Surgery while on ARC

So I might have a bit of a problem.

I have had my ARC for the past 3.5 years which means my job sponsors it. I’ve run into some health issues and have missed about 14-15 days of work. If that total gets to 28 days, my work contract will end.

It’s very possible I might have to have brain surgery done. (waiting to do an mri Friday, results ready Monday) if I have a tumor or brain lesion etc it will need surgery.

Is it possible to work until the end of October/November so my school can find a replacement , extend my ARC and pay for NHI myself and then go through with the surgery and recover for however long it takes. (I’m sure it won’t take longer than 3-4 months)

Should I marry my gf to get MARC/JFRV (whatever it’s called) and go on NHI and then get surgery done?
How fast can you get married in Taiwan? I know this is not the best reason to get married but we have dated seriously for a while and she does live with me.
Going back to South Africa is just not a smart move as I don’t have medical insurance and it would cost an arm and a leg to deal with this there.

In your doctor’s estimation, how much time will it take you to recuperate sufficiently from brain surgery to resume work?

We don’t know what the problem is. Waiting on the mri results (Monday) and then I’ll have to see a neuro surgeon (she isn’t one) and he/she will tell me what the process is moving forward.

Meanwhile, I’m stuck in the damn hospital until next Tuesday or Wednesday.

Could be brain cancer (then I’m prob screwed)
Could be a tumor (don’t know how big or where it is)
Could be a lesion (yipee, also don’t know about that and how it’s dealt with and the recovery time)
Could be internal skull pressure caused by something which a lumbar puncture can help by releasing pressure (I think this is best case scenario)

Basically, I’m stressing and have anxiety and I want to plan for the worst or at least have some kind of plan if I do face the worst case scenario and not just stare at the doctors face in disbelief when I get told bad news.

So you still have 13-14 days before your 28-day limit is up. Hopefully the NS can get you an estimate within a week of seeing her/him.

I might look into whether it’s possible to return to work for a week (or a day, even a partial day) and reset that 28-day clock. Idea would be to have surgery on day 1, return on day 27-28. So the question I would have for the NS would be, do you think I can recover enough to return to work in about 25 days?

Even if the “reset the 28-day clock” idea doesn’t work out, it’s still good information to have for you and for your boss.

I realize that’s a question you can’t ask just yet. Try not to panic, ok? I’m not sure you have enough information yet to form any decision.

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If I were you, I’d make a quick trip to the NIA, explain your situation to them, and ask them what your best options are. Every time I’ve been there, I’ve found them to be nothing but helpful. Don’t ask the volunteers at the information desk, they’re completely useless. Get a number and talk to an actual immigration officer. I hope everything works out with whatever your medical situation turns out to be!

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You’ve had the ARC for 3.5 years. Therefore your health insurance should cover you. They won’t turn it off due to an illness than causes you to lose your job. The NHI combined with laobao covers this scenario to some extent. That’s how I think it should play out although I’m no expert.

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That would be great since I have been paying labor insurance for the past 18 months. (not sure if I paid it at Hess)

If I go to immigration and say “hey guys so here is the plan I’m going to extend my arc for surgery blah blah” and if they are not having any of it, I played my hand. (although they would be super cunty to do this)
Is it better to be sneaky and extend it without them not knowing the real reason?

Does anyone know what labor insurance covers? I have up to 2 million ntd but is it not related to like slipping on wet floors and breaking your leg while you’re on school property?

Damn, Zapman. Sorry to hear about that. Hope you make a full recovery and you don’t have to deal with too much bullshit, especially considering how serious this is.

In case an insured person is not receiving salary payment on account of an injury or sickness for which he is under medical treatment, he is entitled to claim injury or sickness benefits beginning from the fourth day on which he is incapacitated for work.
The inpatient hospitalization benefits of ordinary injury/sickness shall be payable at the rate of 50% of the average monthly insurance salary of an insured person for the maximum period of six months. In case the insured person has at least one full year of insurance coverage prior to the occurrence of the injury or sickness, such benefits shall be payable for an additional six months.
The inpatient hospitalization benefits and outpatient medical care benefits of occupational injury/sickness shall be payable at the rate of 70% of the average monthly insurance salary. In case the injured person has not recovered from the injury or sickness after one full year, the benefits are reduced to 50% of the average monthly insurance salary for the maximum period of one year.

Would this apply to me?

https://www.bli.gov.tw/en/sub.aspx?a=DaXPvgME7LQ%3D

Thanks and yeah I am freaking out. I feel fine, the only reason I went to the eye doctor was because my GF made me go. I usually just sleep away migraines but I had a floater which I told her about (and that only lasted one hour)
If I was in South Africa I def would of just slept it off because doctors would of been closed for the day and I would of felt fine the next day.

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Hey, keep us current on what’s going on with you. You got people here who are willing to help you bear the weight, man.

Or can at least help if need be. Hang in there!

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Best of luck and good wishes . I have been through similar . I’m sure the ARC issue can be fixed . Between the school and the NIA … as mentioned , NIA very good normally . Remember , help is available to all at Forumosa who need it :slightly_smiling_face:

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@Zapman did everything go okay on Monday? Don’t mean to pry but I think a lot of people were concerned for you.

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So turns out I am 100% fine and was born with a non-threatening condition that makes it seem like I have swollen optic nerves with regular checking methods (the light thing the eye doc uses) and did CT scan, MRI, bloodwork all for nothing.

They did a 3D scan of my eye nerve and my graph line is all within normal limits which means my optic nerves are not swollen at all.

So 7 nights in hospital, $7450 ntd later I was discharged this morning at 8.30am and I am back at work.

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I really don’t know why they didn’t do that test first and sent me to neurology so they could freak me out, my family/friends and girlfriend.

Good to hear!

Medical services in Taiwan can be … er patchy , in terms of accuracy . I was informed a few years ago , that they would have to remove a kidney immediately , after a visit :scream:An MRI scan the next day , showed no problem with my kidney :thinking:…sadly it turned out to be more serious but I was being operated on within days . Overall I am still convinced Health services here are a great benefit to us . Happy things are fine for you :hugs:

That’s great news, though. Sorry about everything you went through while they figured it out.

Glad to hear you are ok and spared the knife.