▲ Han Young-hoon, Director of Maeum-Naneum Mental Health Clinic

Feeling empathy comes first
If you, or someone you know, are worried about paying a visit to a mental health clinic or a psychiatry due to the cold eye still many Korean people might throw to you, you must hear what specialists say “Depression, a form of mental diseases for example, is like ‘a cold of the mind’. Everybody can catch this cold like we occasionally get a cold.” Feel encouraged? Hear a little bit more by Han Young-hoon, Director of Maeum-Naneum Mental Health Clinic, “What is really needed is to change the prejudice of the people so that those who suffer from any kinds of mental diseases can freely and openly pay a visit the doctors.” Stepping into the clinic, you might be surprised to see many trees and books and feel like you are in a café rather than in a clinic. “Creating a relaxing and natural atmosphere is very important for patients with mental issues as they don’t get feel afraid of being treated like the mad. So, the café-like clinic for me was a must needed.” This might be the reason that many of the patients at Maeum-Naneum Mental Health Clinic are relatively young. After making sure that you feel like you are in a café, you then go through interview, psychology and stress tests, and brainwave test done by cutting edge equipment from which Han brings up a customized treatment for you. In order to proceed to all these testing stages fast and efficient, you must book before visiting. “I believe that an effective mental treatment comes by feeling empathy first for the patient. The doctor must try hard to feel the same way the patient feels in order to reach the core of the programs from which he/she must draw a customized solution.” As part of this effort, Han held a talking event titled ‘Sharing Our Hearts’ on the occasion of the first anniversary of the clinic and is preparing a photo exhibition for the coming second anniversary at the moment.