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A Healthy Future for Humanity Through Convergence and Innovation
“Convergence that transcends academic boundaries and innovation that goes beyond conventional methods are essential conditions for a healthy future for humanity.” Jeong-Taek Woo, Vice President for Medical Affairs The medical field currently faces multifaceted challenges, including the pressures of an aging society and rapid technological shifts driven by AI development. Vice President Woo underscored that for the future of healthcare, convergence and innovation are no longer a matter of choice, but an absolute necessity. The symposium opened with a welcome address from Vice President Jeong-Taek Woo, who declared that Kyung Hee’s medical divisions are at a historic turning point, evolving into a massive ecosystem under the vision of “A Healthy Future for Humanity Through Convergence and Innovation.” Facing complex challenges such as an aging population and rapid AI development, he emphasized that “convergence” across academic boundaries and innovation beyond conventional methods are no longer optional but essential for a healthy future. He expressed his ambition to solidify a virtuous cycle between basic science and clinical practice, leveraged by Kyung Hee University Medical Center’s 2025 Research-Centered Hospital certification, and encouraged participants by noting that real change begins with the small curiosity to ask about a colleague’s specialty and the courage to share research data. President Jinsang Kim followed with congratulatory remarks that highlighted the symbolic weight of the Magnolia Health Nexus. He explained that the word “Nexus” represents more than a simple connection; it signifies a “hub of convergence and cooperation” where diverse academic perspectives meet to create new possibilities. He described it as a name that represents the medical fields’ commitment to maintaining their individual expertise while breaking down boundaries to find collective solutions. President Kim concluded by pledging “the university’s full support in providing a robust foundation for the medical fields to fulfill their social responsibilities and produce world-class research and educational outcomes.” Entering the Global Top 100 for Medicine by 2030 through Research Innovation and Educational Excellence Medical Center Director Joo Hyeong Oh also underscored the value of convergence, stating, “In an increasingly complex medical environment, convergence research is the strategy that most effectively leverages the strengths of Kyung Hee’s medical divisions in a way that is uniquely ‘Kyung Hee.’” He pledged his commitment to providing responsible support so that clinical experience from the medical center and the university’s research vision can combine to produce tangible results. Phil-hyung Lee, Head of Dongdaemun District, and Yongkwan Kim, President of the National Institute of Forest Science, delivered congratulatory messages via video. Lee highlighted the importance of coexistence with the local community, describing the symposium as a “meaningful starting point for a precious regional asset to transform into a global healthcare hub through advanced science.” Kim expressed his hope that Kyung Hee’s convergence research would become the “roots of healthy lives for the public, much like how forests provide healing and vitality to humanity.” Kyung-sik Yoon, Director of the Medical Science Research Institute, presented the “Vision and Convergence Research Polity for the Medical Fields.” His presentation outlined the future direction and specific interdisciplinary research strategies for Kyung Hee’s medical sectors in a rapidly changing environment. He diagnosed the current state of Kyung Hee Medicine by analyzing shifts such as medical paradigm transitions and the arrival of a super-aged society. He then announced a strategy to secure research innovation and educational excellence with the goal of entering the top 100 in global university rankings for medicine by 2030. He shared his determination to lead a healthy future for humanity through an “Innovation Flywheel” strategy that “connects the university’s IP generation engine with the hospitals’ value-creation engine.” President Jinsang Kim welcomed the launch of the Magnolia Health Nexus, emphasizing the significance of the term “Nexus” as a concept that transcends a simple connection. Sharing Changes in Research Environments and Policies This symposium was structured into five key sessions: Lectures, Convergence Research Policy and Support, Introduction of Outstanding Research Institutes and Project Groups, Kyung Hee Fellow & Outstanding Researcher Presentations, and R&D Commercialization Strategies and International Exchange Plans. During the first session, Yeong min Park, CEO of the Korea Drug Development Fund (KDDF), highlighted the explosive growth of the global pharmaceutical market and emphasized the need for an efficient, data-driven R&D framework. He presented a strategic roadmap aimed at elevating Korea’s drug development ecosystem to a world-class level by nurturing biotech startups and supporting international clinical trials. The first session concluded with insights into how engineering and traditional medicine can merge to solve complex health issues. Professor Tae Kim (Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology) shared cases of using advanced engineering to identify the mechanisms of incurable diseases, while Hyoung-joon Kim (Korea institute of Korean Medicine) presented research on the standardization and scientific validation of Korean medicine. Dean of Research Affairs Een-Kee Hong expressed the university’s commitment to becoming a research-centric institution through the “Blue Ocean 2030” strategy. Additionally, Hyung-Lae Lee, Chair of the Medical External Cooperation Committee, outlined the operational direction for the Magnolia Health Nexus, demonstrating how the six medical colleges and the hospital will collaborate as an integrated governance system. In the second session, Han-sook Kim, Director of the Insurance Policy Division at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, defined bio-health as a “national growth engine” and shared 2026 policy changes focused on AI-based digital medical innovation. Sung Hyun Kim, Director of the Division of Neuroscience and Advanced Medical Technology at the National Research Foundation of Korea highlighted the importance of convergence research in fields like brain engineering to remain