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The first Korean hospital in Kuwait

By Ahn Kang  AHNKANG Hospital, which specializes in the skeleto-muscular related chronic pain, opened a hospital in Kuwait on April 3, becoming the first Korean hospital in the country.Sponsored by the Kuwait medical foundation, the Beverly Hills Medical Center, the hospital is named AHNKANG Beverly Hills Medical Center.AHNKANG Beverly Hills Medical Center is located in Kuwait City, Salmiya State, where many international corporations are located.The hospital practices non-surgical and steroid free treatment to cure acute and chronic pain. It is located on the sixth floor of the five-star Symphony Style Hotel Kuwait.In April 2015, the Ministry of Health and Welfare signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with its Kuwaiti counterpart to boost cooperation in the healthcare sector of both countries.I held two seminars in November 2015 and February 2016 in Kuwait, and have promoted the excellence of Korean medical techniques there.In April 2016, I was the first Korean doctor to obtain a medical doctor license in Kuwait. It is very difficult to for a foreigner to obtain a doctor&r

Apr 9, 2017

Clothes dryer sales surge in S. Korea

Sales of clothes dryers have surged in South Korea, with demand to hit a new high this year amid concerns over air quality, industry sources said Thursday. The domestic sales of the clothes drying machines are anticipated to reach around 500,000-600,000 units in 2016, up by at least fivefold from the previous year, according to industry data. Its manufacturers, including Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc, have revised up the sales estimate from 200,000 units, since their first-quarter sales have far exceeded the previous forecast, they said. Lotte Himart Co., a home appliance retail outlet said earlier that the portion of clothes dryers sold in the washing machines sector surged to 20 percent this year from 5 percent recorded last year. Its March sales of clothes dryers grew by more than tenfold, compared with a year ago, it said. A clothes dryer had been considered one of the last home appliances a consumer would buy in Korea, due to the long-held perception that laundry should be hung on racks to dry under sunlight. But there has been a shift in the common belief, as a

Apr 6, 2017

Korea exports healthcare services to 20 countries

By Jung Min-hoAn increasing number of countries take advantage of Korea’s advanced healthcare services, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare Wednesday.Korean hospitals and healthcare companies started to provide their services to three more countries ― Peru, Bangladesh and Qatar ― in 2016. Given this, the number of countries to which Korea exports its healthcare services has totaled 20.According to the ministry, the most common form of healthcare export is selling techniques or information systems, followed by opening and running medical institutions and providing consulting services.Among the 155 deals Korean companies and hospitals made in other countries, China accounts for more than 38 percent with 59 cases, followed by the United States with 40 and Kazakhstan with seven.The ministry said hospitals and healthcare companies tend to sell techniques or information systems first before making investments to open medical institutions overseas.The ministry noted the medical demand for cosmetic surgery and treatment is the highest of all countries, followed by dent

Apr 5, 2017

Korea exports healthcare services to 20 countries

Danuri helps marriage migrants with hotline 1577-1366

Consultants work at the Danuri Call Center’s headquarters in Hapjeong-dong, western Seoul, Monday. / Courtesy of Ministry of Gender Equality and FamilyBy Kim Bo-eunLan, a senior consultant at Danuri Helpline for marriage migrants, has a particular client she recalls from her 11-year career at the center.Like Lan, 44, her client, 31, was a migrant from Vietnam.She came here in 2005, only to find that her Korean husband was an alcoholic with a gambling addiction. He barely earned enough money to support his family, and physically and emotionally abused his wife for seven years.The client finally reached out to Danuri, through which she was assisted in translation services in her divorce suit. She divorced and received alimony from her husband. The center also helped her find a job at a facility for marriage migrants to aid women like herself, and later as a translator.Lan continues to keep in touch with her client.Although her own circumstances were much more fortunate when she came to Korea 22 years ago, adjusting to life here was tough.“There were no places where I could

Apr 4, 2017

Danuri helps marriage migrants with hotline 1577-1366

Dr. Strange! Help doctors in Korea

  Woo Jae-hyuk By Woo Jae-hyuk A while ago, in every theater around the world, “Dr. Strange” was the most popular film for sure.It’s about how a renowned and arrogant neurosurgeon happens to become the greatest hero of all the Marvel heroes.In the movie, his teacher, the Ancient One, (spoiler alert: she was really and truly ancient) showed him the meridian chart (also known as the acupuncture chart) and MRI images to let him know there are various ways to see the world.In order to see through the true nature of the universe, one must open their eyes and expand their perspectives.This is the lesson the Ancient One was trying to present to her beloved and know-it-all apprentice. Dr. Strange refused to embrace this lesson, but with years of practice and contemplation he finally managed to expand his views by accepting the differences and render the great sorceress supreme.How is Dr. Strange related with this column? Hear me out!In Korea, there is one phenomenon Dr. Strange might find very strange. It’s a ceaseless conflict between Korean

