I think it’s the weirdest doctor experience I’ve ever had so far.
I wanted to do an allergy test just to check whether I have any bad response to certain foods, insects, dust etc (never done it in my life).
Booked an appointment at a clinic in Koenji. To save your time and money, here is the name – クリニックプラス高円寺. Avoid it. Avoid it at all costs and don’t trust google reviews.
I initially went there cause it had many positive reviews and multiple 5 stars on google. Plus it said that it had an allergy department.
I come to the clinic, and the weird part started where they said that they don’t have an allergy doctor available and I’ll be admitted to a skin doc, but he can do the test. I was like sure no prob.
My entire appointment was maybe 2 minutes long, and here is what happened: the doc asked me questions about a completely unrelated issue first (meaning he didn’t even read a form I filled out in the beginning, and just assumed I came there with the same issue as last time which was completely different). After explaining that I just want an allergy test, he asked me about skin rashes. I told him i don’t really have them, maybe sometimes? but I just want to do an allergy test to see whether they could be a response to something, or whether I have allergies in general.
And then, he just went “let’s check it”, grabbed my arm, and DREW A CROSS WITH HIS NAIL at the inner side of my elbow, a bit lower than that. Obviously, after he practically scratched me with his nail, my skin had a pinkish mark appear in the same form as he drew the cross.
And then he goes “you just have a skin rash, I’ll give you meds”.
I stop him and say that I just want an allergy test first, at least.
And he responded with “there are lots of different rash meds, I’ll give you one, try it for 2 weeks, if it doesn’t work, come again and I’ll give you another one, and let’s just go like that”
I, completely dumbfounded, emphasise that I just came here for an allergy test, it’s all I initially asked for.
He refused saying I just need medicine cause I apparently have skin rashes.
Paid for this 1500 yen, I felt like this was the most waisted 1500 yen in my life. Didn’t buy the medicine, of course.
So yeah, don’t go there. Also if you have ever done allergy checks here, I’d be very grateful if you could recommend a place.
20 comments
I don’t even know what to say it is just bizarre !
If you came into the clinic on the premise of getting an allergy test you should refuse to pay.
I have no idea what happens if you refuse, but assuming they told you they were doing an allergy test, and there was no miscommunication, they essentially scammed you.
I had a rash for 2 to 3 months that I thought was allergy related, I visited an allergy doctor with a query about what the rash was, ready to take an allergy test. The doctor took a tongue depressor (sanitary) and did the exact same thing as your doctor, drew a cross on my arm, and it puffed up just like the rash would.
In my case, the doctor I visited was in America. Hives often are caused by excess stress and only very rarely have an actual viral cause or allergy cause. So it’s very likely that the doctor you visited sees those kinds of stress rashes alot, and just did that little common gimmick to try and catch you out on stress related causes so they wouldn’t have to run tests.
I cannot stress this enough:
STOP GOING TO CLINICS IN JAPAN.
There is virtually no point in going to some random clinic in Japan when you don’t already know exactly what your ailment is and don’t already know the treatment.
You might luck out and get a really good doctor. You are *just as likely* to get someone lazy or even a complete charlatan.
ALWAYS start by going to a major hospital, preferably a teaching hospital or to the number one medical center for your region.
These will be staffed by younger doctors who are more aware of the latest medical research and advances in treatments. There is a great deal of competition to get a job at the major hospitals, and the doctors there have beat out that competition.
Your experience will be night and day compared to the random clinic you found in your neighborhood.
Edit: a lot of people are saying that large hospitals don’t take walk-ins. However, they do. Usually you’re expected to go first thing in the morning (like 7:30 or 8:00) and wait for hours the first time. Sometimes you have to be *really insistent and pushy*. Don’t give up. Never compromise on your own health. Always speak up and continue to demand help until you get it. Medical care is one of the few times everyone gets a pass to act like a Karen.
Edit 2: There’s been some discussion on there being a 7,000 Yen fee for walking in to a “major hospital” without a referral. It turns out the government does indeed [mandate such a fee](https://www.gov-online.go.jp/useful/article/201603/5.html) for “大病院”. However, seeing as I’ve been to some pretty big (even massive) hospitals and never once been charged the fee, 大病院 is not necessarily a matter of size. They say 200 beds or more, but I’ve walked into hospitals with many more beds than that in recent years and not been charged, so for whatever reason, there are “large” hospitals that are not included in the 大病院 category. So, call the hospital first and ask if they’re a 大病院 and if there will be a fee to walk in.