competitive in the global technology race. Seung-Geun Yeo, Vice President of Research at Kyung Hee University Hospital, detailed the strategy for building a “Research-Centered Hospital” where clinical data is treated as a core asset for commercialization. Finally, Professor Kyu Hwan Kwack of the College of Dentistry introduced strategies for using “Spatial Multi-OMICS” analysis, and Deputy Director Jeongjae Shim of the Global Cooperation Research Organization Supportive Center presented G+CROSS, an international collaboration platform supported by the government to help Kyung Hee researchers engage in global projects. The event featured lectures, sessions on policies to promote convergence research, and presentations from outstanding research institutes, project groups, and researchers. Director Yeong min Park of KDDF emphasized the necessity of establishing an efficient, data-driven R&D framework. Showcasing the Excellence of Research Institutes and Centers The third session shared the achievements and future visions of seven prominent research organizations within Kyung Hee’s medical sector. Key presentations included the Korean Medicine-Based Drug Repositioning Cancer Research Center (College of Korean Medicine), which is establishing a new paradigm in oncology, and the Institute of Regulatory Innovation through Science, a leader in data-driven drug safety and efficacy evaluation. Other highlights featured the Kyung Hee Digital Health Center (focused on large-scale AI healthcare), the Central Laboratory for Instrumental Analysis (offering cutting-edge research infrastructure), the Glocal Lab of the Institute of Integrated Pharmaceutical Sciences (developing RNA therapeutics), and the Age-Tech Research Center, which is building a technology ecosystem for an aging society. The fourth session spotlighted the “Kyung Hee Fellows,” an elite group of professors recognized for their exceptional academic contributions. Professor Dong Keon Yon (Department of Medicine) discussed his research using medical big data and AI, which has been featured in top-tier journals such as Nature and The Lancet Respiratory Medicine. This was followed by Professor Hyunjung Lim (Department of Medical Nutrition, Graduate School of East-West Medical Science), who introduced a precision nutrition intervention model based on clinical nutrition, and Professor Jong Bae Park (Department of Medicine), who presented innovative analysis techniques in the field of cancer proteogenomics . Also, this fourth session featured Professor Jinwoo Choi (Department of Pharmacy), who presented research combining RNA therapeutics with genomic analysis, and Professor Dokyoung Kim (Department of Medicine), a leader in innovative diagnostic and therapeutic materials. Further demonstrating Kyung Hee’s competitive edge, Professor Hyunsu Bae (Department of Korean Medicine) introduced a next-generation Anti-body Drug Conjugate (ADC) linker platform using peptides derived from bee venom, while Professor Il Keun Kwon (College of Dentistry) showcased tissue regeneration techniques utilizing 3D bioprinting and hydrogel technology. These cases served as a powerful confirmation of how foundational research is being successfully converted into clinical applications and industrial products. The final session focused on industrialization and internationalization as future strategies for the bio-health industry. Professor Sang-Ho Lee (Department of Medicine) discussed his AI-based multilingual health literacy platform aimed at resolving global medical information imbalances, while Professor Kyung-Soo Inn (Department of Pharmaceutical Science) presented the challenges of evolving into a global biotech firm using SPIDEM®, a next-generation Targeted Protein Degradation (TPD) platform. In terms of global impact, Professor Ho Cheol Kim (Department of Korean Medicine) shared his success in commercializing natural materials, and Professor Sanghoon Lee (Department of Korean Medicine) outlined plans to spread Korean medicine globally through collaborations with institutions like Johns Hopkins University and the University of California, Irvine. Additionally, Professor Yong-Sung Choi (Department of Medicine) spoke on maternal and child health improvement projects in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Professor Hyunsook Shin (Department of Nursing) detailed the introduction of advanced nursing curricula in the Kyrgyz Republic as part of a government-supported international cooperation program. More than 350 participants from Kyung Hee’s six medical-related collegesand its medical institutions gathered for the Magnolia Health Nexus symposium. Events Inspire Student Motivation; Vice President Jeong-Taek Woo: “Building a Sustainable Network for a Healthy Future by Transcending Academic Boundaries” The symposium included special ceremonies designed to inspire students and foster a sense of community where education and research work together. Various honors, such as the “Kyung Hee Medical Rookie Award,” “Insight Focus Award,” and “Academic Excellence Award,” were presented to both graduate and undergraduate students. The highest honor, the “Kyung Hee Medical Frontier Grand Prize,” was awarded to Hyunjun Moon (Graduate School, College of Pharmacy) and Yeonju Oh (Undergraduate, College of Medicine). Additionally, Professors Youngsun Kim (Department of East-West Medicine), Hae Sun Suh (Department of Pharmacy), Professor Dong Keon Yon (Department of Medicine), Professor Hyun-Chang Lim (Department of Dentistry), Professor Bonglee Kim (Department of Korean Medicine), and Professor Sohyune Sok (Department of Nursing) received Outstanding Faculty Awards in recognition of their significant research achievements. In his closing remarks, Vice President Woo expressed his gratitude to the organizers and participants, stating, “This symposium marks a historic first step, bringing together our six medical colleges to promote our shared values. The innovative research and excellent student posters presented today confirm that Kyung Hee’s medical divisions possess world-class research capabilities.” He concluded by emphasizing that the university’s mission is to create new knowledge that benefits humanity. To achieve this, he pledged to build a sustainable network that transcends academic boundaries and to use the power of convergence to establish Kyung Hee as a leading global institution. The Magnolia Health Nexus symposium also included student poster presentations and an awards ceremony for outstanding students.
