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KMID : 0857920030070010001
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Yonsei Journal of Medical History
2003 Volume.7 No. 1 p.1 ~ p.21
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Lee Young Choon, the Pioneer in Rural Health in Korea
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Abstract
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Lee Young Choon (1903-1980) is the founder of the Institute for Rural Health, Gaejeong, Gunsan in 1947. After graduating from Severance Medical College in 1929, he began to study pathology under the guidance of Prof. Yun Il Sun. He published about 20 research papers in 3 years, and obtained Ph.D degree at Kyoto Imperial University in 1935. The fact that he received Ph.D degree impressed Korean under the Japanese rule, because he was the first Ph.D degree holder who studied under the guidance of Korean professor. Even though he gained national-wide reputation, he moved to Kumamoto Farm in Gunsan in 1935 to treat tenant farmers. He thought that treating Korean farmers was one of the most important tasks in medical profession at that time, because farmer made up majority of Korean population.
After the liberation of Korea from the colonial rule in 1945, Lee Young Choon founded the Institute for Rural Health to lay the groundwork for solving health problem in rural area. This institute consisted of department of research, department of public health, nursing school, and medical center. In early 1950s, it had many energetic activities, especially in the research of rural health, publishing a medical journal, The Journal of Rural Health. But, owing to financial problem during the late 1950s, it started to gradually lose its earlier vitality. He was heart-broken to see decline of his institute. However, he said it was ‘miracle’ first of all to have established such an institute in spite of difficult situation. Now, he was memorized as a pioneer in rural health in Korea.
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