Riding K-content boom, AKOM calls for traditional Korean medicine as strategic industry

Korea’s traditional medicine community is urging the government to elevate Korean medicine as a national strategic industry, emphasizing its role in medical tourism and cultural integration.

The group argued that the government should support growing demand for medical tourism and experiential healthcare among foreign visitors through a broader industrial strategy.

The Association of Korean Medicine called for Korean medicine to be fostered as a national strategic industry. (Courtesy of AKOM)

In a statement released Wednesday, the Association of Korean Medicine (AKOM) said scenes depicting the preparation of herbal medicine in Korean pop culture content have changed how foreign audiences perceive Korean medicine clinics.

“Foreign visitors are beginning to view Korean medicine clinics not only as medical institutions, but also as tourist destinations and cultural experience spaces,” the association said. “Korean medicine is evolving beyond healthcare into a convergent industry encompassing tourism and culture.”

According to Ministry of Health and Welfare statistics, the number of foreign patients visiting Korean medicine institutions reached 34,535 in 2024, up 53 percent from the previous year. The figure rose further to a record 37,087 in 2025.

The association particularly highlighted the influence of the globally popular animated film KPop Demon Hunters, in which a main character visits a Korean medicine clinic to receive a customized herbal prescription. AKOM said the scene reportedly boosted overseas interest in Korean medicine.

Visits by foreign tourists to the Seoul K-Medi Center have also increased significantly. According to the association, the center recorded 1,720 foreign visitors in June last year, up 50.9 percent from the previous month. The number peaked at 2,227 in September.

AKOM said experiential Korean medicine programs -- including herbal foot baths, traditional herbal tea experiences and visits to herbal medicine markets -- are increasingly attracting foreign tourists alongside treatments such as acupuncture, cupping and chuna manual therapy (CMT). However, it argued that institutional support remains insufficient.

The association said Korean medicine already attracts thousands of foreign visitors and is closely linked with medical tourism, culture and K-content. It stressed that the sector has strong global growth potential if strategically connected to wellness and integrative medicine markets.

AKOM called on the government to brand Korean medicine for global medical tourism and develop integrated strategies aligned with K-beauty and K-pop, supporting wellness, traditional medicine and regional tourism models.

To globalize Korean medicine, AKOM also urged the creation of an industrial ecosystem for licensing, exports and overseas clinics, positioning the sector as a future growth engine.