2026.03.10 -
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Long-term Tracking of Chronic Respiratory Disease Trends Across 34 Asian Countries
A research team led by Professor Dong Keon Yon (College of Medicine) analyzed the burden of chronic respiratory diseases across 34 Asian countries from 1990 to 2023. From the left: A chart analyzing global and regional respiratory disease burdens, and a map visualizing changes in prevalence and Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY) rates across Asia between 1990 and 2023. Research by Professor Dong Keon Yon’s Team Published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine General Decline in Disease Burden Across Asia, but National, Gender, and Socioeconomic Gaps Persist A research team led by Professor Dong Keon Yon from the College of Medicine has released findings from an analysis of chronic respiratory disease burden trends across 34 Asian countries from 1990 to 2023. The study indicates that while the overall disease burden throughout Asia has decreased over the past three decades, significant disparities remain based on region, gender, and socioeconomic levels. These results were published in the world-renowned medical journal The Lancet Respiratory Medicine (Impact Factor: 32.8). Professor Yon’s research team has released findings from an analysis of chronic respiratory disease burden trends across 34 Asian countries from 1990 to 2023. From left: Professor Yon and researchers Hyesu Jo, Tae Hyeon Kim, and Jaeyu Park. Urgent Need for Tailored Policy Interventions Targeting Preventable Risk Factors The research team conducted a long-term analysis of prevalence and Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) for major chronic respiratory diseases—including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), asthma, interstitial lung disease, and pneumoconiosis—across 34 Asian countries from 1990 to 2023. By categorizing data by country, region, gender, and sociodemographic levels, the study comprehensively identified disparities in disease burden and key risk factors. The analysis revealed an overall decline in age-standardized prevalence and DALY rates across Asia. However, trends varied significantly by disease and country. As of 2023, COPD prevalence was highest in South Asia, while asthma prevalence was relatively higher in high-income Asia-Pacific regions and Southeast Asia. In the case of asthma, unlike the distribution of prevalence, there were distinct regional differences in DALY rates. The study also found a trend where a higher socio-demographic index (SDI) correlated with a lower disease burden. This suggests that the actual burden of chronic respiratory diseases is heavily influenced not just by the number of patients, but by socioeconomic conditions and access to healthcare. South Asia: Urgent Need for Environment-Focused Policy Intervention for Preventable Risk Factors In South Asia, indoor air pollution resulting from the use of solid fuels has emerged as a primary risk factor. Despite being highly preventable, improvements in this area have been slow due to deep-seated structural and environmental issues. The study underscores the urgent need for environment-centered policy interventions, such as the widespread distribution of clean energy, improvements in residential housing, and the implementation of enhanced ventilation systems. Researcher Hyesu Jo remarked, “Chronic respiratory diseases are among the major non-communicable diseases (NCDs) designated by the World Health Organization (WHO), alongside cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. This is a global challenge that requires a collective international response.” She added that the study is highly significant for providing specific, country-level data on how socioeconomic conditions and environmental factors influence the respiratory disease burden across Asia. Professor Yon emphasized, “Beyond tailored policies that account for unique national conditions, systematic management of modifiable risk factors—such as smoking, outdoor air pollution, and indoor air pollution—is of paramount importance for the future of public health.” This massive study involved a global collaboration of over 390 researchers, including Professor Yon’s team (Hyesu Jo, Tae Hyeon Kim, Jaeyu Park, Jiyeon Oh, and Professor Jae Il Shin from Yonsei University), as well as the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Harvard Medical School. ▶ Link to Professor Yon’s Bio
2026.03.10- SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being
- SDG 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
- SDG 10 - Reduced Inequalities
- SDG 13 - Climate Action
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Turning Everyday Curiosity Into Technologies That Diagnose, Protect, and Disappear
A multimodal sensor for a silent medical emergency Q. Much of your work seems to revolve around what you call “solving problems through material integration.” How did that idea take shape, and how does it guide your research today? A. I became interested not only in developing new materials, but in finding better ways to integrate materials and platforms that already exist. For me, materials are not an end in themselves—they are tools for achieving a research goal. That way of thinking is reflected in the name of our lab, HIGH, which stands for Hybrid Integration for Genuine Hyper-functionality. In practice, this means bringing together core technologies from different fields, such as displays, memory devices, biomedical sensing, and security. By combining these areas, rather than treating them in isolation, we try to address complex problems that society is facing—whether it’s climate change or growing vulnerabilities in information security. Q. One of your recent papers addresses acute compartment syndrome using an ultrathin multimodal sensor. What problem were you trying to solve, and what makes this approach different from existing diagnostic methods? A. Acute compartment syndrome is a medical emergency in which pressure builds rapidly within a muscle compartment, restricting blood flow to the surrounding tissues. If it is not diagnosed and treated within 24 hours, it can result in paralysis or, in severe cases, amputation. The challenge is that current diagnostic methods rely heavily on a physician’s experience and judgment, or on intermittent pressure measurements taken with a needle. Those approaches capture only a snapshot in time and often fail to reflect the wide variability in a patient’s condition. As a result, misdiagnosis or delayed treatment can occur. To address this limitation, we developed a multimodal sensor probe that can simultaneously measure compartment pressure, tissue oxygen saturation (StO₂), and blood flow from the same location, in real time. The probe is extremely small—about 4 millimeters in diameter and 1 millimeter thick—and is made from biocompatible materials. Once inserted, it continuously collects all three physiological signals and transmits the data wirelessly via Bluetooth Low Energy to an external device. Because the data are streamed in real time, they can be used for AI-assisted analysis. This does not replace clinical judgment, but it provides clinicians with more comprehensive and objective information, helping to improve diagnostic accuracy. When memory is meant to vanish Q. Your second line of research focuses on what you call self-dissolving memory. What is the core idea behind this technology? A. The core concept is what we refer to as transient electronics—technology that is designed to physically disappear once its role is complete. In this case, we developed a resistive switching memory based on cesium iodide that can dissolve under specific environmental conditions. This work grew out of a fundamental question about data security: how do you ensure that information cannot be recovered at all? Even when data are electrically erased from conventional memory devices, physical traces often remain, making it possible to reconstruct information using recovery software or hacking techniques. Our approach takes a fundamentally different path. When exposed to humidity or direct contact with water, the memory device itself dissolves completely, destroying the stored information rather than merely deleting it. Importantly, the device leaves no residue as it dissolves. At the same time, it maintains strong operational performance, including high responsiveness and durability, while remaining environmentally friendly and scalable across a wide range of applications. It has clear potential in high-risk and high-security environments. Examples include military equipment that cannot be retrieved after deployment, disposable medical diagnostic sensors, financial authentication systems, and temporary electronic devices used in space exploration. Looking further ahead, it could even address hypothetical scenarios such as brain hacking. If an implanted device were compromised, the information could be eliminated by dissolving the device itself. In that sense, it offers a very powerful platform for information protection. Power from waste: a new biodegradable battery Q. Your biodegradable battery made from spent coffee grounds drew a great deal of public attention. How did that idea originate? A. The starting point was a very simple observation: an enormous amount of coffee waste is generated every day. We began asking whether there was a way to repurpose that waste in a form that would minimize environmental impact rather than add to it. That led to the idea of using spent coffee grounds as a structural frame for biodegradable batteries. We process the coffee grounds into a porous frame material and combine it with a magnesium alloy (AZ31) anode and a molybdenum trioxide (MoO₃) cathode. This configuration allows the battery to maintain practical energy density while remaining fully biodegradable, degrading naturally within about 60 days. The frame is not limited to holding electrodes. It is designed as a platform structure that allows easy integration with sensors, circuits, and other electronic components. One clear application is environmental monitoring in locations where collecting devices afterward is difficult or impossible. For example, sensors mounted on microfliers could be used to monitor air quality indicators such as ozone or nitrogen dioxide, or to track wildfire risk. Once the monitoring period ends, the system naturally decomposes. That makes it possible to build monitoring networks without generating electronic waste, which is increasingly important from a sustainability perspective. Toward integrated, disappearing systems Q. Looking ahead, what is your roadmap for integrating these technologies, both in the near term and over the longer horizon? A. In the near term, our focus is on expanding the clinical applications of the sensing platform we have developed. The global market for diagnosing acute compartment syndrome is relatively small—valued at approximately 300 billion KRW (about 204 million USD) worldwide—which limits its broader impact. To address this, we plan to extend the same pressure-sensing platform to the diagnosis of hydrocephalus, a condition in which continuous pressure monitoring is essential. The global market for hydrocephalus diagnostics is significantly larger, estimated at around ten trillion KRW (about 6.8 billion USD). As a next step, we are developing a miniaturized platform designed to be implanted in the brain to directly measure intracranial pressure. Over the longer term, the goal is to integrate the technologies we have developed into unified systems. For example, a biodegradable battery could serve as the power source, while transient sensors collect data and self-dissolving memory devices protect sensitive information. By bringing these elements together, we aim to build integrated platforms for smart healthcare and environmentally responsible electronics.
