Korean appointed president of global hospital federation
Kim Kwang-tae, left, honorary president of the Korean Hospital Association, shakes hands with Thomas Dolan, outgoing president of the International Hospital Federation, at its 38th general assembly in Oslo, Norway, Wednesday. / Yonhap
By Kwon Ji-youn
Kim Kwang-tae, honorary president of the Korean Hospital Association (KHA), was inaugurated on Wednesday as president of the International Hospital Federation (IHF) at its 38th general assembly in Oslo, Norway.
Kim, 76, is known in Korea as the “president of medicine.” He is the first Korean to hold said position in the federation.
“My appointment as president is proof that Korea has been recognized as a medical nation,” Kim said. “I also think Seoul’s successful hosting of the IHF general assembly meeting in 2007 played a part in my appointment.”
The IHF is an alliance of healthcare organizations and hospitals. It was established in 1992 and is based in Geneva, Switzerland.
It is a successor to the International Hospital Association, which was established in 1929 at the first International Hospital Congress, held in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Kim was nominated as the president at an IHF management convention held in Hong Kong in June 2011. The nomination was then approved at the 37th general assembly meeting held in November 2011 in Dubai.
Kim appealed to the members of the federation by proposing a mission that entails a “bigger, stronger and financially sustainable IHF.”
He said that he hopes to take this chance to promote Korea’s advantages in the medical field throughout the world and to uphold Korea’s confidence in healthcare.
Kim’s inauguration is also expected to help domestic projects that are focusing on serving foreign patients. The government, along with medical scholars, is working to find its way into the global medical market.
Kim graduated from the Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine. He took office as the KHA’s 31st president in 2002 and then as director at IHF. He served as president of the Asia Hospital Federation from 2007 to 2009.
Currently, he is chairman of Daerim Saint Mary’s Hospital, Seoul, and director of the Catholic Education Foundation. He received an order of civil merit (Moran medal) in 1998.
Kim expressed his wishes to develop better health and medical treatment for people around the world.
“I also hope to help the Korean medical industry reach a level at which they can compete with developed countries in healthcare,” he said.
Kim will hold a press conference in Seoul on June 28 when he returns from Norway.