Oliver R. Avison

Oliver R. Avison (June 30, 1860 – August 29, 1956) was a Canadian doctor, physician, humanitarian, missionary and professor, who spent over four decades spreading Western medical knowledge in Korea during the Kaehwagi or Enlightenment Period. Avison was recognized for founding and opening the Severance Hospital and the Severance Medical College in Seoul in 1904, two interlinked institutions that sought to treat the sick and expose the Korean natives to the practical teachings of Western medicinal sciences. Through fundraising efforts across North America prior to the opening, Avison received a series of donations from American philanthropist Louis H. Severance, the namesake for the teaching hospital.

Avison was most known for his innovative ecumenical approach to combine the efforts of medical missionaries across various denominations, pushing against the prevailing modus operandi of foreign medical missionaries in Korea at the time. Focused on increasing collaborative efforts, Avison believed that spreading the love of God was best achieved through educational missions alongside medical ones. Avison's influences were drawn from Methodist philosophies as well as an admiration for his role model, Horace Underwood, the first Presbyterian missionary to work in Korea.

Early life, education, and personal life Oliver R. Avison was born on June 30, 1860, in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, England, the third child in the family. In 1866, Avison and his family moved to Brantford, Ontario. By 1869, Avison moved to Almonte, where he graduated from Almonte and District High School. He became a teacher at Hutton's School House, a public school close to Smiths Falls. After spending a year teaching, Avison enrolled in a preparatory school for university, with the ultimate goal of studying and teaching at the University of Toronto, from which he graduated in 1887. Avison met his wife, Jennie Barnes, while working at a drug store in Smiths Falls. They were married on July 28, 1885. under the board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church of the USA. They lived in Korea for forty years until 1934 when they were expelled by the Japanese invaders.

Missionary Work

Work in Korea Avison was always involved in missionary work. He worked as a lay-preacher in Toronto, and by 1885, had helped found the YMCA at the University of Toronto, where he served as its president. Avison was also the chief editor of the Medical Missionary, a Toronto-based publication first published in 1890. Avison's missionary service experience was inspired primarily through his relationship with and admiration for Horace Underwood. Underwood was the first American Presbyterian Missionary to work in Korea in 1885. In November 1892, Avison extended an invitation to Underwood to visit him in Toronto and discuss his missionary work. Inspired by Underwood's tales, Avison contacted the Methodist Church of Canada in the hopes of being sent to Korea. His proposal was rejected. In response to this, Underwood applied on behalf of Avison to the American Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions in New York without his permission. Frank Ellinwood, the Secretary of the Board, invited Avison to New York to discuss the application Underwood had submitted.

By 1934, thousands of patients had been treated in Severance Hospital. Avison also expanded the Hospital to include the first modern medical school in Korea, which is now known as Yonsei University College of Medicine . He was the principal of Severance Union Medical College and Chosen Christian College for eighteen years and integrated them to be one university. This medical education in Korea began during construction of the hospital when Avison ordered the translation of medical textbooks to Korean, and within ten years Avison saw the graduation of the nation's first seven medical students. These students also received Korea's first licenses to practice medicine. Douglas may have wanted to take over Avison's position. Avison passed on his role to Dr. Keung Seon Oh, the representative of the Southern Presbyterian Mission Board for the Severance Medical College. Both Avison and his wife were buried in Smiths Falls.

Legacy Avison is regarded as the founder of westernized medicine in Korea, and his medical mission theory has enabled this modern medicine to be sustained in Korea. While most of the Christian mission hospitals established in the 20th century are now closed, Severance Hospital continues to progress.