Yonsei Institute
for Global Health

1) Please introduce yourself.

PHAM LE TRA , 29 YEARS OLD, 4 MEMBERS

2) Where is your working place back in your country and what is your specialty?    

Fellow in Electrophysiology Ha Noi Heart Hospital

Cardiologist Gia Lai general hospital

3) How did you get to know Severance? Why did you choose Severance as your training hospital?    

I knew Severance hospital by a suggestion from a former fellow in Severance Electrophysiology department from Cambodia. I chose Severance hospital for my training because of its reputation in Asia which is the largest and the most professional hospital in Asia.

4)  How long is your training period in Korea?

1 year

5)  Which area did you focus on during your fellowship at Severance?

Electrophysiology

6)What is the most impressive feature of Severance Hospital?

The most impressive feature of Severance Hospital is the professional. From the first day to now , I saw the professional , discipline of the doctors , staffs of Severance hospital in taking care the patients and doing the researches.Beside it, the modern equipment and technique of Severance is also impressive. For instance , in Viet Nam, we usually spend 4-6 hours for one case of atrial fibrillation ablation but in Severance , professor only spends 1-2 hours to ablate . The number of patients in Cardiology department is also large , maybe triple to our hospital. The construction of Severance hospital is also modern and great . I have never seen the big, nice and modern hospital like it in my career.

7)What are the specific contents of your fellowship program at Severance?

My specific content of my fellowship program at Severance is electrophysiology including atrial fibrillation ablation , ventricular tachycardia ablation, paroxysmal supra ventricular tachycardia ablation.Beside it , I also observe some special cardiac implantation device like Left Bundle Branch pacing or His pacing ,non fluoroscopy CRT implantation. I can access many new and modern techniques in the world in Severance hospital . I appreciated it.

8)If you were to get the chance to come back, which field of clinical study would you like to focus on?

If I was to get the chance to come back , I will focus in ventricular tachycardia ablation which is the most challenging in our field. I hope to learn more from Korean doctors not only in EP but also the attitude , enthusiasm in work .Actually , I also want to learn more about doing researches with professor . In my country , original researches are limited and our ability to do research is very limited too. I hope that , in the near future I can participate to learn and do researches with Korean professors.

9)Who are you most thankful for at Severance(who helped you the most) & why?

The grateful and thankful professor who helped me the most is professor Hui-Nam Pak . He is very good, professional and honest. He taught me many things including technique , knowledge and attitude in working and learning. I have been taught by him very strictly .Everyday , I learnt from him when he went to rounding , ward,and in Intensive care unit. In procedures , he guided me many tip and tricks and knowledge to do safety . He also taught us about original researches . He is a pioneer in EP and in atrial fibrillation ablation .I admire him and want to share my huge gratitude to him for his teaching to me in Korea.

10)What was your first impression of Korea?

My first impression of Korea is good people, cold weather and clean environment .The people is friendly, honest and polite to foreigners , snowing and autumn weather is very impressive . Clean street and modern building in Seoul makes me impressive too. Beside it, some old cities and old buildings are also special .The foods with Kimchi is also delicious and special, I used to travel to many countries like Thai land and India but Korean food cuisine is extremely different. I hope to enjoy the cold weather , snowing in the winter.

11)What is the best memory so far during your stay here?

My best memory during my stay here is the memory with my professor , when he taught me to do procedure in cath laboratory . For the first time , I did the procedure not as well as I expected and I was nervous but professor hold my hand , guided for me detailly in every step to make sure that the procedure is safety to his patients . So after many procedures under his supervised , I can be more confident to do the procedure. I hope that after returning to my country I can do the procedure safety , confidently , independently .I won’t never forget the memories with professor and Korean staff here.

12)Please describe a special/troublesome experience you went through because of COVID19 during your fellowship.

-The troublesome experience I went through because of COVID 19 during my fellowship is the quarantine and isolation in 2022 ,February ,14 for 10 days . Being isolated and quarantine in a stranger place is boring but it’s ok because we have to keep the rule and prevent the transmission of Covid 19.Except it, every thing is good to me .The people , the food, the travelling capacity , community transporting is also great.I hope that in the near future I can come back to Korea to attend conference or a short term course in EP or another field. This is a nice memory in my career.