A campaign has been started to establish a charity hospital specializing in spinal problems, raising public awareness to scoliosis, or curvature of the spine.
“If you have a curved spine, you suffer various problems in digesting, moving and even breathing,” said Dr. Suh Seung-woo at the orthopedic surgery department of the Korea University Guro Hospital.
Suh Seung-woo
“But not many people actually visit a doctor to fix their problem. I blame the social atmosphere that is hostile to disabled people, making families reluctant to let their physically-challenged relatives face or talk about health-related issues in an open environment.”
Scoliosis is a medical condition in which a person’s spine is curved from side to side. Some severe cases of scoliosis can lead to diminishing lung capacity, putting pressure on the heart and restricting physical activities.
Suh, one of the most acclaimed physicians in his field, has been devoted to the diagnosis and treatment of scoliosis since 1998.
He has invested 50 million won ($46,700) in establishing a bus with X-ray scanner to provide free services to more than 1,400 disabled people nationwide.
He studied the X-rays of 98,600 elementary school students in Seoul, concluding that 72 percent of the disabled people and about 8 percent of children have curved spines.
Since then, with the help from the National Lottery Fund, international golf player Michelle Wie, Korea University Medical Center and others, Suh was able to provide surgery to 80 disabled people.
He still drives his bus to care facilities on weekends and holidays. The hospital said that Suh had about 6,000 patients.
Suh said seeing patients walk without pain is rewarding. He gets heartfelt thank-you cards from the patients.
“In March I received a bag of dried flower tea and last month, people sent me kimchi and squid as gifts. They tell me that I had given them a new life. That’s enough,” he said.
By Lee Hee-ju (hjlee0301@heraldcorp.com)
