The history of occupational health service in Korea.

Abstract

The following study was conducted to closely examine the evolution and formation of the occupational health service system in Korea during different historical periods. Korea's industrial structure has changed rapidly in the last 30 years from 1960's to 1990's, moving from a primary industry to a secondary or tertiary focused structure. Industrial accidents and occupational diseases are related closely to industrialization. Also, the new occupational health service system of each historical period has its political background. Until the mid 1980's, Korea's Occupational Health Service System was more a by-product of contemporary political, social, and economical situations rather than an effort to aggressively solve domestic industrial safety and health problems presented by laborers on the basis of academic development of industrial medicine. Therefore, the methods were to bestow a favor or one-sided. However, as Korea achieved democracy toward the end of the 1980's, it can be seen that industrial safety administration leaned toward actively dealing with the social demands of the working class.