2025.12.10- SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being
- SDG 9 - Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
- SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities
- SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production
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COVID-19 Raised Non-COVID Mortality and Disrupted Healthcare Access, Kyung Hee-Led Study Finds
A research team led by Professor Hae Sun Suh of the College of Pharmacy delivered the world’s first cross-national, comprehensive analysis of COVID-19’s impact on disease-specific mortality, healthcare resource utilization, and disease burden The COVID-19 pandemic rapidly reshaped population health and how people used healthcare worldwide. Yet most prior studies examined only a single disease or a single country, limiting what we could learn. To capture longer-term, system-wide effects, Professor Hae Sun Suh’s team analyzed ten years of large-scale medical big data from 31 countries across Europe, Asia, Oceania, and North America—including Australia, Taiwan, Japan, the United States, and the Republic of Korea. The findings were published in eClinicalMedicine (IF 10.0; top 3.2%) in July 2025 under the title, “Impact of COVID-19 on disease-specific mortality, healthcare resource utilization, and disease burden across a population over 1 billion in 31 countries: an interrupted time-series analysis.” Pandemic ripple effects: higher mortality, worsened access to care The research team comprised Professor Hae Sun Suh (lead), Dr. Kyungseon Choi and Student Minseol Jang of the Institute of Regulatory Innovation through Science; Professors Sang Jun Park (Seoul National University) and Siin Kim (Kyungsung University). Drawing on population-scale datasets covering more than one billion people, the team applied interrupted time-series (ITS) analysis to track changes in disease-specific mortality, healthcare resource utilization (HRU), and disease burden. To our knowledge, the scale and scope are unprecedented among COVID-19 studies to date. According to the analysis, the pandemic period was marked by deterioration in access to care and statistically significant increases in disease-specific mortality and burden across multiple categories, including infectious, circulatory, digestive, and respiratory diseases. Within the circulatory group, mortality from ischemic heart disease continued on an upward trajectory beyond the initial shock of COVID-19, while deaths associated with hypertension and liver disease spiked sharply in the early phase. In the immediate aftermath of the pandemic’s onset, HRU contracted across most conditions: outpatient visits fell, and hospital days shortened. Over time, oncology and mental-health services rebounded but a more granular look revealed divergence: chronic intestinal conditions saw continued declines in utilization, whereas outpatient encounters for thyroid and liver disorders, sleep disorders, and mood disorders increased—showing a split pattern across disease areas. Professor Suh noted, “This study is the first to move beyond single-disease, single-country snapshots and show, at scale, how COVID-19 altered both mortality and access to care. The evidence points to a clear task for policymakers: protect continuity of care for vulnerable patients and build real-time data systems that keep health services running in the next crisis.” This research was supported by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety’s Regulatory Science Program.
2025.10.17 -
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Kyung Hee University Hospital Designated as a Research-Driven Hospital by the Ministry of Health and Welfare
Kyung Hee University Hospital has earned certification as a Research-Driven Hospital by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, in recognition of its ability to advance medical technology through the integration of real-world clinical data and basic research Kyung Hee University Hospital has been officially certified as a Research-Driven Hospital by the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The certification is valid for three years, from April 2025 through March 2028. A total of 30 hospitals across the country—including both newly applying and previously designated institutions—participated in the selection process, with only 21 receiving final certification. Notably, Kyung Hee University Hospital was the sole new designee in Seoul and the northeastern Gyeonggi region. The Research-Driven Hospital Program was first introduced in 2013 to promote the industrialization of healthcare knowledge and the commercialization of medical technologies. Initially operated as a designation-based system with limited hospital participation, the program was restructured in response to the growth of the biohealth industry and the rising importance of hospital-led research. Following the 2024 revision of the Health and Medical Service Technology Promotion Act, the system transitioned to a certification model. The latest round of certification assessed hospitals based on a comprehensive set of criteria, including research capacity, infrastructure, systems for conducting translational and clinical research, and competitiveness in specialized fields. Certified institutions are also granted eligibility to participate in the government-supported Research-Driven R&D Program. At the Core: An Open Innovation Platform Integrating Research and Patient Care Kyung Hee University Hospital’s designation affirms its capacity to transform clinical data generated in real-world settings and basic research findings into tangible advancements in medical technology. At the heart of this capability is an open innovation platform—an integrated environment where clinical care and research are not separated but operate synergistically in a shared space. This system is enabled by Kyung Hee University’s uniquely comprehensive academic structure—unparalleled in Korea—which encompasses the College of Medicine, College of Dentistry, College of Korean Medicine, College of Pharmacy, College of Nursing Science, and the Graduate School of East-West Medical Science. This multidisciplinary foundation fosters dynamic cross-disciplinary collaboration and provides a clear institutional advantage under the Research-Driven Hospital framework Kyung Hee University Hospital is placing particular emphasis on advancing data-driven precision medicine, with a focus on digital health, multi-omics research, and aging science. The Medical Science Research Institute has outlined a comprehensive strategy to strengthen research across the entire Kyung Hee medical network. Key initiatives include securing dedicated research personnel, expanding the use of quantitative research performance indicators, and building out advanced research infrastructure. By identifying and addressing unresolved clinical challenges, the hospital aims to accelerate medical innovation and ensure the seamless translation of research into new technologies and therapies. At the same time, it is working to enhance academia–industry collaboration through a robust network that supports translational research Enhancing Research Engagement and Operational Efficiency Realizing the full potential of a research-driven hospital requires active engagement from across the institution. Kyung Hee Medical Center and the Medical Science Research Institute are jointly implementing a range of structural reforms, including the establishment of the Medical Technology Cooperation Division, the reorganization of the Clinical Research Institute, and the recruitment of specialized research personnel. As part of these efforts, they are also upgrading core research infrastructure—including open laboratories, the Medical Data Center, and the Clinical Trials Center—to foster an environment that supports focused research activity and improves administrative efficiency. Establishing a sustainable cycle in which research outcomes are reintegrated into clinical care depends on cultivating a strong and enduring research culture. To support this, Kyung Hee University Hospital is refining its governance system for research support—across administration, finance, infrastructure, and personnel—ensuring long-term continuity and strategic development. Joo Hyeong Oh, President of the Kyung Hee University Healthcare System, emphasized: “Kyung Hee University Hospital is a convergence-based institution with comprehensive capabilities across all fields of medicine. By fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, we aim to create an optimal environment for research and lead future innovations in healthcare as a central medical institution serving Seoul and the northeastern Gyeonggi region.”
