“It is a pity that there are no pure traditional Chinese doctors nowin China. They are all practicing a mixture of both Chinese and Westernmedicines.” But Jin Ho Jun insists， “The purpose of learning Westernmedicine is to learn Chinese medicine better， while the opposite isnot true. In his opinion， Chinese medicine and Western medicine are suitablefor treating different diseases. For instance， bacterial infectionsare within the range of Western medicine treatment， while sterility andirregular menstruation are within the range by Chinese medicine treatmentand should be adjusted by Chinese herbs. Western medicine hasno good solution for those problems.
Jin Ho Jun majors in gynecology， and he feels that women aremore likely to be endangered by disease than men， because womenhave wombs and more complicated internal processes than men. How ever these female symptoms are better adjusted by traditional Chinesemedicine， which has much more effective results than Western medicine.
“All in all”， Jin Ho Jun summarized， “Western medicine is goodfor treatment of acute symptoms， while Chinese medicine is good forthe treatment of chronic disease; Western medicine is quick and effective，but often has many side-effects; Chinese medicine doesn’t act soquickly， but it can cure the root of the disease. At the Chinese Medicine Hospital in Kuanjie， Jin Ho Jun becameacquainted with Zhang Dawei， a pure traditional Chinese medicinedoctor whose ancestors have been Chinese medicine doctors for sevengenerations. Jin Ho Jun attaches much importance to this type of familytradition and regards it as evidence of authenticity. The best Chinesemedicine doctor at the Chinese Medicine Hospital in Kuanjie leftbehind 150 cures， but only half of them can be applied to patients atthis time， as doctors do not know how to apply the other half. “If thissituation continues， there will be fewer and fewer traditional secretrecipes that can be handed down. Because of his love for Chinese medicine， Jin Ho Jun volunteeredto teach Korean students. During our interview， he was presenting ananatomy course to the students. He emphasized again and again thatthis course was concerned with fundamentals. “The better the doctor，the more importance he attaches to the structure of the human body， he explained. “In ancient China， dissection was performed secretly，with only the teacher and student present. Jin Ho Jun’s teaching methods are quite special. He sets up rulesat the beginning of the class and students must complete a recitationfor each class. Moreover those who cannot recite their lesson frommemory receive punishment. In his opinion， the stronger the stimulation，the deeper the memory is laid. In fact， his punishment is nothingmore than a light slap on the hand or other painless place. A girlnearby snickers， the teacher’s rules have resulted in excellent memoryamong the students.
Discussing his post-graduation plans， Jin Ho Jun said that he wasplanning to travel around China for two or three years， paying visits to214 folk Chinese medicine doctors. When I ask about acknowledging folkChinese medicine doctors as his teachers， Jin Ho Jun said modestlythat he has not reached that level yet， and “the most important thing atthis moment is to master the fundamentals. Asked whether he plans to make a living as a doctor of traditionalChinese medicine， Jin Ho Jun nodded vigorously. He plans to move toLondon and be a doctor. His younger sister married a British man whocan provide some funds. Jin Ho Jun hopes to open a clinic for Chinesemedicine treatment in London and introduce this Eastern treasure tothe West.
It seems that London would provide a vast space for career developmentand he could apply his medical skills for the benefit of thepeople of that land.
By Zhang Hong
Translated by Huang Junmei