"Let's Nurture 'Researching Doctors'... Pohang City Holds 'Engineering + Medical School' Education Policy Seminar to Train Physician-Scientists"

Need to Train Physician-Scientists to Lead Bio and Medical Industries, Urgent Establishment of Research-Centered Medical Schools

Unified Voices of Lee Jun-seok, Leader of People Power Party; Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk; and Lee Kang-deok,

On the 8th, Pohang City, Gyeongbuk, held a seminar on "Training Physician-Scientists and Innovating Medical Education Policies to Lead the National Bio-Medical Healthcare Industry."

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Se-ryeong] Pohang City, Gyeongbuk Province, held a ‘Policy Seminar on Training Physician-Scientists and Innovating Medical Education to Lead the National Bio-Medical Healthcare Industry’ on the 8th in collaboration with Gyeongsangbuk-do, National Assembly members Kim Jeong-jae and Kim Byeong-wook, and POSTECH.

Attendees included Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party; Kim Ki-hyun, floor leader; Cho Hae-jin, chairman of the Education Committee; Lee Cheol-woo, governor of Gyeongbuk Province; Lee Kang-deok, mayor of Pohang; National Assembly members Kim Jeong-jae and Kim Byeong-wook; officials from central government ministries such as the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health and Welfare; and experts in the relevant fields.

The seminar, held in the second small conference room of the National Assembly Members’ Office Building, was a forum to consider a new medical education system to train physician-scientists who will lead the future bio-industry.

POSTECH President Kim Muhwan, Han Hee-cheol, chairman of the Korean Association of Medical Colleges (KAMC), and Kim Beop-min, professor of the Department of Bio and Brain Engineering at Korea University, each gave presentations on the themes of ‘The Necessity of Engineering-Based Medical Education Innovation,’ ‘The Necessity of Training Physician-Scientists,’ and ‘The Role of Physician-Scientists in the Bio-Healthcare Industry.’

President Kim introduced the case of the Carle Illinois College of Medicine in the United States, the world’s first engineering-based medical school, emphasizing that training physician-scientists is the driving force for South Korea’s future development and that a research-oriented medical school based on engineering should be established nationally.

Professor Kim discussed the correlation between training physician-scientists and the medical device industry, arguing that physician-scientists play a role as protagonists in the healthcare industry by providing clinical evidence for various technologies and leading corporate growth.

Chairman Han presented the practical problems and improvement plans of the physician-scientist training process in Korea, stating that medical care is science-based treatment and that systematic and continuous training of physician-scientists throughout the entire cycle is essential.

During the panel discussion, led by POSTECH Graduate School Dean Ban Chang-il, participants including KAIST Medical Science Graduate School Professor Kim Ha-il, Cha Hospital Research Director Lee Il-seop, Korean Medical Association Executive Vice President Lee Jeong-geun, Vice President of Pfizer Korea Kang Seong-sik, Welt CEO Kang Seong-ji, Ministry of Education University Academic Affairs Division Director Kim Tae-gyeong, and Ministry of Health and Welfare Medical Workforce Policy Division Director Cha Jeon-gyeong exchanged opinions.

Professor Kim from KAIST pointed out problems and proposed alternatives regarding the physician-scientist training system and cases, while Vice President Kang and others raised their voices on the necessity of training physician-scientists for the development of the bio-industry.

Mayor Lee Kang-deok of Pohang said, “Training physician-scientists is of utmost importance to secure national bio-industry competitiveness,” adding, “Physician-scientist training should be discussed not only in related fields but also at the national level, and a research-oriented medical school based on engineering is essential at the center of increasing medical demand due to aging and medical technology development.”

Governor Lee Cheol-woo said, “Training physician-scientists is essential for the future development of the bio-industry,” and “Establishing a research-oriented medical school is a task directly linked to national competitiveness.”

Assemblyman Kim Jeong-jae said, “To enhance research competitiveness in the bio field, ‘researching doctors’ are essential,” and “It is urgent to establish a research-oriented medical school that integrates medicine and science in connection with science and engineering research-oriented universities like POSTECH.”

Assemblyman Kim Byeong-wook said, “If a research-oriented medical school is established at research and development specialized engineering universities like POSTECH or KAIST, it could generate considerable synergy.”

Party leader Lee Jun-seok said, “The bio-industry is a core industry that will lead future national development,” and “I will work to make the training of physician-scientists who will lead the bio-medical industry a national policy.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.