The Construction of the Faculty of Hamheung Medical College in North Korea, 1946-48: An Unrest Coexistence of Political Ideology and Medical Expertise

Kim, Geun Bae

Abstract

This paper aims to reveal how Hamheung Medical College in North Korea kept up its faculty with the trend of a new political system. The time period consists of three series of evaluations that occurred between the start of a reformation action in 1946 and the establishment of the regime in 1948. At the time, it was difficult to secure college faculty in the medical field, because of a serious shortage of medical personnel. Moreover, the problem in the recruitment of faculty at the medical college grew bigger since the members were required to have a high level of political consciousness. Then how did Hamheung Medical College accomplish this ideal securing of faculty that possessed political ideology and medical expertise? For the first time, a faculty evaluation at the local level was carried out and got rid of a few pro-Japanese or reactionary factions but maintained most of the faculty. Although academic background and research career of the faculty were considered, securing of the manpower in terms of number was crucial for the reconstruction of a professional school level. At the second time, as the central education bureau's intervention tightened the censorship, most of the faculty were evaluated as unqualified. Indeed, it was difficult to satisfy the standard of professionalism which emphasized a high level of academic career and political thought that included affiliation of Workers' Party of North Korea. The Medical College could not find faculty that could replace those professors and therefore, most of them maintained their faculty positions. Since then, the faculty who received excellent evaluations led the school at the very front. At the third time, the Medical College itself led the evaluations and implemented more relaxed standards of political ideology and medical expertise. Faculty who were cooperative to the reformation actions that North Korea carried forward or had working experience at the hospital and health service received a high level of recognition. Accordingly, the Medical College expanded itself by securing many professors, but also embodied a large gap of academic and ideological levels between them. Hence, the political ideology and medical expertise, which were set forth as the requirements for faculty, were constructed in the space of political ideal and social reality. Despite the high criteria the North Korean Government made, Hamheung Medical College's faculty fell below the average in terms of ideological and academic standards. As a way to compensate this, professors who greatly satisfied the both virtues were placed as leaders and, for supporting them, professors who taught the general education curriculum were recruited largely. And also, it appointed a large number of medical doctors who accumulated experiences in the field as new professors. Nevertheless, the Medical College struggled to raise the quality of medical education and was unable to prevent a part of its faculty from leaving to South Korea in the time of the Korean War. Thus, the political and academic virtues of the faculty at that time were not just simply about the professor individuals but were interrelated with the medical education and health care system in North Korea.