed to the treatment room.
"Have you had acupuncture before?"
"Oh, yeah."
"I'll place needles from your neck and shoulders down to your limbs."
Releasing overall muscle tension and smoothing out stagnant qi improved her pulse reading noticeably.
"It looks just like a nutritional supplement?"
The chewable extract-form herbal med.
She eyed the packet curiously as she took it.
I wondered how long it'd take for her to see results.
* * *
Park Siha followed the instructions: one pack of Gami Soyo-san in the morning, one at night, chewed right up.
I'd recommended iron supplements too, at least for now, so a vitamin pill and herb pack became her morning and evening routine.
"Sis, how was it? Seongsu Clinic's great, right?"
A few days later, Min Juyeon grabbed her and asked.
"Yeah. The director was super kind. First time a doctor's ever consulted with me that long."
"Right? Every time I go for skin issues, they just say 'unknown cause' and hand me steroid cream. But that director asks in detail and figures it out with you."
In the end, the conclusion was the same, of course.
Stress was the culprit.
But the thorough exam from shoulders to abdomen and listening to her story made it so much more satisfying.
"So, how's your period? Any better?"
"It's only been a week, so too soon to tell. Gotta keep treating for a bit."
By her first visit, it had already been over a week since her last period.
She'd probably ovulated already.
Her cycle was due soon, and the cramps felt milder—maybe just her imagination, but it was still unclear.
"Yep. Trust the director and stick with it. You'll get better!"
"Thanks for the rec. Feels less suffocating here now that we're friends."
"Aw, no biggie~."
Why was someone who could be a fit model working at a call center?
Whatever. It was a good thing for Park Siha.
In a place where every customer felt like a potential nightmare and coworkers were subtly off-putting, Min Juyeon was a breath of fresh air.
It had been exactly a week since starting treatment.
Time to refill her meds and get acupuncture, so she headed straight to the clinic after work.
Evening hours made it possible.
"How's your condition been this week? Any periods?"
"Oh, today's day one, but overall not bad. Feeling better bit by bit."
"Good. We'll track your progress."
"Sure."
Park Siha nodded awkwardly during treatment.
"Rough guess on treatment time?"
She'd been too scared of "expensive meds" at the initial visit to ask.
She took the chance now during acupuncture.
"Hard to say for sure. Aim for cycles of 21+ days, continue a couple more months. Three to five total."
"Ah, got it. Just curious. Easy to take, so no issue continuing."
Post-acupuncture, she felt refreshed.
Her shoulders were always so tight she hadn't realized—now it was like taking off a heavy backpack.
"Same prescription. Call with any questions."
"Thanks, Director."
Hard to see from face-down, but hearing Director Han Yeowon's voice was reassuring.
The next week, and the one after, Park Siha kept her appointments.
A few acupuncture sessions and steady meds, and her condition improved noticeably.
"Sleeping soundly means less fatigue. Mornings are way better."
"Right? Your sleep probably wasn't 100% before."
"Ugh, I thought everyone struggled with mornings... guess it was just me."
At intake, the director had asked about diet and sleep.
She'd said seven hours, deep sleep.
Now she realized how tired she'd been.
'Turns out not everyone lives like that.'
Seven alarms spaced two or three minutes apart, dragged to the slaughterhouse whether heading to work or school.
But now, waking to morning sunlight brought actual happiness.
Deep sleep meant less fatigue during the day, naturally.
"Yes. You said you were fine, but there were nervous symptoms too. Liver qi stagnation, so no surprise."
"Yeah..."
"Check in with yourself during work or before bed. Breathing okay? Muscles tense? Angry? A little happy? That sort of thing."
"Will do."
She checked her schedule and bank balance daily, but never her body or mind.
'Why am I annoyed in the middle of class? Oh... that prof up front. Told me to skip the job and study for scholarship—total dogshit. Didn't even know they only give grade scholarships to one per department! Still bugs me seeing him.'
'Cat's cute. Heart feels warmer?'
'Shoulders tense again. Not that I hate this prof. Probably stressing about the shift after class.'
Trying as instructed, Park Siha reflected a bit.
She'd been neglecting herself badly.
School was so-so, logistics center psychologically okay.
Call center was the worst.
'Nah, but honestly, not that many total psychos there.'
The daily caller was gone now.
Not many caused extreme stress.
Most were normal folks: returns, sizing, order help from elders.
Sure, one or two real pieces of work per day who didn't get it or threw fits... but brush off emotions, respond like a bot, and it ended in ten minutes.
"Maybe I've been creating my own stress."
Feeling better brought perspective—even the small stuff seemed minor.
But the director shook her head at Park Siha's confession.
"Your mind and body improving lets you think positively now."
The meds' doing?
Sure, meds helped a lot.
But the director's attentive consults each visit, and fully relaxing at the clinic, played a part too.
"How's the period this week? None?"
"Uh... oh, yeah! No. Even if tomorrow, that's 21 days!"
Checking shoulders, she'd forgotten about her cycle.
Three weeks now.
From symptoms she never knew she had to the infuriating periods—everything was improving.
"Great. Let's monitor next month, the one after, see if it holds."
"Yes!"
With a calmer mind, even the call center was bearable.
Ignore the jerks, pretend the annoying coworkers don't exist, just chat with normal people—what's the big deal?
Pay's decent. Maybe stick around?
"Siha, you seem way brighter?"
Just as work stress plummeted, Lee Dajeong approached.
Lee Dajeong was the type pushing drinks on coworkers to build rapport.
Hard to warm up to from the start.
After buying into the lie that Park Siha was a faker and saying 'I'm disappointed!', she rocketed to Park Siha's top three most hated.
"Yeah. Treating frequent periods—getting much better."
But Park Siha couldn't just ignore her.
"Frequent periods?"
"Told you before. Twice a month."
"Oh!"
No chats since, so forgetting was fair.
But her face screamed, 'That was real?'
"Clinics treat that too, huh."
Lee Dajeong sounded impressed, briefly.
"Yeah. Our director's a total genius."
Park Siha felt a swell of pride.
Less tension, better sleep, less tired—she even tacked on extras.
Chatting freely, it didn't feel awkward anymore.
Trauma overcome? She basked inwardly.
"Mind sharing the clinic?"
Lee Dajeong, who'd been nodding along, suddenly asked about it.