But it also may be a one time fee that you don’t have to pay again once you have a patient’s ID card for that hospital, so if you ask me, it’s worth it.
If you have Japanese insurance; I would suggest going to Tokyo midtown clinic. They have doctors and dermatologists on site that can do the blood test for your allergies. Won’t be super cheap like 1,500; but should be less than 15,000 all in.
If you’re fluent its probably better to just goto a municipal hospital. I’ve had std tests, cancer surgery, testosterone prescriptions, you name it and they’ll provide it really efficiently.
I think a standard std test at a clinic is like 10k yen with pills costing extra. Mine was 5k including the pills provided. Tokyo metropolitan komagome hospital.
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My local dermatology clinic drew my blood and did an allergy test and gave me back a report.
To determine if I was allergic or intolerant, they sent me to a big university hospital to do a skin prick test.
But maybe they took me seriously because I have a long medical record with this clinic, as opposed to a random walk in.
若草クリニック isn’t super far from Koenji and I trust the doctor there. She’s helped me with a lot of issues over the years and allergies are one of her specialties. I haven’t gotten allergy testing from her, but she has referred me to other clinics with good service before when I needed something she wasn’t able to handle. I trust her service and prices are always low there.
If it turns into a circle you have allergies – so turns out your ok!
Ppl walk-in hospitals in japan all the time. Do that instead.
What the doctor did actually is a very simple test to test the histamine level in your system. People who are having an allergic reaction to something have a high level of histamine and this can result in a condition called dermatographia. By scratching your arm, the doctor was checking for this response.
The doctor obviously isn’t the best communicator and I am sorry your concerns weren’t properly addressed. A lot of other people in this thread have given you good advice, I just wanted to chime in and clarify that the encounter wasn’t as weird as you may have thought.
As someone who also suffers from allergies, I hope you can get the information and treatment you are looking for soon.
Source: worked in an allergy clinic and suffer from allergies myself.
My wife is a nurse. I saw her license. It doesn’t have an expiry. I asked about it. Nurses are one and done. Once you’re a nurse, that’s it. You’re set for life. Whilst some hospitals may train you, you don’t actually have to do any training to keep your licence. I thought this was weird. I said “Doctors have to train though right? You can’t just walk out of need school and that’s it. You’re a doctor for the rest of your life?” Apparently I’m weird. Of course they don’t have to update anything. Why would they have to do training for a licence? So to set the scary stage here’s a horrible and possibly not true, but totally plausible tale.
Doctor Yamada starts work at a small clinic in a small town straight out of med school in 1980. It’s 2000 now, he’s 40 years old and he’s got his own clinic. Too busy to do any training. Lots of old people take up his whole day. Today rolls along and some gaijin wanders in asking for an allergy test. That training he did 40 years ago never had anything about random testing. Just do the DIY stuff that works for the oldies that just want attention. He gets paid regardless so who cares?
Now like I said, this is a hypothetical, but it’s not impossible. That’s the scariest part of all.
Next time your job has their yearly health exam (if you are a worker) ask if they have any additional options, sometimes for a fee you can add an extra exam like a full allergen test
This person about a year was looking for something that sounds similar to what you are looking for and for lots of specific recommendations for places- might help? https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/s/6n5FXiwTGr
That doctor certainly did a bad job in communicating with you and I will not deny your negative experience but you came with wrong expectations.
First, if you never experience skin rashes or other allergy-like reactions, why would you want a test to begin with?
Second, there is no singular broad-band allergy test that you can take and get a list of stuff you are allergic to as a result. Allergy tests are binary and involve getting poked with a needle covered in a certain allergen. You can get a test for allergen X and the result will be positive or negative. If you come in and say “I have no clue if I am even allergic to anything just test me”, what do you expect? Should the doctor poke you 50 times all over your body going through random allergens?
What you asked of that doctor was akin to someone going to an oncologist without any symptoms while saying “Test me for cancer. Which cancer? I don’t know, just test me for every cancer”.
You just visited a shaman.
I think the doctor was attempting an exorcism.
My coworker was getting rashes after moving to Japan and asked for an allergy test. They drew blood and may have done a simple skin test. When she came back for the results they told her she was allergic to… hunger.
Went to a doctor with a skin condition that was on and off. When I could go (had a day off) the condition was “off”. Went anyway, explained everything and the following:
Me: can we do some kind of test or smth?
Doc: what test? You’re just old.
I was in my early twenties at the time. Paid 3000yen for this wisdom. I did later on actually find a different doctor and got treated properly lol.