1. Anam Clinic |
2. Seoul University Hospital |
3. SoonChunHyang Hospitalян |
4. Samsung Medical Centre |
5. Asan Clinic |
Before travelling to Korea for treatment, it is important to know the advantages and disadvantages of local medical facilities. What is the reputation of the clinic? Which doctors are providing treatment? What kind of technology is in the hospital? All these questions are very important and need answers. This article will help you get them and figure out which clinic is right for you.
ASAN MEDICAL CENTRE
One of the largest hospitals in Korea, it has 2,764 beds. The hospital receives about 20,000 foreign patients annually. It has 44 departments and 27 specialised centres. More than 70,000 successful surgical procedures are performed here each year.
- WHAT ARE THE CLINIC’S ACHIEVEMENTS?
In 2012, the clinic was recognised by the Korean Standards Association as the best medical centre in terms of patient care quality.
In 2024, the clinic was recognised as the #3 best hospital in the world in endocrinology, #4 in urology, #5 in gastroenterology, #6 in oncology and #8 in neurology by Newsweek magazine.
THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT DOCTORS USE AND THEIR RESULTS
The hospital ranks first in Korea in the number of successful liver, kidney and pancreas transplants. The one-year survival rate after organ transplantation at Asan Hospital is as follows: liver – 98%, kidney – 98,5%, heart – 95%, lungs – 80%. The Breast Cancer Treatment Centre of Asan Medical Centre has shown excellent results in breast cancer treatment with an 89,3% five-year survival rate for patients with all stages of cancer between 1989 and 2008.
Between 2003 and 2008, the 5-year survival rate for all patients was 91,9% – a 20% increase in 15-year survival rates.
The clinic performs more than 800 pancreatic cancer surgeries every year. Asan Medical Centre successfully performed the first heart transplant in Korea in 1992, with patients living for more than 25 years as of 2017. Since then, doctors have performed more than 600 heart transplants, accounting for 45% of all heart transplants in Korea.
In 2024, the world’s first robotic hysterectomy was successfully performed on a severely obese patient.
To achieve such high results, medical experts are constantly engaged in clinical research. Asan Heart Institute is a world leader in the medical field as it houses the largest angiography and operating theatre in the country, the best medical professionals and excellent teamwork. More than 3,500 coronary angiographies, 2,000 percutaneous coronary artery interventions and 300 coronary artery bypass surgeries are performed at the Heart Institute every year.
FAMOUS DOCTORS
Dr Yun-koo Kang – is an oncologist who treats gastric cancer, liver cancer, and gastrointestinal sarcoma.
Dr Duk-hyun Kang – is a cardiologist, who treats heart valve disease, coronary vessel pathologies, and coronary heart disease.
To travel to one of the best South Korean clinics for diagnosis or treatment, please contact the coordinating doctors of the international medical platform MediGlobus.
SOONCHUNHYANG UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL
SoonChunHyang Hospital is a medical institution with a broad profile. It has 31 departments and 16 specialised centres.
- WHAT ARE THE HOSPITAL’S ACHIEVEMENTS?
SoonChunHyang University Hospital is accredited by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare. It is one of the 17 hospitals in the world and the first in the country to be certified by the World Endoscopy Organisation.
In 2023, SoonChunHyang Hospital received the highest ratings in pulmonology, psychiatry, neurology and oncology by the Korea Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (KHRAS).
THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT DOCTORS USE AND THEIR RESULTS
When treating cancer, doctors pay great attention to the introduction of new methods and technologies. SoonСhunHyang University Hospital has the latest Gamma Knife 4G device for the treatment of many cancers.
This technology is used to perform precise surgeries to remove tumours painlessly and bloodlessly. There is also virtually no impact on healthy tissue when using the technology.
Doctors use the Novalis TX stereotactic radiotherapy device for cerebrovascular disorders, neurological and oncological diseases of the spinal cord and brain.