2025.05.21 -
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[Guest essay] Itaewon Halloween Crowd Crush: From Hell Joseon to Urban Nightmare
Halloween in Itaewon is so popular because it allows young Koreans to temporarily escape Hell Joseon I’ve lived in Kyungridan, the neighborhood next to Itaewon, for about eight years now. I walk through Itaewon almost every day when I go to my favorite restaurant and coffee shop. I have several friends who are business owners in Itaewon. I rarely left this neighborhood during the pandemic. This is home. The horrific deaths of 158 people gathered in Itaewon for Halloween, many of them in their teens and early 20s, have shocked, saddened, and angered our community while dividing the nation. Similar to the aftermath of the criminal sinking of the Sewol ferry, the mass-casualty event in Itaewon has led to victim-blaming, scapegoating, political infighting, lawsuits, arrests, and suicides. Many of my Korean friends and students have told me that they feel disgusted with Korea right now. I walked through Itaewon on the fateful night of Halloween festivities around 5:30 pm. Around this time of year, makeup artists line the alleys around the Hamilton Hotel, and I love watching them put nasty scars and gaping wounds on young peoples’ eager faces. Early on, it’s an all-ages affair, lots of parents with their kids tricked out in cute costumes, groups of high school students in their school uniforms drenched in blood ― unsubtle commentary on the oppressive education system here ― and as day turns to night, the freaks come out. Itaewon on Halloween is fun. People travel to Korea just to be in Itaewon on Halloween. I’ve strolled through Itaewon on Halloween every year for the past 15 years, and every year the costumes get more intense, and the carnivalesque atmosphere gets more joyfully chaotic, giving young Koreans a chance to temporarily escape the neoliberal nightmare ― dismal job market, debt, skyrocketing rent ― that they call Hell Joseon. In an article published on New Year’s Eve, 2019, just before the pandemic turned the planet upside down, Andrew Salmon reported, “A catchphrase has become current among young Koreans in recent years to describe their country: ‘Hell Joseon’ - ‘Joseon’ being the name of a long-dead Korean kingdom. That phrase is being superseded by a new term, ‘Tal-Jo’ - a pormanteau comprising ‘leave’ and ‘Joseon,’ which, vernacularly, might best be translated as ‘Escape Hell.’” Salmon cites a Hankyoreh survey which “found that 79.1% of young women and 72.1% of young men want to leave Korea, that 83.1% of young women and 78.4% of young men consider Korea ‘hell’ and that 29.8% of young women and 34.1% of young men consider themselves ‘losers.’” This survey came out around the same time as Bong Joon-ho’s “Parasite,” a pre-pandemic indictment of the precarity, social exclusion, and hopelessness that pervades the lives of many Koreans, especially the young and the elderly. “Squid Game,” which appeared during the pandemic, upped the ante on “Parasite,” offering a brutal expos？ of the crushing debt, violent individualism, and cutthroat competition that dominates Korean society. There has been a lot of hand-wringing in Korea over the question of why Halloween has been embraced so enthusiastically by young Koreans. One obvious reason is that Halloween in Itaewon allows young Koreans to temporarily escape Hell Joseon, to leave Korea without leaving Korea. In addition to its local popularity, Halloween in Itaewon has become a massive international gathering that has been growing exponentially every year. The pandemic had slowed things down, so of course this year’s festivities ― the first in years without COVID-19 curbs in place ― were going to be bigger than ever. While Halloween in Itaewon has been expanding, the alleyways around the Hamilton Hotel, the center of the action, have been contracting, undergoing rapid, noisy, gaudy overdevelopment, creating a dense urban space designed to suck as much profit out of partygoers as possible, with little to no concern for their safety. Many survivors of the crowd crush report that the blaring music from the open-air bars made the chaos much worse. Why didn’t venues turn their music off when they saw the emergency unfolding? Perhaps they were too busy hovering over their cash registers. In an article for Curbed, Se-woong Koo argues that overdevelopment in the alleyways around the Hamilton Hotel created spatial conditions that were a disaster waiting to happen. “Over the past several days, it’s become clear how rampant development contributed to the tragedy. On the corner, the Hamilton Hotel itself had built unpermitted structures, including a temporary metal wall, a booth, and a terrace, narrowing the lane even further in the choke point where so many lives were lost,” Koo writes. “The local district office allegedly ordered the Hamilton to remove these structures over the years, but the hotel kept on using the space, taking away precious breathing room that could have allowed more people to survive. Other businesses in the vicinity also constructed illegal terraces that jutted out into the street, making the walkway even narrower than it should have been,” he goes on. “Again, there was no serious enforcement against these ad hoc additions, which compounded the fatalities that night.” When I walked through Itaewon at 5:30 pm that day, the alleys around the Hamilton Hotel were already packed. I texted a friend and said that they really needed to block off the main street. One friend who is a local business owner told me that they have been saying that the main street needed to be closed off to cars on Halloween for years, but there is a total disconnect between the local government office and local businesses. Everyone in Itaewon takes