As part of my work permit application I need to have a medical from an approved clinic in Hanoi, of which there are two. In addition, Work Visa Medicals needed to be conducted by a Vietnamese doctor. It’s the law.
I booked in last Thursday. The first part of the medical involved a very friendly nurse laughing at every result: blood pressure; pulse, height, weight, eyesight. She giggled as she wrote down every result, which I found to be quite alarming. After the first couple of giggles I attempted some meek enquiries: “What? What? Is everything OK?” to which she chuckled “Yes. All OK.”
The second part involved a blood test and a privacy waiver. On the waiver, just before my signature, was the following warning: “If you are HIV positive this may create problems for your Vietnam visa, as well as in your general life.”
I was then sent for a chest xray, then a tap-the-hammer-on-the-knee-and-nod-sternly inspection from Doctor Gioung. Then I was released back into the wild.
Later that afternoon when I was back at work I received a giggling call on my mobile: "Hello? Hello? Yes this is Anh. You forgot to give urine. Please drink lots of water and come back."
2 comments:
"HIV will create problems in your general life"... there's an ad campaign in that for sure.
Yes but it needs to be scary ... so the fact that a visa in Vietnam is compromised becomes an imperative inclusion.
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