The Assistant and Feature of China Medical Board(CMB) in Korea in the 1950s-70s: Focusing on the Annual Reports of CMB

Uisahak. 2023 Apr;32(1):387-422. doi: 10.13081/kjmh.2023.32.387.

Abstract

This study analyzes the annual reports of CMB in order to examine CMB's assistance of Korea. CMB originally assisted medical education in China, and it turned to assist Asia with changes in the international situation. This paper examines three periods spanning from 1953 to 1980 when Korea received CMB assist. The first period was from 1953 to 1962, when Korea received help with material resources that were lacking after the Korean War. The second period was from 1963 to 1972 during which the scale of assistance further expanded. Additionally, Seoul National University began to have human resources with the necessary support for education and research with the assistance from CMB. The third period was from 1973 to 1980, when the CMB newly established the overall direction of aid, the contents of assistance for Korea also changed. Throughout this period, Korean medicine was able to lay the foundation for independence, and public health, including community medicine, came to be considered as an important aspect of society.

Keywords: Fellowship program; Seoul National University; Yonsei University; assistance; public health; China Medical Board(CMB).

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Asia
  • China
  • Education, Medical*
  • Humans
  • Korea
  • Republic of Korea