Korean Society of Echocardiography

Greetings to the Members of the Korean Society of Echocardiography,

I am Jung Jo-won from Yonsei University College of Medicine. As the president of the Korean Society of Echocardiography for 2024, I am assisting Chairman Jung Hae-ok with the society’s operations. The ongoing medical conflicts since February have been dragging on for half a year, and like the continuous rain and heat of this summer, the resolution still seems elusive. It is exhausting to watch this situation unfold through the news and various media outlets. The most affected by this are the young professionals in the medical field, our juniors, who are enduring the brunt of it. In the end, we must come together with a shared purpose and hope for the betterment and progress of the medical field, and navigate through these challenges together. Amidst this, our society, centered on the topic of the heart and echocardiographic imaging, remains committed to fostering the passion and interest of our members. Through workshops and online academic activities, we try to provide both mental and emotional support, ensuring that we stay true to our original goals and passion for echocardiography. To keep up with the growing number of members and the increasing workload of the society, we have expanded our office and came to start a new chapter with a fresh mindset. I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the current executive members and staff who worked tirelessly on the expansion and transition. Our society continues to meet you through events such as the Fall Academic Conference, the Spring Cardiovascular Integrated Conference, publications of 3-4 newsletters per year, 2 online webinars, and 2 workshops annually. We are also preparing to revise the clinical guidelines on heart valves and the 5^th edition of the echocardiography textbook. We kindly ask for your continued support and anticipation. Wishing you strength and good health despite the heat. Thank you.

 Jo Won Jung
 President of the Korean Society of Echocardiography




Executive Board

The General Affairs Committee supports the activities of other committees and directors to ensure smooth operations.

Sang Chol Lee
General Affairs Director

The Academic Committee organizes and manages the academic events hosted by the society, including the Spring and Fall KSE Symposia, workshops, and webinars. This year, the committee focuses on five key themes: 1. Global Networking, 2. Collaboration, 3. Opportunities for All Generations, 4. Diversity, and 5. Expansion. The committee will gather the opinions of all members and strive to provide academic events that are accessible and enjoyable through various channels.

Geu-Ru Hong
Academic Director

The Editorial Committee has changed the journal publisher to BMC/Springer and aims to provide monthly published papers to members. 
The committee is preparing a campaign to encourage more paper submissions through the Collection (Call for Papers) system. Starting from January 2025, Professor Kim Hyung-kwan (Seoul National University College of Medicine) will take over as the new Editor-in-Chief of the JCVI.

Seong H. Kim
Editor-in-Chief

We will assist the President and General Affairs Director in ensuring the smooth execution of the society's events by managing necessary budgets, financial statements, cash flows, assets, and other financial matters.

Jung Hyun Choi
Finance Director

1. We will work to activate multi-center research to help cooperative research among members bear fruit.
2. We will strengthen strategies to discover and support topics that might be of interest to many members.

Seung-Pyo Lee
Research Director

The Education Committee is primarily responsible for the certification exam questions and management of echocardiography certification. We are preparing the first , which will take place on August 25, with the goal of hosting it biannually (January and August). We will increase the number of courses based on feedback.
Additionally, we are preparing a new certification system (Levels 1, 2, and 3), which is already determined by the new Executive Board, covering everything from basic to advanced levels.

Dae-Hee Kim
Education Director

The Training Committee will collaborate with the Education Committee to develop Level 1 certification questions for echocardiography and conduct hands-on training. 
We aim to be a committee that provides support for echocardiography training. To this end,  passionate teachers from all over the country are joining as committee members.

Hyun Ju Yoon
Training Director

We will do our best to plan for the development of the Korean Society of Echocardiography.

Jae-Hyeong Park
Planning Director

We will share the society's news and updates about our members through regular newsletters. 
Additionally, we will actively utilize the official YouTube channel, KSEchoTV to provide educational content and strengthen public outreach. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Sung Hee Shin
Public Relations Director

The primary goal of the International Relations Committee is to strengthen ongoing collaboration with organizations such as EACVI, ASE, JSE, and AAE and "activate international exchange through the establishment of a New Asia network. 
Our second goal is to set the society as the "hub of echocardiography education in Asia" through biannual webinars, annual Echo Boot Camps, and mentorship programs together with Asian countries.

Sung-Ji Park
International Relations Director

The Information Committee will focus on promoting the society’s members, academic conferences, newsletters, and journals through the website. 
We will also make it easier to find and store academic conference programs and lectures through the conference web app and strive to gather and assess valuable information related to the society.

Jin Oh Na
Information Director

We will work with the executive team, the insurance committee, and members to help restore the undervaluation of echocardiography in the current insurance system. The key to this will be raising awareness about insurance among echocardiography practitioners, and the long-term efforts of the society. We askf or your attention and support.

Chi Young Shim
Insurance Director

This committee is for those who specialize in echocardiography and aims to help them perform their work with pride and joy. 
We will develop echocardiography guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease and will work toward publishing the KSE Textbook which will become the national standard for echocardiography in Korea.

Seong-Mi Park
Chair of Guidelines Establishment Committee

1) Collaboration with related domestic organizations (such as pediatric cardiology, interventional cardiology, heart failure, arrhythmia, and study groups under the Korean Society of Cardiology) through the sharing and communication of academic and operational activities: 
Appointment of external affairs committee members by specialty

2) Communication and collaboration with general practitioners (expanding exchanges related to echocardiography education and certification with the Korean Association of Clinical Cardiology).

Il Suk Sohn
External Affairs Director

The Ethics Committee aims to enhance the society's reputation and establish ethical guidelines to reinforce medical ethics, professionalism as echocardiography specialists, and research and publication ethics among members. 
By establishing ethical guidelines, we hope to maintain trust between patients and healthcare providers and encourage ethical research and publication activities among members. We look forward to your interest and support. 

Jang-Won Son
Ethics Director

The KSE HIT Committee serves as a bridge between the society and its young members specializing in echocardiography by gathering their opinions effectively. Although we may have areas to improve, we will do our best to fulfill our role as a connecting link.

Inki Moon
Chair of the KSE HIT Committee

Introduction to the HIT Committee / Inki Moon, Soonchunhyang University College of Medicine

The HIT Committee of the Korean Society of Echocardiography is composed of young echocardiologists under the age of 40. HIT stands for "Heart Imager of Tomorrow," which is a forward-thinking group made up of young members dedicated to the future of echocardiography and cardiac imaging. Initially, the committee consisted of 4-5 members, but through the tireless efforts of the previous chair, Dr. Jo Dong-hyeok, it has grown significantly. The society has shown a strong desire to foster and support young echocardiography experts, which led to the appointment of over 20 members from various regions this year. The primary goal of our committee is to gather and present a wide range of ideas and opinions from young echocardiologists when the society needs their input. Another goal is to create opportunities for young professionals, who are scattered across the country, to share their challenges and experiences with one another. Since the formation of the committee, we have held three meetings and are working on developing a two-year plan. Currently, we are completing a research project on burnout and depression among echocardiologists, and we are also brainstorming new research projects that we can pursue together. Additionally, we are working towards organizing meetings with younger doctors who are aspiring to specialize in echocardiography, where we can share the appeal of echocardiography and offer practical advice. Since this is the first time we are organizing such efforts, we may face challenges and setbacks. Nevertheless, with the support and collaboration of fellow members, we are committed to becoming a valuable committee that contributes positively to the society. Thank you.




KSE News

the 46^th Korean Society of Echocardiographyworkshop / Mi-Hyang Jung, Catholic University College of Medicine

Greetings, I am Jeong Mi-hyang from Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, Catholic University of Korea.
First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to the editorial board of the Korean Society of Echocardiography for giving me the opportunity to reflect on the 46^th workshop. I believe this workshop was a memorable experience full of excitement for many of you. It was the first time for junior doctors to present at the conference, some intermediate doctors took on the new role of "guardians," the academic committee worked hard to create a young, dynamic, and insightful workshop, and even two professors, who have dedicated their youth to echocardiography and are now approaching retirement, contributed from their positions. Everyone must have felt a pleasant excitement in their own way.
I, too, was a bit nervous before the workshop began. Given the ongoing medical conflicts and the challenges we face, I was concerned about whether many would attend, and I also felt some pressure since we hosted the event at our institution. However, my worries were quickly alleviated when so many people showed up. The workshop was held in a relaxed atmosphere, and there was active engagement with questions and answers. There were more online questions than expected, and the junior doctors' responses, followed by the additional explanations from the guardians and in-depth discussions with the panel members, made for a rich and thoughtful debate. The session chair did an excellent job organizing the online questions, making smooth communication and discussions even within the limited time. I would also like to thank Professors Park Jae-hyung and Kim Dae-hee for their wonderful summaries at the end of sessions 1 and 3. Their concluding lectures were as clear and concise as those of a top instructor and helped solidify our understanding. It was also a good opportunity to think about aspects we need to consider more deeply. Furthermore, during this workshop, we had the retirement ceremony and special lecture for Professors Yoon Ho-joong from Catholic University of Korea, College of Medicine and Joo Seung-jae of Jeju National University College of medicine. Listening to the stories of their careers, I couldn’t help but think of how their journeys reflected the history of the echocardiography society. It was clear how much passion and dedication they have given to academia, the society, and the hospital. It made me feel a sense of loss as they retire. I sincerely wish them all the best for the future! After the workshop, during the dinner gathering, some participants joined after their other schedules, and many others came as well. In the casual setting, we had the opportunity to hear about the happenings in different hospitals and enjoyed a pleasant time catching up. Recently, I've been experiencing what I call the “workshop syndrome,” where I find myself revisiting the PV flow, MV leaflet, and septal hypertrophy issues that I had previously overlooked, based on the new insights I gained during the workshop. I look forward to seeing many of you again at the 47^th workshop, which will be held at Gachon University College of Medicine. Thank you.