There is no damage to healthy tissue and no need for surgical interventions when using this technology.
Specialists at SoonChunHyang University Hospital use an innovative method – tomotherapy – to treat single and multiple neoplasms. This technology makes it possible to treat Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
FAMOUS DOCTORSА
Professor Ah Ram Chang – has cured over 900 patients of prostate, brain, lung, liver and other cancers with CyberKnife.
Professor Nam Ge Hyun – – has treated more than 1,000 patients with early-stage cervical cancer with uterus preservation.
SEOUL STATE UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL
For more than 120 years, the medical institution has enjoyed an impeccable reputation. The hospital receives 30,000 foreign patients from 80 countries per year. The hospital provides single, double, and triple rooms with the necessary amenities.
- WHAT ARE THE HOSPITAL’S ACHIEVEMENTS?
In 2019, Seoul National University Hospital was ranked as the best multi-speciality hospital in Korea for the 19th time and the first in the country to receive the ISQUA International Accreditation Certificate.
In 2024, Seoul National University Hospital won the title of ‘Best Brand in the Last 24 Years’ in the General Hospitals category by KMAC ranking.
THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT DOCTORS USE AND THEIR RESULTS
Every year the Oncology Centre performs more than 700 neurosurgical operations, 600 radiosurgical procedures for the treatment of brain neoplasms, removes more than 1,200 breast tumours and 1,000 gastric tumours.
The 5-year survival rate after breast cancer treatment is 91,9%, which is higher than in European and American clinics. The hospital has the highest 5-year survival rate after prostate cancer treatment, which is 96,6%.
In the neurosurgery department, doctors perform treatment with the latest model of Gamma Knife. The device is highly accurate in removing brain tumours and minimises damage to healthy tissue.
The success rate of this technology is 90% and complications do not exceed 3-7%. Due to the absence of incisions, the patient can go home after 2 days. Seoul State University Hospital successfully performs organ transplants. It performs 400 kidney and liver transplants per year. The success rate of liver transplants is 99% and the 5-year survival rate is 82%. The 5-year survival rate after kidney transplantation is 92%, which is higher than in the United States.
RENOWNED DOCTORS
Professor Yung Jue-Bang – is an oncologist, President of the Institute of Biochemical Research, and Director of the Clinical Research Centre. He is involved in the development of antitumor drugs.
Professor Baek Goo Hyun – is an orthopaedic surgeon and President of Asia Pacific Hand Surgery. He is involved in the treatment of congenital limb anomalies, wrist and elbow diseases.
SAMSUNG MEDICAL CENTRE
A generalist hospital with 40 departments, 10 specialist centres, 120 specialist clinics.
- WHAT ARE THE HOSPITAL’S ACHIEVEMENTS?
Samsung Medical Centre has been ranked number one in the National Satisfaction Index (NCSI) 14 times, and the hospital has been selected as Korea’s top medical brand 12 times.
THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT DOCTORS USE AND THEIR RESULTS
The medical centre is the first in the world to identify mutation patterns in brain tumours, which is contributing to the development of genomic therapy; it is also the first in the world to detect atypical Singleton-Merten syndrome. In the clinic, doctors achieve great results in oncology treatment, so in the case of leukaemia in children the success rate is 82%, the survival rate in acute leukaemia is 50.7%, the success rate of stem cell transplantation reaches 68%, which is higher than in the USA.
Specialists at Samsung Medical Centre perform organ transplantation with a high success rate. After liver transplantation, the 5-year survival rate is 95%. Bloodless liver transplantation, transplantation of homogeneous pancreatic tissue, intestine and liver transplantation for a 3-month-old child were also performed at the clinic for the first time in Korea.
In the department of neurosurgery, doctors use a new model of Gamma Knife device. The clinic became the first in Asia and the 6th in the world to use this technology. The previous version of Gamma Knife is also available in the medical centre. The clinic is one of the 4 in the world that uses 2 units of this device.
Surgical interventions using the latest generation da Vinci robot are also actively practised here. In 2022, the clinic passed the milestone of more than 15,000 successful surgeries.
Samsung Medical Centre is one of the few places in the world where proton therapy is performed. It is a high-tech alternative to radiation therapy, which is used in the treatment of head and neck tumours and other types of cancer. Proton therapy has a significantly lower level of irradiation of healthy tissues, so it can be used in the treatment of children, as well as when higher radiation doses are needed.
FAMOUS DOCTORS
Professor Choi Han Yong – is an oncologist with over 32 years of experience. He specialises in the treatment of kidney and prostate oncology.
Professor Kim Duk Kyung – is a popular cardiologist in Korea. He treats Marfan syndrome, Takayashu disease, and pulmonary embolism.
ANAM HOSPITAL AT KORYO UNIVERSITY
The hospital consists of 36 departments and 25 specialised centres. The hospital provides its patients with single, double and VIP rooms, which are equipped with everything necessary for a comfortable stay during treatment. About 1,5 million patients from all over the world visit the hospital every year.
- WHAT ARE THE CLINIC’S ACHIEVEMENTS?
In 2011, the hospital won the Patients’ Choice Award and was also awarded by the Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare. The hospital has been successfully accredited by Joint Commission International five times.
In 2021, the clinic was ranked among the ‘Top 200 Best Hospitals in the World’ by the American magazine Newsweek.
In 2020, the hospital was recognised as the 3rd best hospital in the country according to the National Customer Satisfaction Index (NCSI) national ranking.
THE TECHNOLOGIES THAT DOCTORS USE AND THEIR RESULTS
For foreign patients, the Diagnostic Centre of the clinic has developed a One-stop high-pass programme, which allows one to undergo examinations and get the results within 3 days.
The centre has at its disposal the latest 3 Tesla MRI model scanners. In addition to more detailed imaging, the design of the device reduces anxiety in claustrophobic patients and children.
Anam Clinic Gastroenterology Centre holds a patent for a continuous endoscopic suture machine that allows fast and reliable stitching of tissues. The centre is also a leader in NOTES surgeries, which are performed through natural openings in the body. Such an approach prevents scar formation, reduces the risk of infection, and speeds up the recovery process.
At Anam Cardiology Centre, not a single patient has died during operations. About 300 surgical interventions for atrial fibrillation have been performed here. Specialists of the Oncology Centre of Anam Clinic were the first in Asia to use the Halcyon 2.0 cancer treatment system. The device enables treatment of the most complex forms of cancer, shortens therapy time and reduces damage to healthy tissues.
The clinic is actively using robotic surgery technology, and local doctors have already performed more than 6,000 successful interventions.
FAMOUS DOCTORS
Professor Yu Cheol Woong – was the first in the world to successfully repair an aortic valve with severe aortic regurgitation using a special ring.
Professor Kim Seon Hahn – developed a robotic method for the surgical treatment of colorectal cancer.
Professor Yoon Eul-sik – was the first in Korea to perform robotic breast reconstruction surgery with minimal scarring, and the first in the world to perform chest reconstruction surgery on a patient with Poland syndrome, a rare congenital disorder in which the pectoralis major muscle is partially or completely missing.
Summary
South Korea is a popular destination for medical tourists. People come here for plastic surgeries, cancer treatment, cardiovascular diseases, orthopaedic and neurological pathologies. The country’s top clinics are mostly located in Seoul.
Among the medical institutions, which are in demand among foreigners, are: SoonChunHyang Hospital, Anam Clinic University, Asan Hospital, Samsung Medical Centre and Seoul State University Hospital.
South Korea is home to renowned doctors who have many years of experience and actively use modern technology in treating patients. Such specialists include Professor Kim Duk-Kyang, Dr Duk-Hyun Kang, Choi Han-Yeon and others.
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