I arrived at Hanbit Children’s Hospital a few weeks ago, excited to see hundreds of patients, improve my Korean, and play with super cute kids, and in many ways the hospital did not disappoint. Unfortunately after a few days in clinic, I came down with a bad case of the flu. Even though I received the flu shot in America, there is a running joke at the hospital that all new employees/health workers all get the flu within the first month. I guess I was not immune to the trend. Additionally, there is a saying that goes “the Korean flu is a wicked flu” and I can attest that such a saying is completely true. Even as I write, I am still suffering from some lingering symptoms.
Nevertheless, in the days I have been able to participate in medical activities, there are a few things that I have observed/learned. First off, the facilities and precautions that are taken at a Korean hospital are vastly different than those taken at most clinics/outpatients in the United States. Hand sanitizers are not used as widely as in the States and multiple patients in one room is still very much an accepted practice in Korea. In one room, there were five kids with influenza and their mothers too, and no one batted an eye. Even with all these differences in precautions and practices, I don’t think the health outcomes or quality of care is much different. One thing they are though, however, is much more cost effective.
Cost is what influences the next major difference I noticed, the limited amount of time doctors get with their patients. In America, we complain because we get 15 minutes for follow ups and at least 30 minutes for new patients, however in Korea, new patients can take around 5 minutes with follow ups taking around 3 minutes. Imagine that? How can you learn anything about your patients or provide any standard of care in that time? You can and this is how they do it.
Very little time is spent on complaints other than your chief complaint, which means little time spent on erroneous review of systems of physical exams. Further, even less time is spent charting. They just indicate exactly why the patient went in and exactly what you did for the patient. Lastly, patients seem much more healthy, with far fewer chronic health problems and are able to access the doctor much easier. Some patients were seen three or four times in the week with ease.
Why the need for such rapid care? Doctors are only reimbursed around $10 a patient. Imagine, how many patients you need to see a day just to cover your expenses? Further, this requires some creativity, such as metal tongue depressors being sterilized and reused. This is good news for the patients, however, as they literally pay pennies for their doctors visits and most medications, and yet some patients still complain. I guess complaining is just a part of human nature, regardless of the circumstances. The complaining goes beyond the cost and several patients also seemed to complain about the type of care and medical decisions that were made. Doctors seem more respected in America.
While from the outside, Hanbit Children’s Hospital looks no different than any other children’s hospitals, once you step inside, you realize that everything is different. Hanbit was started by a doctor couple, Drs. Cho Sung Bum and Lee Sung Sook, who seek to use their skills of being doctors to heal the physical body, and their commitment to Christ to heal and save the soul. With that said, they use the institution as a training ground for health professionals, receptionists, etc. who wish to apply their love for the gospel of Jesus Christ in the workplace. This has brought health professionals from across the country and across the globe. Further, the top floor of the hospital serves as a meeting place for pastors, deacons, and elders from across the city and neighboring cities. It is a safe comfortable place for people to meet outside the confines and restrictions of individual churches.
And while God is moving and working through the physical building, the real work starts with the two pillars of Hanbit, Drs. Cho Sung Bum and Lee Sung Sook. While they are both incredibly intelligent, Dr. Cho is actually an MD, PhD, they are two of the most humble and selfless people I have ever met. Most people are able to “act” humble when in front of others, but I have spent nearly every hour that I am not sleeping with the couple, and I can honestly say that they truly consider themselves and their material gains as Paul did in Phil. 3:8-9 (NIV). “8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.” The only time they use their positions of authority and influence is to share the gospel message to people like the mayor of Gyeongju or other important figures in the area. They always put others above themselves, from things as small as which seat they will sit in in the car to as large as who they will donate their apartment to (which they gave to a local pastor). Their walk of faith has brought numerous people to Christ through the things they say and more importantly, the things they do. I had heard amazing things about them before I got to the hospital, and two weeks into the experience realized that everything that was said about them is true and more.
This is the greatest lesson I take form this experience, that I am nothing without Christ and without the Gospel firmly rooted in my heart, life is meaningless. With that said, I hope to use the gifts God has blessed me with to glorify his name and kingdom and share the love of Jesus Christ and salvation to others. From the things I say to the things I do, I pray that God uses me in my fields each and every day to strengthen other believers and establish new believers. I will remember the things I have seen and experienced at Hanbit Childrens Hospital for the rest of my life and hope that I can stand as a witness as Drs. Cho Sung Bum and Lee Sung Sook have done and be a light in my city like Hanbit is for Gyeongju!
This is my last week here and I have a few additional things that have touched me. First off, I have come to the conclusion that even with everything I have done in my life thus far and all the things I will do, all my hopes and desires, my goals and plans, I am nothing without Christ. David, the King of the Israelites, stated it best in Psalms 16:2 (NIV), “I say to the LORD, ‘You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.’” This verse has been implanted into my heart. If a righteous King proclaims that he has no good thing without Christ, who am I to say anything less? Everything I do must be for the Lord, everything I do must be for His glory and to praise His name to the very ends of the earth, Psalms 71:23 (NIV), “My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you…” I leave knowing that while being a voice for the voiceless is my commission here on earth, if I don’t do such things with Christ at the core of my life, it will all be for naught.
