PROFESSOR’S RESEARCH
business. On that account, it takes long to complete a business transaction, and there are many problems such as school relation, kinship and regionalism. I believe we should seek ways to amend for these through interpersonal skill. Q: I can see that you had been the president of student council in your personal history record. (He seems more like a quiet man to his students) I’m from the countryside. I actually came to Seoul for the first time when I entered Seoul National University. Back then, president DuHwan Jeon established a new regime, right after the former president, JeongHee Park, had been assassinated. At that time, I realized that only those who utilized their power, and those who took advantage of the law, could succeed. That society was very different from the ideal society I learnt at schools. I thought that if this vice was to stop, someone had to do something. Therefore, at that time, my primary goal in life was to drag Jeon, DuHwan from the position of power, and never to appoint a president like him again. That is how I came to participate in a student movement, and to be elected as the president of the student council of the pharmacy department. I thought that the movement was kind of a mission as a student. I think such efforts became the foundation of the cessation of military junta. Q: Can you share the history of how you became a Professor? After college, I worked in the genetic engineering research team of LG Life Science. When the team copied the medicines from foreign pharmaceutical companies, I took part in applying for a license in Korea. I was the one who first received the approval of the biosimilar products in Korea. But at that time, the pharmaceutical education was chemistry-centered education. We never learnt anything about physiology, anatomy, or pathology. Nevertheless, it is impossible to take part in the new drug development or clinical trials, just by learning Pharmacology, in itself. So I thought I had to know more about the patients prior to new drug developments. That is why I studied abroad and completed Pharm D. After that, I wanted to teach students and, at the same time, develop new drugs. However, Pharm D was unacknowledged in Korea, so I had to complete a PhD in Clinical Pharmacology. This is how I became to study both clinical pharmacy and clinical pharmacology.
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the blue vanguard
Q: What is your goal as a Professor? Overthrowing the military dictatorship had been my only goal during my college years, but my goal changed while I was studying in the U.S. I wanted to change the society in a positive way, not in a negative way like through a violent demonstration. Actually, I didn’t like the fact that I graduated from the School of Pharmacy. As I worked in a local pharmacy for nine months, I developed doubts about living as a pharmacist, who is merely concerned about money. I thought that the only way to contribute to a society was helping patients by developing new medicines, and also that only those who actually prescribed and used the medicine to patients can develop good drugs. The best way of using medicine was to become the Pham D. At that time I would study all day, every day, except when I was eating. I thought I would teach these what I studied when I return to Korea. Q: Any words of wisdom to Pharmacy students? To give a practical advice to pharmacy students, I would say, study hard! Pharmacy students should base their fundamental goal on becoming a good pharmacist. A pharmacist is not just a person producing medicine, but is a member of the health care system. You may be qualified to graduate the university even with the GPA of C+, but if the First Violin is C+, that orchestra would not be a good one. To stand in the center of Health care system as a pharmacist, you have to become a competent pharmacist first, and then worry about how to use your ability by interacting with many people in the field. B