Need for Medical Technologies and Skills

WMM has been donating medical equipment and supplies to North Korean hospitals since the beginning of its ministry.  In 2005, the North Korean government asked WMM to build a physical rehabilitation hospital in the capital city of Pyongyang.  However, during the feasibility study, it became quite clear that the real need for the North Korean healthcare industry was not a new building but rather new medical technologies and skills.

Teaching Seminars and Hands-On Surgical Training

Since 2005, WMM has been involved with the North Korean Medical Association, which is the official governmental agency overseeing all medical activities in North Korea.  WMM is currently developing various teaching seminars and hands-on surgical training programs.

Conducted to date have been programs in Neurosurgery, Cleft Lip Plastic Surgery, Urology, ENT, Orthopedic, Colorectal, OB/Gyn, and General Surgery.  These programs were highly successful and well-received by the North Korean doctors.  Lectures were also given in Endocrine, Radiation Oncology, Podiatry, Nephrology, Orthopedics, OB/Gyn, and Colorectal Surgery.

Currently, WMM is able to bring Korean-American, American, and South Korean doctors representing different fields of medicine into the country to teach North Korean doctors and the allied healthcare workers.

Our Goal

The goal of the Medical Missions team is to transfer necessary medical technologies to enhance medical care delivery in North Korea.  Our ultimate goal is to transform how medicine is being practiced in the country.  Our immediate goal is to set up all the surgical and medical specialty programs within the North Korean system and to introduce a model for a self-sustaining medical system.

Progress to Date

To date, we have sent five medical teams to North Korea, consisting of physicians from the United States and South Korea.  We have trained over 50 North Korean physicians in numerous fields.  WMM has also given symposiums in the fields of kidney disease, diabetes, and radiation oncology.

Thus far we have donated six, 40 foot containers containing medical supplies including medications and other disposable items and medical equipment, such as ultrasound equipment, an autoclave machine, an anesthesiology machine, antibiotics, ointments, vitamins, and other medicines to the Red Cross Hospital and Pyongyang Maternity Hospital.  Many other medical supplies and equipment were also hand-delivered when teams from the U.S. went into North Korea.

There are technically no limits regarding the number of containers that WMM can send to North Korea. However, the cost to transport any donated medicines and medical supplies to the Nam-Po Harbor in North Korea is approximately $6,000.

The efficacy and progress of this ministry is measured by how quickly the North Korean physicians can learn and perform various surgical techniques and the direct benefits they have on patients inside North Korea.

SUMMARY OF NEEDS

*   Various medical supplies;

*   Medical equipment;

*   Physicians, dentists, pharmacists, nurses, technicians, bio-medical technicians, and therapists;

*   Transportation costs (each container costs approximately $6,000 to ship).