Halloween very seriously, from the venues that spend large amounts of money on spooky decorations, to the revelers who spend large amounts of time and energy on their costumes. The only people who did not take the Itaewon Halloween gathering seriously were the officials responsible for public safety, and 158 people, many of them in their teens and early 20s, paid the price. If officials had barred cars from entering Itaewon on Oct. 29, providing a safety valve for the flow of people coming out of the subway station, 158 families would not be in mourning right now. We were reading Ernest Callenbach’s "Ecotopia" in my Environmental Literature class last week, so I asked my students to think about the relationship between the novel’s utopic vision of urban planning and the mass-casualty event in Itaewon. Could something like this happen in Ecotopia? When the narrator, William Weston, visits the new San Francisco for the first time, he is shocked.: “I expected to encounter something at least a little like the exciting bustle of our cities-cars honking, taxis swooping, clots of people pushing about in the hurry of urban life,” Weston remarks. “What I found, when I had gotten over my surprise at the quiet, was that Market Street, once a mighty boulevard striking through the city down to the waterfront, has become a mall planted with thousands of trees.” Instead of cars and traffic and noise and pollution, the main street through new San Francisco is filled with gardens, fountains, flowers, sculptures, benches and bike paths. Birdsong fills the air. Callenbach immerses readers in a carless city, which made me think that maybe something similar should be done in Itaewon. Itaewon needs to calm down a little bit, and nothing is more calming than nature. There is going to be a lot of discussion in the coming months about what should be done in Itaewon, Itaewon has given a lot of joy to people over the years, and I am confident that people will come back to support the neighborhood. The most important question is how the neighborhood can be reimagined in a way that is respectful to and honors the deceased and their grieving families while respecting the voices and needs of local business owners. If they had been listened to in the first place, this awful disaster never would have happened. John R. Eperjesi is a Professor in the Department of English Linguistics and Literature Website: https://johneperjesi.academia.edu/
2022.12.01 -
Other
Kyung Hee University Medical Center Ranks First in Patient Satisfaction among Advanced General Hospitals in Seoul
In the 2021 patient satisfaction survey conducted by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, the hospital in the Kyung Hee University Medical Center (KHUMC) ranked first among advanced general hospitals in Seoul This survey is a key indicator that can measure the level of patient-centered medical care in the hospital by examining patient satisfaction with twenty-one questions in six areas including △nurse service △physician service △medication and treatment process △hospital environment △protection of patient rights △overall evaluation. The Kyung Hee University Medical Center received 88.6 points, significantly higher than the average score of other advanced general hospitals in Seoul (84.77 points) and regular general hospitals (81.58 points). This score marks the KHUMC as the 10th best general hospital in the country out of 359 general hospitals and the 6th best among forty-five advanced general hospitals in Korea. Patient satisfaction with physician service ranked 5th among all general hospitals in Korea The Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service has been conducting a biannual patient satisfaction survey since 2017 to improve the quality of medical care as perceived by the public and to promote a patient-centered medical culture. The third survey in 2021 covered 359 general hospitals nationwide including forty-five advanced general hospitals. The results are presented by converting the scores of its six performance criteria into a 100-point scale for each criterion. The Kyung Hee University Medical Center received excellent scores in all six areas, exceeding the national average score for each criterion by 5.61 to 7.91 points. The level of patient satisfaction with physician service was particularly high, as the hospital ranked fifth in this criterion among all general hospitals in Korea. The criterion of physician service includes questions on △respect and courtesy by doctors △ listening to patient △opportunities to meet and talk with doctors △accessibility of information on doctor's rounds. Among these questions, the patient satisfaction regarding the accessibility of information on doctor's round and the opportunity to meet and talk with the doctor have made a dramatic improvement. Compared to the result of the previous survey, the KHUMC scored 15.28 and 9.27 more points for these questions, respectively. The overall score in the criterion of physician service was 89.11 points, up 8.39 points from the previous survey. Building a clean and safe environment by renovating the entire patient ward The Kyung Hee University Medical Center also received high scores in the criteria of nurse service (91.68 points) and overall evaluation (89.77 points). The overall evaluation consists of two questions: a comprehensive evaluation of hospitalization experience and how likely to recommend the hospital to others. In the criterion of hospital environment, which was the weakest area in the previous survey, the KHUMC improved by 9.32 points for cleanliness and 9.83 points for safety, respectively. The complete renovation of the entire patient ward and the thorough reconsideration of safety and environmental hygiene management of the hospital proved to have a positive effect.