Apr 2, 2017

Reckitt Benckiser slashes CEO's pay by 39% after safety scandal in Korea

By Park Si-sooReckitt Benckiser CEO Rakesh Kapoor, one of Britain's highest-paid CEOs, had his 2016 pay slashed by 39 percent following last year’s humidifier disinfectant scandal in South Korea.The cut was announced in the company's annual report on Friday, in which Kapoor’s total paycheck for 2016 was 14.6 million pounds ($18.2 million), down from around 23 million pounds in 2015.The scandal was one of the biggest safety disasters here in recent years. Hundreds of infants, mothers and pregnant women died after being exposed to toxic humidifier disinfectants the company made. Many other people suffered severe lung damage. The scandal triggered a huge uproar against Reckitt Benckiser and a nationwide boycott of its products. In January, the former head of Reckitt's business in South Korea was sentenced to seven years in prison.According to reports, another reason for the sharp cut was concerns of the company’s investors and British politicians over what they called the CEO’s “exorbitant” paycheck.“Avoiding a public face-off (with investors) .

Apr 2, 2017

Reckitt Benckiser slashes CEO's pay by 39% after safety scandal in Korea

Bucheon police probe animal rights abuse

By Kim Se-jeongPolice are investigating a pet school employee for abusing animals in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province.According to the local police agency, the 29-year-old male employee is accused of throwing and beating a dog, a violation of the Animal Protection Law.The suspect’s brutality is featured on a YouTube video where he grabs a dog by its collar, drags it, hits it against the wall and kicks it. As the dog runs away, the man pulls it back and beats it again, this time with a white object. While all this is happening, other dogs surrounding them are running around nervously.When the video footage was released on social media Thursday, it instantly went viral, drawing strong reactions. On Facebook, the video footage received more than 3,500 likes and 350 comments.“That man has a problem,” one wrote. “We need a law to ban people like him from looking after dogs.”Another Facebook user wrote about her own experience: “My dog was sent to a dog school and died after one day. The owner didn’t explain to me why. I think I now know what might have

Mar 28, 2017

Childbirths down for 14th consecutive month in January

The number of childbirths in South Korea fell for the 14th month in a row in January from a year earlier amid a late marriage trend and a rapidly aging population, a government report showed Tuesday.About 35,100 babies were born in January, down 11.1 percent, or 4,400, from 39,500 tallied a year earlier, according to the data from Statistics Korea. The figure has been on a steady decline since it posted a 2.4 percent on-year drop in December last year.The latest number also marked the lowest new childbirths for any January since 2001, when the statistical office started to compile such data. But it is higher than an all-time monthly low of 27,200 newborns set in December last year.South Korea has been suffering a chronically low birthrate and aging population for decades, as they are feared to reduce the workforce and drive up welfare costs, undermining the growth potential of Asia's fourth-largest economy.The number of babies born in 2016 reached a record low of 406,300 last year, despite the government-led promotions and incentives to encourage young people to have more babies.Mean

Mar 28, 2017

Childbirths down for 14th consecutive month in January

Kwangdong obtains patent for male fertility drug

By Lee Kyung-min    Kwangdong Pharmaceutical’s Kyungokko medicineKwangdong Pharmaceutical obtained a patent from the Japan Patent Office for a drug ingredient in its Kyungokko medicine that helps treat male infertility, the company said Sunday. The patent expires on Feb. 27, 2035.The soft extract made of rehmannia glutinosa, poria cocos, ginseng and honey, is used to treat fatigue in patients who underwent surgery or those who suffer from chronic exhaustion in general, according to the company.The patent was based on a firm-commissioned study conducted by Kyung Hee University for one year starting in December 2011.According to the comparative lab rat tests, the control group rats injected with the extract showed an increase in the weight of their testicles, sperm motility and sperm count.     “We hope our product will treat male infertility, potentially allowing previously infertile men to conceive naturally,” a company official said.Kyungokko was first exported to Japan in 1981 and its popularity there led to the formation of a gr

Mar 26, 2017

Kwangdong obtains patent for male fertility drug

Learning to live with cameras everywhere

With 8 million surveillance cameras operating everywhere from train stations to streets, Korea is now one of the most-watched nations in the world. / YonhapSurveillance is more intense than ever ― at the cost of privacyBy Jung Min-hoAnyone who walks around almost any city in Korea is recorded on video. With 8 million surveillance cameras operating everywhere from subway stations to streets, Korea is now one of the most-watched nations in the world.As surveillance cameras have become increasingly common as a crime prevention method and forensic evidence in court, concerns have also been raised about people’s privacy and liberty.The National Information Society Agency estimated in 2015 that there were about 8 million closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed across the country, though it is difficult to know the exact number.For police officers, this is welcome news. CCTV cameras help them not only track down criminal suspects but also provide evidence to prove their guilt in court. Police and prosecutors have increasingly relied on video footage in doing their work in r

Mar 26, 2017

Health

Health

The first Korean hospital in Kuwait

Clothes dryer sales surge in S. Korea

Korea exports healthcare services to 20 countries

Danuri helps marriage migrants with hotline 1577-1366

Dr. Strange! Help doctors in Korea

Reckitt Benckiser slashes CEO's pay by 39% after safety scandal in Korea

Bucheon police probe animal rights abuse

Childbirths down for 14th consecutive month in January

Kwangdong obtains patent for male fertility drug

Learning to live with cameras everywhere

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