Moments of unification at Gaeseong hospital

Posted on : 2007-11-20 15:48 KST Modified on : 2007-11-20 15:48 KST
Facility operated by two Koreas survives on mutual cooperation and aid, but needs additional funds to expand

One September afternoon, the Southern clinic of a cooperative hospital opened by Green Doctors, a humanitarian aid organization composed of South Korean medical doctors in Gaeseong (Kaesong) Industrial Complex, received an urgent message about a traffic accident which had just occurred. When an ambulance arrived at the scene, a car was seriously damaged after it collided with another car and both drivers were bleeding. As soon as the ambulance arrived at the hospital, director Kim Jeong-yong moved them to an operating room, however, he was unable to handle the situation alone, so he asked for help from the Northern clinic. Assisted by two North Korean surgeons, both of the operations were successful. The doctors from the two Koreas had achieved a moment of unification.

Approximately one year has passed since medical teams from the two Koreas began to receive patients at the cooperative hospital, which opened in January 2005. In principle, medical workers from the South treat Southern patients and those from the North treat Northern patients, but the division has gradually been disappearing. Those from South and North frequently meet in operating rooms and radiology rooms shared by the two Koreas, and in times of emergency, they cooperate to treat the patients together.

Professor Hwang Sang-ik of Seoul National University, who has participated in volunteer activities at the hospital with his students on every Saturday since April, remarked, “At this hospital, South and North help each other to take care of the patients.”

One example of this can be seen in the kind of care given to North Korean female workers of child-bearing age who are in need of gynecological services. These women receive help from South Korean doctors assisting their North Korean counterparts, who are not used to using ultrasonography.

Though there is cooperation between South and North, medical personnel have observed differences in the treatment and prescription methods used by each side. As an example, the cooperative hospital has kept the principle of free medical services since it opened its doors, which is strange for South Korean medical staff, considering the medical environment in the South, where medical services are largely covered under medical insurance but patients bear part of the expenses.

The hospital has a long way to go. The number of medical personnel at the Southern clinic is six, including director Kim and two nurses dispatched by the North. If the number of workers at the industrial complex doubles to 40,000 in 2008, [[[as anticipated?]]], the staff at the hospital will not be able to handle the increased demand for medical services. In the future, Kim plans to establish a general hospital with 150 beds.

“Despite the fact that we have been offering free medical services, we are getting by, thanks to aid from various organizations and volunteer workers. We need more assistance from the government to develop the facility into a general hospital,” said Kim.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]

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