The Asian Telemedicine Society (ATS), which brings together telemedicine experts from Asian countries including Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is officially launching. Kang Dae-hee, a professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at Seoul National University College of Medicine, has been appointed the inaugural president.
ATS is a pan-Asian academic organization with telemedicine and digital health experts from about 10 Asian countries. It plans to build the Pan-Asian Telemedicine Network centered on Seoul and promote regular academic exchanges, joint research, policy cooperation, and medical data standardization. The society's secretariat will be established within Seoul National University College of Medicine, and it plans to hold a traveling academic conference in cooperation with Japan, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
In Korea, telemedicine was temporarily allowed for three years beginning in Feb. 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in June 2023, when the COVID alert level was lowered, it shifted to a pilot program. Although it remains in a pilot stage for the sixth year, discussions on legislation have recently accelerated, spurred by President Lee Jae-myung's campaign pledge. National Assembly debate is underway around a telehealth legalization bill introduced in July by Kwon Chil-seung of the Democratic Party of Korea, who, as chairperson of the "Meoksanism Committee" during the presidential campaign, prepared Lee's pledge on non-face-to-face care.
To commemorate the founding of ATS, the "ATS 2025 Asian Telemedicine Society Conference" will be held on the 24th at Woobong Hall in the Medical Library of Seoul National University College of Medicine. The conference consists of three sessions: "The future of telemedicine drawn from each Asian country's strategies and perspectives," "Global telemedicine outlook — hospital adoption and clinical innovation," and "Building the next-generation digital health ecosystem and platforms."
In addition to Professor Kang Dae-hee, leading experts from across Asia, including Masayomi Nangaku, a professor at the University of Tokyo Faculty of Medicine; Nguyen Lan Hieu, director of Hanoi Medical University Hospital (a member of the National Assembly of Vietnam); and Terawan Agus Putranto, former Indonesian minister of health, will participate to share each country's policies and clinical applications.
Kang said, "The COVID-19 pandemic confirmed the potential and need for telemedicine, but institutional limitations constrained its spread," adding, "Korea has demonstrated the practical possibilities of telemedicine through clinically centered technology adoption and institutional validation, so now is the time for Asia to create standards together."