ISSUE 8

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Dear Colleagues,

Hope everyone is well as the holidays are approaching.  In this issue we feature two remarkable figures in Heath care. One is Dr. David Song, an academic plastic surgeon with an endowed chair. He is Professor at University of Chicago where he is heavily involved in teaching being residency director and associate dean for continuing medical education. As academic plastic surgeons the scope of care is quite broad but involve patients with congenital deformities, but also burn victims and cancer patients who need the skills to make the surgeries necessary to make the patient feel more whole. His research interest is in the plastic surgery of oncologic patients. He is the first Asian/Korean to be president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons which is quite an accomplishment and wants to promote the field as a field beyond the cultural stereotype. He is very forward thinking utilizing social media which is progressive and will have a wider role in medicine. Plastic surgery is a medical specialty with an edge of artistry. Korean plastic surgeons are known to be highly skilled in their craft. Hope much success for his term for the American Society Plastic Surgery. 

The other healthcare figure feature in this issue is Paula Wilson. She is President of the Joint Commission International (JCI). The JC is a very important accreditation organization in U.S. Healthcare with onsite inspection of hospitals assures standards and quality which has been in existence since the 1950’s. The JC international is a more recent development but is an opportunity for hospitals throughout the world to assure high stand and quality and a number of hospital in Korea have this prestigious accreditation and the list will grow. JCI will be more involved in global healthcare, and will be challenging in the developing countries as resources may be more limited but the standards will be the same.

As the end of the year is approaching it is time of reflection and WKMO has been busy. The regional forum in London, UK was reaching out to the European continent and the English-Korean medical collaboration kick started by KHIDI UK is well underway to the benefit of two very successful and efficient healthcare systems. The annual meeting in Los Angeles was very intriguing with TED style talks which were very stimulating with Neurology, Psychiatry and Imaging forums. Congressman Mike Honda of San Jose was the humanitarian awardee for his leadership in Korean Comfort women issue as well as his efforts with hepatitis in the Asian population. Like to thank the all the sponsors including Samsung and KHIDI. A big thanks goes to Dr. Chul Hyun, the staff of WKMO and editorial sraffs of World Korean Medical Journal. Look forward to a productive 2016. Happy Holidays to you and your family.

David Y. Ko, MD

Publisher

President of WKMO

Keck School of Medicine of USC

FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

In her fascinating book titled “The Making of Asia America : A History (2015)”, an award winning American historian and the Director of the Immigration History Research Center at the University of Minnesota, Erika Lee tells the little-known history of Asian Americans and their role in American life, from the arrival of the first Asians in the Americas to the present-day. She wrote “we were a despised minority when Asian immigrants threatened 19th century and early 20th century white labor”.

Yet since the Cold War, Asian Americans were described as a Model Minority valorizing the promise of American meritocracy. Maybe ‘Asian Americans’ are the unique ethnic group in American history which changed its socioeconomic status so rapidly. Sociology professor Jennifer Lee of University of California, Irvine, claims that it isn’t Asian “culture” or any other attribute of ethnicity that is responsible for Asian Americans achievements or success. Instead, it’s a unique form of privilege that is grounded in the socioeconomic origins of some - not all - Asian immigrant groups.

We witness this privilege in many success stories of Asian Americans including medical fields, and sharing such stories may offer insights into how we should help our children and communities.

As the Cover Story of the November edition, we featured another passionate achiever and inspiring leader in the medical arena. Dr. David H. Song, the president of American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) as the first Asian American physician was introduced. Under his leadership, ASPS will take care of patients with congenital deformities, like cleft lip/palate, burn victims, hand trauma, reconstruction after cancer and much more. He mentioned that plastic surgery is in essence of a field of innovative problem solving and remains one of the last specialties that solve problems all over the body and he will broadcast this message with clarity during his year as the president.

In our Entrepreneur Interview, we meet Paula Wilson of Joint Commission International. Having long experience as a teacher and professor, she advises that a good leader needs to be a good teacher. Communicating about the vision and strategy of an organization with colleagues and inspire them to get the work done, is the similar essence of what teaching demands.

New trends and issues of bio-health industry were featured in the articles. Special reports of WKMO and global initiative of a clinical-stage biotech Enzychem Lifesciences of Korea were featured.

Many distinguished writers shared their knowledge and insights in this edition. I wish that our readers will find this exciting selection of articles to be helpful and inspiring.

Thank you.

DoHyun Cho, PhD

Editor in Chief

President & CEO of W Medical Strategy Group

Chairman of New York Health Forum