ASAN SPIRIT Q&A �� Specialization:
Strengthening clinical expertise, working on clinical process improvement
In 2010, AMC established a long-term strategy and initiated ASAN SPIRIT. Subdivided into six goals��
�몺 Specialization �몼 Productivity �몾 Internationality �몿 Responsibility �뫀 Innovation �뫁 Total Quality
�볾SAN SPIRIT has a far-reaching influence not only on hospital policy but also on areas like staff performance
evaluations. In this article, we will examine the goal of Specialization.
Q. Why was ASAN SPIRIT created?
For the past twenty years, AMC has been focusing mostly on the growth of the hospital and during this process
hospital staffs became a bit exhausted.
Critical situations occurred due to the environment where different occupations are working side by side.
In order to overcome this situation and move forward as a world-class hospital, it has been essential to have
a communal organizational culture in which all employees share the future vision of AMC. Towards this end,
the long-term strategy known as ASAN SPIRIT was created.
Q. What is the ultimate goal of ASAN SPIRIT?
The ultimate goal is �쁲ustainability management.�� An enterprise can sustainably grow and evolve when it performs
its due social responsibilities, not just pursuing economic advancement.
The six goals of the SPIRIT--Specialization, Productivity, Innovation, Responsibility, Internationality,
and Total Quality--are aimed directly at achieving �쁲ustainability management.��
Q. How would you describe Specialization?
It can be described as �쁡ifferentiated competitive advantage.�� In other words, it refers to all the activities towards
clinical specialization that continually strengthens our differentiated capabilities. The goal is to evolve into a
world-class hospital by strengthening the core competencies that are unique to AMC.
Q. What are some specific examples of Specialization?
The organization of AMC is structured in a way that reinforces the level of medical specialization not just
in specialized hospitals and centers like Children�셲 Hospital, Heart Institute, Cancer Center, Diabetes Center,
and Organ Transplantation Center, but also in sub-units like the Pediatric Emergency Center and Cancer Emergency
Room (CER). We also offer personalized courses of therapy for individual patients, applying a multidisciplinary
approach that involves various doctors in the patient�셲 care. Shifting away from a conventional department-oriented
pattern of care and improving clinical processes are examples of Specialization. Such series of actions have
brought about outcomes that satisfy both patients and healthcare professionals. Other examples include the
establishment of the AGS (Asan Global Standard) system, the development and practical application of nursing
indicators by each nursing team, and the expansion of a responsible management system in each clinical division.
Q. What are the current tasks?
Some of the current projects under the goal of Specialization include opening the Center for Personalized Cancer
Medicine (CPCM) to offer personalized care through genome analysis, establishing U-health services for treating
chronic diseases, and creating a 24-hour emergency system at the Heart Institute.
