Yonsei Institute
for Global Health

1) Please introduce yourself.   

Dr. Gopal Kumar, 41 year old/Male.

My wife is also a medicine specialist and works for the Delhi government. 

I have one 6 year old kid along with parents and elder brother.

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

I work at a tertiary healthcare center named “ Medanta -The Medicity,"  a 1,600 bedded MultiSuper speciality hospital started by a famous cardiac surgeon, Dr. Naresh Trehan, located in Gurgaon Delhi-NCR. 

After completing my MS in otorhinolaryngology and fellowship in Head and Neck Oncosurgery, I have been practicing exclusively Head and Neck Surgery and Oncosurgery since then. 

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

Severance is one of the best ranked hospital in South Korea and doesn’t need an introduction. Have witnessed Prof. Yoon Woo Koh lectures and live Robotic surgical procedures in International conferences. He can be coined as the instigator of Robotic head and Neck Surgery with more than 1,500 head and neck cases and getting a training under him was my priority. Severance has one of the biggest Minimal invasive and Robotic surgical/training center in the world and it took years for me to get an offer for the training program. 

4) How long is your training period in Korea? 

My training period is for 6 months duration from November 2019 - April 2020.

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

My fellowship was in Robotic Head and Neck surgery and in this 6 months I have been a part of approximately 200 robotic head and neck surgery cases performed by Prof. S.H.Kim and Prof Yoon Woo Koh. Apart from Robotic I also gained experience on the different open cases in Head and Neck department.

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

Severance as such is a very impressive hospital. It has a cutting-edge technology and an outstanding feature where it is adapting to the rapid automation advancement and integrating modern technology in every aspect of health.

State of the art equipment, world class facilities, experienced doctors and staff are the pillars which give severance the most defining outlook. It provides one of the best learning environments for the doctors of all stream and age group. It is very impressive to see how it empowers the patient by giving them access to all the necessary information and care from patient data management to surgical procedures.

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

I have been working in the specialty of Head and neck Oncology for the last 10 years at a tertiary care hospital in New Delhi, India. To widen my horizon, I wanted to pursue head and neck Robotic surgery which is still in the gestation phase in many parts of the world. My acceptance here as a fellow at the Minimal Invasive and Robotic center in head and neck was like breaking through the glass ceiling. My fellowship included managing head and neck lesions both benign and malignant by Robotic surgery. Its implication, outcome and comparison with the conventional open surgery for a similar procedure were also reviewed. Observing patient workup in the outpatient clinic, pre op preparations, post op management, dealing with per op complication if any and follow up was also a part of the fellowship. Apart from this it also included attending tumor board meeting with other faculties and department, weekly classes, paper presentations, CME, lectures, conferences, simulator and cadaveric courses.  

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

If I do get an opportunity to come back, I would like to focus my research on artificial intelligence in the field of surgery. How we can develop new technology to articulate telesurgery like teleconferencing, where we can perform surgery through Robot on any patient in other part of the same country or intercontinental without moving physically that can lead to severe cost cutting and benefit patient by being operated by doctors who are best in their field at their own hospital equipped with facility. Development of new dye or marker which can light up on immunofluorescence during surgery and we can revise the margin per op only if needed. Devices with sensors which can notify the surgeons when working close to the nerve or vessels or can mark the cancer cell. 

Research on genomic profiling to gain more thorough understanding of the molecular abnormalities of head and neck cancers, further helping to guide the development of new therapeutics and early detection of cancers. 

9) What was your first impression of Korea? 

Being an Indian the “Atithi Devo Bhava“ mantra is in our blood but the concept of going out of the way to treat guest with reverence was felt in Korean culture too. Truly speaking although this was my second visit to Korea but I have truly experienced the hospitality and warmth during my time at Severance. People at the work place are quite friendly and open but general public are a bit reserved. English being the last chosen language make things hard for the international people but google translations make it doable. 

“Made in Korea” concept is a lesson for many others to learn. 

I found the accommodation expensive while food is affordable and delicious especially the Korean BBQ. Transportation after 12 AM in the midnight is  difficult like at our place but Seoul is super safe any time of the night or day. People literally go out of the way to help you. Korea has carried the tag of developed nation very well. The effect of acculturation is clearly visible.

I owe you Seoul. 

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

My stay at Severance and Korea served both the purpose of work and play. Meeting different trainees from different parts of the world, bonding with them, knowing about the advancement in the field of medicine or surgery, about their culture and preferences in such a short span of time was commendable. It provided an intellectual basis for a comprehensive understanding of different continental traditions. Sharing the same working space, dinning table, evening walk, street shopping, visit to the museum and planning for the future or life after fellowship with the fellow mates will always be treasured and remain close to the heart. Something which will be cherished silently for a long period of time. My bond with this place and its people will always be revered.

11) What are your thoughts and feelings about the way Korea is dealing with COVID-19, and what is the situation like in your home country? 

When the Covid phobia started in February a sense of fear prevailed for the time being the number were increasing. There was concern for my well being at my home also and all the advice to be back came pouring. Instinct always said Korea will deal with the situation head on and the “3T” mantra of Korea worked well with complete control of the outbreak within two months and things returning to normalcy without hiccups. While the whole world is still struggling to find a way out of this mess Korea has emerged victorious without any lockdowns, travel bans or confinement. The hospital work continued non stop and there as no reduction in the number of cases. The doctors who are the real fighters in this war along with the administration and the civilized and obedient nature of the people helped Korea win this war and set an example for others. 

India is a huge country with dense population and our government and people have enacted proactively to contain the mortality to less than 3%. Total numbers of cases has touched 50k and our doctors are working day and night to give the best treatment possible to the concerned. Presently the third  phase of lockdown is going on but hopefully very soon our borders and airspace will open up. I am looking forward to go back to my country to implement what I have learned here. 

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

Severance is a great place because there is always someone to help you out. It will not be appropriate to name only one person in this journey of 6 months but I spent almost whole of the time with my Prof. Yoon Woo Koh in the operating room or in the outpatient clinic. Thank you very much for the course, I enjoyed every minute of your console time as well as your marvelous sense of humor. You are always very kind, helpful and truly care about the trainee problems. Your zero tolerance attitude during surgery taught me to become more disciplined. Thank you for all your encouragement and I want you to know you made a meaningful impact on my profession. 

Head and neck team as a whole comprising Prof. Eun Chang Choi, Chairman and Prof. Se-Heon Kim, Cinical Asst Prof. Park, Clinical Asst Prof.Da Hee and  Prof. Gil Chae Lim for your dedication, organization, enthusiasm and hard work that makes your department stand apart from rest of all. Ms Seunghyun Lee from Severance Academy and Ms Suyeon Choi from minimal invasive center for all the helpful communication which made things easier and smoother.  

Kamsahamnida