Medical emergency in Korea: 119 and emergency rooms

Call 119

119 is fire and ambulance for the whole country, around the clock. The operator dispatches the ambulance and can guide you through first aid until it arrives, and the crew decides which hospital to take you to. Interpreters are available for callers who do not speak Korean: say “English, please” and stay on the line. Give the address from the nearest sign, your hotel card, or the Korean address on any pharmacy page on this site. The 119 ambulance is free of charge.

Call 119 (fire and ambulance)

When to call rather than walk Chest pain, trouble breathing, a stroke sign such as a drooping face or slurred speech, heavy bleeding, a serious allergic reaction, a bad fall or head injury, a suspected broken bone, sudden weakness or confusion, a high fever in a baby, or any symptom that frightens you. Do not go looking for a pharmacy for any of these.

Help lines that speak English

Call 1330 (travel helpline, English, 24 hours)

Inside Korea, dial the number as shown. From abroad, or if a foreign mobile does not connect, 1330 is +82 2 1330.

Pharmacy or emergency room?

• Pharmacy: headache, cold, sore throat, mild fever in an adult, upset stomach, minor cuts, insect bites, allergies without breathing trouble
• Emergency room, now: anything in the warning box above
• In between, such as a fever that will not break, vomiting for a day, or a deep cut that has stopped bleeding: a clinic (의원) during the day, or a hospital emergency room at night

This site lists pharmacies only. Do not search it for help in an emergency; call 119.

Going to an emergency room

Emergency rooms (응급실) are attached to hospitals and open around the clock. You are triaged on arrival; less urgent cases wait, sometimes for hours on weekend nights. Bring your passport and travel insurance details. Without Korean insurance you pay the full cost yourself, which is far more than a clinic visit and more again with imaging or an overnight stay; paying by card is normal. Ask for an itemised receipt and a medical certificate (진단서) for your insurer before you leave.

Many large university hospitals have international clinics with English-speaking coordinators during office hours. Smaller regional hospitals may not have English speakers; the 119 interpreter or 1330 can help by phone.

Finding an emergency room with beds

Our sister service OnCareMap shows every emergency room in Korea with the beds currently available and the hospital’s registered hours, in Korean. In an ambulance the 119 crew chooses the hospital; if you are going by taxi, OnCareMap tells you which nearby emergency room is not full.

OnCareMap: emergency rooms near you

After the emergency: the pharmacy

If you leave with a prescription, you fill it at a pharmacy, often the one directly outside the hospital, which tends to follow the hospital’s hours. This site shows which ones are open if you are discharged late at night.

• A fever, a bad cold, a stomach upset or a rash can usually wait for a clinic in the morning. Clinics take walk-ins
• Meanwhile a late-night pharmacy or a convenience store covers the symptoms
• Dental emergencies: some dental clinics run evening hours. 1330 can help you find one

Pharmacies open now

Finding a late-night pharmacy

Receipts and documents for insurance