Health in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea - a system of national health services and medical insurance in the DPRK.
The DPRK government claims to provide free medical care to all citizens, although The Week claims that it is provided only to those who pay [1] . There is conflicting information regarding the quality of public health in the DPRK. In April 2010, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Margaret Chan visited the DPRK and stated that the North Korean health system was “the envy of developing countries”, the number of doctors and nurses was sufficient [2] . However, skeptical observers argue that such special UN agencies as WHO are not inclined to criticize the situation in the DPRK because of the risk of termination of their activities there [1] . A message from Amnesty International is even more at odds with Margaret Chan's statement. This report was based on interviews with North Korean citizens who left the country, as well as foreign health workers who worked in the DPRK. However, WHO criticized the report of Amnesty International , describing it as “unscientific and outdated” [3] .
In general, according to Amnesty International, the entire healthcare system in the DPRK is fully funded by the government, while most of the medical equipment is in disrepair and does not have a reliable supply of water and electricity . Lack of equipment and medicines means that many operations are performed without anesthesia [4] .
Medication and treatment of patients
According to Amnesty International, the DPRK government spends the least on health - $ 1 per person. Patients usually pay for basic medical advice with cigarettes , alcohol and food , and for examinations and operations , with money, because of this, most North Koreans do not go to the doctor. Instead, they go to the pharmacy and buy medications and analgesics , although this is potentially dangerous because TB is widespread in the DPRK due to food problems. Most North Koreans are not able to pay for treatment. The DPRK healthcare system is not able to provide sterilized needles, clean water, food, and medicine. Most hospitals operate without electricity and heating. Medications do not last long in hospital storages, as medical staff resells them on the black market [5] [6] [7] .
Hunger and Poverty
In the DPRK, there are problems that negatively affect the quality of life of its citizens. For example, only 60% of the population in 2000 had good sanitary conditions [8] . In the 1990s, a mass hunger raged in the country, which according to various sources claimed from 500,000 to 3,000,000 human lives [9] . Food shortage in North Korea exists today . Amnesty International claims that the reasons for this are a poor climate, insufficient fertilizers and reduced international food assistance [4] . A 2008 study found that three quarters of North Korean respondents were chronically malnourished [4] . According to the Federal Research Department of the Library of Congress, extreme poverty is also one of the factors of hunger faced by DPRK residents: 27% of the population is below the poverty line with a living wage of less than $ 1 per day [9] .
Food shortages are the cause of many diseases caused by malnutrition . For example, a 2009 report by UNICEF states that the DPRK was included in the list of 18 countries in which the problem of stunting (moderate and severe) in children under 5 years old is very common [4] . The DPRK is also experiencing a problem with the tuberculosis epidemic , which affects 5% of the country's population. It is also a sign of a complete deterioration in the health and diet of the population, as well as a decrease in the quality of universal health care [4] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 World Opinion 2010 'North Korea's' horrifying 'health care system' , The Week, viewed 6 September 2010
- ↑ News Asia-Pacific 2010 'Aid agencies row over North Korea health care system', BBC News, viewed 6 September 2010, < http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-10665964 >
- ↑ Aid agencies row over North Korea health care system , BBC News (July 10, 2010).
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 Amnesty International 2010 'The Crumbling State of Health Care in North Korea', Amnesty International, viewed 6 September 2010, < Archived copy (link not available) . Date of treatment September 29, 2017. Archived November 21, 2014. >
- ↑ Amnesty International | Working to Protect Human Rights
- ↑ http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jul/16/world/la-fg-north-korea-health-20100716 >
- ↑ http://theweek.com/article/index/205123/north-koreas-horrifying-health-care-system >
- ↑ World Health Organization 2010 'Democratic People's Republic of Korea: health profile' , World Health Organization, viewed 6 September 2010
- ↑ 1 2 Library of Congress - Federal Research Division 2007 'Country Profile: North Korea', Library of Congress - Federal Research Division, viewed 6 September 2010, < http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/North_Korea .pdf >