Yonsei University has revealed that Psy, the international entertainer who will be making a comeback next month, donated 500 million won to Severance Hospital’s children’s ward. (Image : Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov.13 (Korea Bizwire) – Yonsei University has revealed that Psy, the international entertainer who will be making a comeback next month, donated 500 million won to Severance Hospital’s children’s ward. With the funds, a ‘Psy Treatment Room’ was created.
According to officials at the hospital, the treatment room built with the funds donated by Psy opened on November 1, 2014. More than 5,000 children in need of speech therapy and psychotherapy visited the center during the past year.
The 500 million won donation was part of a promise Psy made to his domestic fans. To reciprocate their love and support, the singer announced that he would donate the profits from the sale of his song ‘Gentleman’ to a worthy cause. However, at the time, the recipient of the donation had yet to be determined.
The star’s good deed was kept under wraps for more than a year. Hospital officials commented that news of the generous donation did not go public because Psy did not want the world to know about the contribution.
Child patients at the hospital are provided with group therapy programs in the Psy Therapy Room instead of individual psychotherapy.
Various programs are being managed, such as programs to enhance sociability among children with autism spectrum disorders, attention improvement therapies for children with ADHD and programs to enhance verbal communication.
An introduction that talks about how the therapy room was created is inscribed on one of the walls. (Image : Yonhap)
An introduction that talks about how the therapy room was created is inscribed on one of the walls. ‘With the love of children, who are our hopes and dreams, this treatment room was donated by the singer Psy, who let the world know about Korea through his song Gangnam Style’. A character of Psy dancing is also painted on the wall, helping children feel at ease.
To create a child-friendly atmosphere, Psy asked the design team from his agency, YG Entertainment, to donate their time and talent. He also asked designers to avoid putting images of himself inside the therapy room.
To create a child-friendly atmosphere, Psy asked the design team from his agency, YG Entertainment, to donate their time and talent. (Image : Yonhap)
Officials at Severance say that the name ‘Psy Treatment Room’ is much better than ‘child psychiatric clinic’, helping parents and children to feel more comfortable. “Since the word ‘Psy’ links with the word ‘Psychology’, we plan to keep using this name for the treatment room.”
YG Entertainment has also been active at Severance Hospital, offering support to various ventures such as the ‘Dream Gift’ campaign in December 2013 to support patients with heart diseases, and the ‘With’ campaign in October 2011, which was a public awareness campaign.
Psy is releasing a new album on December 1, making a comeback two years and eight months since his single ‘Gentlemen’ hit the airwaves in April 2013.
By Francine Jung (francine.jung@kobizmedia.co.kr)
