From Chief Resident to Folk Hero:
An Update
 |
Paralyzed physician S.B. Lee, left, has
risen to fame in his native Korea.
|
Robert S.B. Lee, a quadriplegic since 1987 when injured while training for
the Korean men’s Olympic gymnastics team, was featured in Dome
last year, when he was chief resident in Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation.
The story, as well as its condensed version in Hopkins Medicine
magazine and subsequent press releases, led to a flurry of TV appearances
and profiles in the Baltimore Sun, The New York Times
and several Korean magazines, culminating in a book deal with a Korean publisher.
Lee’s book, The Miracle Lies Within You, debuted in August.
It sold 25,000 copies during its first week, now is in its third printing,
and remains No. 3 on the Korean bestseller list. Translations in Japanese,
Chinese and English are in the works. Lee now has speaking engagements
lined up around the world.
His appearance on Korea’s popular “Screening Humanity”
television series sealed his fate as a folk hero. The next day, Lee received
more than 10,000 e-mails. The Hopkins mailroom was flooded with letters
and packages of Korean food and handmade gifts. Unfazed by the time zone
difference, women called Lee in the middle of the night, begging for a
date.
Lee has been inundated with job offers, including one as vice chair
of a new Korean rehab hospital. As of this writing, he’s still undecided.
Most tempting is physician on the Korean Olympic gymnastics team. Says
Lee: “I’ve never been able to abandon my Olympic dreams.”
—Judy Minkove
|
|
|
|