2022.08.29 -
Other
Upgrading the Infectious Disease Response System at Healthcare Institutions
The College of Nursing Science has been selected for the Project to Develop Technologies for Safer Medical Institutions Against Infectious Diseases, sponsored by the Government-wide R&D Fund for Infectious Disease Research (GFID) and the Korean Health Industry Development Institute The medical field has been struggling to cope with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its human resources. This project helps to address the problems by strengthening infectious disease management in medical practice and improving safety through convergence and advanced technologies The College of Nursing Science plans to find a solution to the challenge, assisted by a government grant of 3.14 billion KRW over three years. The project team is headed by Professor Eun-Kyoung Yun, Associate Dean of the College of Nursing Science. To mark the project’s launch, a KICK-OFF ceremony was held at the Sheraton Walkerhill Hall on the first floor of the College of Hotel and Tourism Management Building on June 29. The event was attended by Vice President Sung Wan Kim of Medical Affairs, Dean Sohyune Sok of the College of Nursing Science, Associate Dean Eun-Kyoung Yun of the College of Nursing Science, and Director Kyung-sik Yoon of the Medical Science Research Institute. The project team is working on the task of introducing an infectious disease business continuity plan (BCP) for healthcare institutions. A multi-scenario-based intelligent BCP platform will help them to raise the bar for infectious disease crisis response and establish the necessary human resources management system. The team focuses on reality, technology, and data in partnership with the industry, university, hospital, and research sectors. Once developed, the BCP platform will bring about an improvement in many situations where prediction or decision-making is difficult. Vice Dean Yun said, “Our work is to improve human health, which is directly connected to us of today and to future generations as well.” Vice President Ohbyung Kwon of Student Affairs sent a congratulatory message of encouragement: “It seems like we are witnessing an instance where Kyung Hee’s dedicated endeavor for the future of humankind achieves real-world results. I hope this is an opportunity for the capable researchers of our College of Nursing Science to shine and help to better human society, something all members of the Kyung Hee community are duly bound to do.” Vice President Kim of Medical Affairs said, “With the help of the Kyung Hee University hospitals, this project will lead to outstanding achievements. The Kyung Hee University Hospital at Gangdong plans to employ the BCP platform once the development is completed.” Director Yoon of the Medical Science Research Institute emphasized the importance of good medical personnel management amid an infectious disease crisis: “This work will offer many implications for the medical field hit by the infectious disease disaster of COVID-19 pandemic.” The project entails multidisciplinary research among faculty from medicine, nursing, big data management, and public administration. The College of Nursing Science and the Lab for Medical Safety Against Infectious Diseases lead the project team with joint researchers such as eUNmeditong, which develops healthcare platform services, and Informining, which creates AI-based models. The Kyung Hee University Medical Center, Kyung Hee University Hospital at Gangdong, and the Jungnang-gu Public Health Center are providing advice and will undertake trial tests. System dynamics researchers work on scenario strategy modeling to minimize future risks by simulating strategies that respond to complex issues raised when infectious diseases break out. The project team is scheduled to sign a business agreement with the Jungnang-gu Office and the Jungnang-gu Public Health Center on July 6 (Wed) to facilitate the research. Going forward, the team intends to expand the multidisciplinary joint research system, strengthen the capacity of medical institutions to deal with infectious disease disasters more effectively, and educate healthcare workers to improve future responses.
2022.08.29 -
Other
A Heart-Warming Gift from a Kyung Hee Professor Who Retired 20 Years Ago
Professor Emeritus Gong-Jo Yu donated 18 million KRW to the KHU Science and Technology Fund, raising his total contribution to the University over the years to 50 million KRW. He entered Kyung Hee in 1957 and eventually joined the faculty after graduation. Marking the 20th anniversary of his retirement from the University, he decided to support the alma mater to advance further The eyes of Professor Emeritus Gong-Jo Yu sparkled when he returned to his alma mater 20 years after retirement. He seemed surprised at how changed was the campus he once occupied to as an undergraduate, a graduate, and then a professor. Professor Yu recently donated about 18 million KRW to the KHU Science and Technology Fund, making his total gift to the University reach 50 million KRW. He was warmly welcomed by Vice President Hee Seop Choi of Administration and Financial Affairs and Director Yeu Jun Yoon of the Development & External Affairs Office. A small ceremony to honor the professor was held in the reception room of the main building, where Professor Yu gave an impromptu lecture on the history of Kyung Hee. The attendees were mesmerized by his story. Professor Yu seemed to feel both familiarity and strangeness with the radically changed campus. His feelings of unfamiliarity were filled with his expectation for advancement, while the familiar sights reminded him of his days at school. He entered the University in 1957 as a history major, which was the beginning of his 64-year-old relationship with Kyung Hee. The year 1957 was three years after Kyung Hee moved to its present location in Hoegi-dong after the end of the Korean War. He said, “The College of Humanities was housed in a makeshift one-story building. I can recall the days when there was no library and we had to make do with a temporary book storage on the rooftop of the main building. I also remember seeing the buildings of the Colleges of Humanities, Science, and Physical Education being built. It is simply amazing how Kyung Hee arose from the rubbles of war and has developed into a world-class university.” One of Professor Yu’s most unforgettable memories is speeches of Dr. Young Seek Choue, the founder of the Kyung Hee Academic System. He recalled, “Dr. Choue insisted that Kyung Hee would become a world-class university, which I felt at that time would be just impossible. He constantly stressed the strength of human will and the determination to create. While standing on the empty ground scorched by war, he still spoke of the future and the 21st century, insisting that the Pacific Rim Era would come and that we had to be prepared. He repeated this message every week. I got conditioned by his ideas while listening to him again and again.” Professor Yu once led Kyung Hee’s Academic Affairs Office, College of Hotel and Tourism Management, Graduate School of Tourism, and Institute for Bright Society. Also, he served as a committee member of the Visit Korea Year Campaign setup by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (now the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism), Honorary President of the Korea Student Activists Council, and Vice President of the GCS International Korea Chapter. In 2017, he received the Distinguished Alumnus Award by the Kyung Hee Alumni Association. Although 20 years have passed since his retirement, Professor Yu has not lost his love for his alma mater. He said, “The development of my alma mater feels like my own growth. I only made a small contribution, but such a gracious welcome is more than I deserve. As a student and then a professor, I watched many buildings being added to the campus and Kyung Hee growing. I remember living in the Janghak Dormitory (the former dorm for scholarship students). The University and I are closely bound up together.” He also commented on his motivation for the gift: “I hear about the various university evaluations, and I am grateful that Kyung Hee remains among the top at home and abroad. I wanted to spur on the advancement.” His donation will be credited to the KHU Science and Technology Fund, which is also called META-KHU Future University Fund. It aims to establish an education platform for the future of Kyung Hee. “META” means that the platform will be based on the metaverse for the sake of Kyung Hee’s expansion into a virtual world. Professor Yu's sincere care for the advancement of his alma mater primes the pump to build the metaverse for next-generation professors and students.
