culture

Shortly ago, a child left the Pyongyang University of Medical Sciences Hospital together with his mother amid a send-off of medical workers of the hospital.

He could not walk nor speak properly several months ago.

He is Kim Il Jong, five-year-old, and came from Unchon County, South Hwanghae Province.

It was mid-December last year when he and his mother came to the institute for the treatment of spinal and juvenile behavioural and developmental disorders of the hospital.

According to doctor Kim Yong Im, