On October 30, Eulji University Medical Center held the symposium at the Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. The event was moderated by Professor Kwak Jae-man from Uijeongbu Eulji University Hospital and featured notable attendees, including Park Jun-young, chairman of the Eulji Foundation; Yoo Tak-geun, president of Eulji University Medical Center; and Lee Byung-hoon, chair of the symposium committee and a professor in the respiratory medicine department at Uijeongbu Eulji University Hospital. Other participants included Kwak Soon-hun, director of health policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, as well as experts and medical professionals from the fields of AI, neuroscience, and robotics.
The event began with opening remarks and congratulatory speeches, followed by keynote lectures from Professor Seo Jun-beom of Asan Medical Center and Professor Jeong Jae-seung of KAIST. The agenda included three regular sessions focusing on data-driven healthcare strategies, clinical applications in hospital settings, and the evolution of physical AI and robotic surgery and care.
Chairman Park Jun-young: 'Without change, we will fall behind... Full support for AI in patient care'
In his opening remarks, Chairman Park Jun-young reflected on the founding principles of the late Dr. Park Young-ha, emphasizing the need for bold innovation in the age of AI. He noted, "Eulji Medical Center has uniquely grown over the past 70 years by establishing hospitals in areas like Daejeon and Nowon, Seoul, rather than following others to affluent regions like Gangnam or Suwon. This aligns with our founder's belief that hospitals must be where patients need them most, ensuring that we can care for patients effectively wherever they are."Park expressed a sense of urgency, stating, "As we celebrate our 70th anniversary, we must recognize that failing to adapt in this rapidly changing era could lead to obsolescence. While healthcare professionals are inherently good, the current infrastructure does not adequately support the adoption of new knowledge and technologies." He emphasized the importance of integrating AI into healthcare to enhance diagnosis, treatment, and, most importantly, patient prevention and care. He pledged continued support for the development of medical AI.
Kwak Soon-hun, director of health policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, acknowledged the foundation's commitment to improving public health over the past 70 years, stating, "Since Dr. Park Young-ha opened a gynecology clinic in Eulji-ro in 1956, the Eulji Foundation has dedicated itself to enhancing the health of the nation." He highlighted the government's recent announcement of the "AI Basic Healthcare Strategy" aimed at addressing gaps in regional, essential, and public healthcare.
Lee Byung-hoon also expressed hope that the symposium would serve as a platform for sharing insights on the future of medical AI, big data policies, and innovations in early detection of severe patients, digital pathology, and robotic surgery.
Professor Seo Jun-beom: 'From AlphaGo to a Korean Medical Foundation Model'
The first keynote speaker, Professor Seo Jun-beom from Asan Medical Center, discussed the past decade of medical AI and the paradigm shift triggered by large language models. He noted that as of early this year, the Korean Food and Drug Administration had approved 549 AI medical devices, ranking third globally after the U.S. and China. However, he pointed out that only 49 of these technologies had entered the market through health insurance coverage or temporary non-coverage, leaving 91.1% (500 devices) unutilized.Seo attributed this stagnation to a rigid reimbursement system focused on fee-for-service models and fragmented point solutions. He proposed a game-changing solution: a "medical-specialized foundation model" that integrates imaging, language, biosignals, and genomics into a single format.
He outlined four major changes: revolutionizing public access to medical knowledge through platforms like ChatGPT Health; enhancing clinical decision support in primary and secondary care; transitioning to preventive medicine through technologies like osteoporosis screening via chest X-rays; and expanding management of patients' entire life cycles through continuous glucose monitoring and virtual nursing agents.
Seo emphasized the need for a "sovereign medical AI" that is independent of foreign models, stating, "To address unique challenges in Korea's healthcare system, we need models trained on our data." He cited recent collaborations, such as KMed.ai and GeoMed2, as starting points for this initiative.
Professor Jeong Jae-seung: 'Controlling Robots with Brain Waves and Collaborating with AI—The Future of Medicine is Ultimately About Humanity'
In the second keynote address, Professor Jeong Jae-seung from KAIST explored how the integration of neuroscience and physical AI could reshape future medicine. He shared research analyzing 38,000 suicide notes using machine learning to detect crisis signals on social media. Jeong noted that just as the iPhone and app ecosystem emerged from the 2008 financial crisis, the next big thing in tech post-COVID-19 is the fusion of AI with bio-healthcare.He highlighted the potential of embodied AI and humanoid robots in healthcare, stating, "Current humanoid robots, priced around $20,000, are ready to assist in nursing homes and hospitals, moving beyond household chores." He discussed advancements in brain-computer interfaces that allow paralyzed patients to walk again and control robots using brainwave caps.
Jeong's lab has achieved significant milestones, such as enabling a bipedal robot to navigate a maze with a 93% success rate based solely on the user's thoughts. He emphasized the importance of collaboration between human doctors and AI, noting that studies show that complex and creative problems are best solved by teams combining human experts and AI.
He predicted that while AI may initially reduce the number of doctors needed, it will ultimately lead to the evolution of intelligent medical teams that provide unprecedented patient communication and precision simulations. Jeong called for a fundamental reform in medical education to prioritize patient interaction and the integration of engineering technologies from the first year of medical school.
Jeong expressed a desire for collaboration with Eulji University Medical Center, emphasizing that as AI takes on more diagnostic and surgical roles, physicians must remain empathetic caregivers, recognizing patients as individuals rather than mere cases.
Launch of 'Public Healthcare AI Highway' on November 11
The symposium's discussions culminated in policy announcements and real-world applications in healthcare. Park Jeong-hwan, director of the Ministry of Health and Welfare's AI Data Policy Division, introduced the "AI Basic Healthcare Strategy" established in August, which aims to build national AI infrastructure to address gaps in essential healthcare.He announced the upcoming launch of the "Public Healthcare AI Highway" on November 11, connecting two hospitals with a high-speed network to demonstrate emergency transport AI. The government plans to connect 72 regional healthcare institutions by 2029, starting with 80 GPUs in nine pilot locations this year.
Additionally, starting next year, a special budget of 300 billion won will be allocated to provide AI solution vouchers to health centers and clinics in underserved areas, along with a one-stop emergency AI platform tested in Daegu and Gyeongbuk. A digital twin model will also be developed to predict disease pathways for the entire population, aiding in resource allocation.
Regarding reimbursement for AI services, Park noted the limitations of existing fee-for-service models and indicated plans to introduce a performance-based reimbursement system for healthcare institutions next year.
Lee Dae-yeon from the National Health Research Institute announced that starting next year, data from the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Disease Control Agency will be integrated into a national AI research platform, enhancing the existing health research data center. Kim Hyun-chang from Yonsei University shared the AI transformation strategy of Yonsei Medical Center, focusing on data connectivity, clinical translation, and field integration.
The afternoon sessions featured presentations on clinical achievements transforming healthcare. Joo Seong-hoon, CTO of Vuno, discussed the "DeepCARS" system, which predicts cardiac arrest within 24 hours based on vital signs, demonstrating a 21% reduction in in-hospital cardiac arrests and a 15% decrease in mortality rates. He also presented a portable ECG device for preventive care outside the hospital.
In another session, Professor Seon Hyun-woo from Uijeongbu Eulji University Hospital shared the success of the rapid response system implemented since the introduction of DeepCARS, which analyzes real-time nursing records to identify acute deterioration in patients. Professor Jeong Yo-seop from the same hospital announced the digitalization of pathology slides across four hospitals under Eulji University Medical Center, aiming to establish an integrated digital pathology system.
Finally, Kim Ji-woong from Stanford University presented research on the evolution of surgical robots into humanoid medical robots, while Cha Won-cheol, CIO of Samsung Medical Center, shared insights on their AI assistant "DAIA" and the implementation of an emergency prediction platform that significantly reduced waiting times for procedures.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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