2021.12.22 -
Other
Commemoration Ceremony to Honor the Centennial of the Founder's Birthday and the 60th Anniversary of Kyung Hee University Syste
The 100th anniversary of the birth of Dr. Miwon Young Seek Choue, the founder of Kyung Hee University System, and the 60th anniversary of Kyung Hee University System was held in the lobby of the Grand Peace Hall on November 26th The founder's centennial and the 60th anniversary of the foundation of Kyung Hee University System was an occasion to look back upon the footsteps of Kyung Hee and to reflect on the future. While commemorating our celebrated history, which has been a long series of relentless hard works to actualize a peaceful human society and universal values of humanity and to overcome the hardships of the World Wars and Cold Wars of the last century, we have etched on our heart our new duties and responsibilities in the era of civilizational transition and strengthened our will to execute them. The event was broadcast live on YouTube. The beginning of Kyung Hee’s story, facing the reality of broken conscience and deeply reflecting on the nature of the problem The commemoration ceremony began with a solo trumpet playing the hauntingly mourning melody of the song “Baugogae (Hard Rock Pass).” In the early days of the Busan Campus during the Korean War, when the founder worked as a street vendor to keep the school open and the financial difficulties faced by a new school established in a refugee camp amidst a raging war with nothing more than bare hands remained unabated, the founder and his wife often sang this song together to ease the pain of hardship and the longing for their home left in the North. With the trumpet melody of “Baugogae” reminding everyone of the incredible difficulty inflicted upon the nation at that time, an excerpt from the founder’s book Creation of the Civilized World (1951), which was the birthplace of Kyung Hee spirit, floated on the screen: “No matter how society changes or how much time passes, in order to create a conscience that can always be right, we must create a just and universally valid society. I believe that we can create a civilized world by building true freedom and peace.” The beginning of Kyung Hee was to face up to the reality of the broken conscience in the history of the tragedy of the world and the darkest misfortune for our nation and to deeply reflect upon the essence of the problem. Kyung Hee dreamed of a “civilized world,” a free and peaceful world in which spirit and matter can harmonize, a new world that transcends national and ethnic boundaries, the ideology and system of conventional politics. It was a humble beginning. On May 18, 1951, Kyung Hee took over Sungjae Academy (established in 1949) that had three makeshift shacks in Donggwang-dong, Busan. In ten years, however, Kyung Hee managed to lay the groundwork for an integrated education system from kindergarten to elementary, middle, and high schools, universities, and graduate schools. Kyung Hee University System now includes Kyung Hee Cyber University, Kyung Hee Medical Center, Kyung Hee University Hospital at Gangdong, and Humanitas Cancer Hospital: a comprehensive academic complex that encompasses the depth and breadth of education, practice, and medical care. “We have to build a life that aims to improve reality by following our dreams and aspirations for the future.” Chancellor Inwon Choue of Kyung Hee University System gave a commemorative speech titled, “At the Moment of Existence to Build the Future.” He said, “We are now coming into the ‘moment of existence.’ We must build a new future against the limits of an era of crisis in which the fundamental foundations of life, the land, sea, and atmosphere, are being shaken greatly. It is the task of our times that everyone breathing today ought to shoulder.” He emphasized that the foundational philosophy of Kyung Hee can provide both guidance and sustenance for the task. Amidst a raging war of ideological conflicts and senseless violence, Kyung Hee longed for a new world. The founder conveyed the yearning of the times in Creation of the Cultural World as follows: “The new century requires a new political ideology. The world is now a shipwreck in distress! They are waiting for salvation in the middle of a vast sea. The sinking cannot be prevented unless we find clever solution and creative innovation.” The story of the establishment of Kyung Hee was born out of the desperate call of the times. Chancellor Choue emphasized, “Now is the time to speak of another calling of the times, which is on a wholly another level.” Along with the persistent global challenges such as hunger and deprivation, human rights and public health, terrorism and violence, new threats have emerged in this era including the fear of nuclear and advanced weaponry, the foreshadowing of the emergence of artificial intelligence that may elude human control, environmental and ecological crises, and the possibility of climate disasters. He also stressed, “Reality can change according to the horizons of perception and interpretation, knowledge and discernment. We must manage the weight of reality to steer it for betterment of life without being completely consumed by it, always following our dreams and aspirations for the future. It is another responsibility of each individual towards the sustainable future we aspire to.” In that regard, Kyung Hee has the duty of the times to open the way of wisdom, cooperation, and new practice that will create infinite possibilities for the future while nurturing dreams and passion for the values of “Creating a Civilized World” and “Freedom of Study and Conscience.” Chancellor Choue emphasized these and said, "Let us create a new hope together." Miwon Memorial Committee presents a historical narrative of civilization for the future society by illuminating anew the founder's philosophy The Kyung Hee University Miwon Memorial Committee, which promotes projects that will inherit and develop the founder's life achievements and philosophy, proclaimed its vision at the presentation ceremony of the four new prints of the founder’s major books: Libertarianism of Democracy (A Re-Write), Creation of the Civilized World, Reconstruction of the Human Society, and Oughtopia. The four books represent the fundamental source of the values and thoughts that have built today's Kyung Hee University System and sets the milestones for the future of human society. Kyung Hee University System plans to deliver the four books in a time capsule and pass it on to future generations, strengthening the will to succeed and develop the spirit of Kyung Hee. Based on the vision “RE-Connect MIWON, RE-Invent the Future,” the Miwon Memorial Committee will spearhead a project that connects today’s society with the society of future while illuminating the founder’s philosophy and thoughts anew. It delves more deeply into Miwon’s philosophy of transmission, which presents the future of a human community that humanity must achieve together by looking at the universe, the world, and humans as an organic unity. The ceremony ended with a commemorative performance by professors and students of the College of Music. Together, they sang the song “Magnolia,” written by the founder, and recalled the meaning of the lyrics, which contains the passion and aspiration to overcome hardships and build a better future together through a pioneering life that opens a new era. In the face of the new challenge of the pandemic, this performance, in whichllection of video clips recorded in their own space that were later gathered and edited together, gave a remarkable impression with a special and beautiful harmony created beyond time and space.
2021.12.17