Q. Why can I use a Korean medicine clinic located in Seoul's Guro or Gangseo district via telemedicine?

The legal basis for telemedicine is found in the Enforcement Rules of the Medical Service Act, which allows video consultations for follow-up patients for prescription or counseling. From a biomedical perspective, this reduces infection risk and improves access. In Korean medicine, of the four examinations (inspection, listening/smelling, inquiry, and palpation), telemedicine enables inspection (viewing the tongue, complexion) and inquiry, but not palpation—specifically pulse diagnosis. Without pulse-taking, accurate pattern identification (e.g., differentiating spleen deficiency from phlegm-fluid retention) is difficult; we must rely on symptoms alone. Therefore, when recommending telemedicine to follow-up patients, we emphasize reporting any changes in digestion or sleep. Advantages include saving time and transportation costs; the main disadvantage is the inability to perform pulse diagnosis. However, diet-related consultations—which primarily assess lifestyle and symptom changes—can be adequately handled via telemedicine. Initially, I thought, 'How can this be a proper Korean medicine clinic if we can't take the pulse?' But after several sessions, I found that follow-up patients actually prefer the convenience.