Director Im Hyun-seok Receives Asan Award for 24 Years of Treating Over 300,000 Patients in Uganda, Africa

Director Go Young-cho of Yosep Clinic Receives Medical Volunteer Award
'Jiguchon Nanum Movement' Social Service Award (Organization)

Director Lim Hyun-seok (59) of Bethesda Medical Center, who has practiced medicine in Uganda, Africa for 24 years, was selected as the grand prize winner of the 36th Asan Award.

Director Im Hyun-seok of Bethesda Medical Center and pediatric patients in Uganda. [Image source=Asan Social Welfare Foundation]

The Asan Social Welfare Foundation announced the list of Asan Award recipients, including Director Lim, on the 24th. Lim, a graduate of Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, obtained his pediatric specialist qualification in 1999 and left for Uganda in 2000 with his wife, who was a medical school classmate, and their two young children.

In 2002, he opened the Bethesda Clinic in Kampala, the capital of Uganda. Starting with five staff members, the hospital has been providing medical care to general patients at 30-50% of the cost of local private hospitals and offering free treatment to the poor and disabled.

Lim’s wife, Choi Young-dan, who obtained a specialist qualification in occupational and environmental medicine in Korea, also enrolled in the local national university medical school to treat patients with blindness and earned a specialist qualification in ophthalmology.

Thanks to the dedication of Director Lim, his wife, and the staff, Bethesda Hospital now has six departments and 37 employees, treating an average of 1,900 patients per month. The total number of patients treated at this hospital has reached 300,000.

In addition to the hospital, Director Lim has established clinics on islands for marginalized Ugandan residents living in areas without medical facilities, providing treatment and health education. He frequently conducts mobile medical volunteer services and has held medical camps at refugee settlements.

The number of residents treated by Director Lim and his medical team at the remote clinics over 15 years is about 45,000, and the refugees treated at medical camps over 23 years number approximately 38,000.

The Asan Award for Medical Volunteer Service was awarded to Director Ko Young-cho of Joseph Clinic (71), and the Social Service Award (organization) went to the international development NGO Global Sharing Movement.

Director Ko has provided medical volunteer services for 51 years at free clinics such as Joseph Clinic, Jeonjin Clinic, and Raphael Clinic in the Yeongdeungpo slum area, treating about 30,000 patients in medical blind spots, including slum residents and migrant workers.

To spread the value of volunteer work, he connected over 50 fellow doctors to volunteer activities and established the first medical volunteer course at Konkuk University School of Medicine. This course, which has conveyed the "joy of volunteering," featured lectures by notable figures such as Father Kim Jung-ho, Korea’s first priest and doctor.

Founded in 1998 with the goal of eradicating global poverty and developing civil society, the Global Sharing Movement has focused on education and income increase for residents of developing countries through its "Cow Bank" project.

The Cow Bank is a revolving microloan project that lends money at a 1% low interest rate to purchase cows in target villages. After three years, when the loan is repaid, the funds are used to support cows for other farmers.

Starting in Vietnam, this project helped 4,000 households, including small-scale farmers and disabled people, build assets and overcome poverty through cows. It expanded into livestock banks supporting dairy cows for poor Mongolian nomads and cow banks in Rwanda, giving hope to many neighbors around the world.

Additionally, the Asan Award for Welfare Practice was given to five individuals including Kim Guk-bo (44), the Volunteer Award to five individuals or groups including the Nauri Volunteer Group, and the Filial Piety Family Award to five individuals including Kim Myung-hee (56).

The Asan Award was established in 1989 to encourage individuals or organizations who have dedicated themselves to helping neighbors in need or practicing filial piety. The award ceremony will be held on November 25 at the auditorium of the Asan Life Sciences Research Institute at Seoul Asan Medical Center. The grand prize winner will receive 300 million KRW, and the winners of the Medical Volunteer Service Award and Social Service Award will each receive 200 million KRW. In total, 18 winners (including organizations) across six categories will be awarded a total prize of 1 billion KRW.

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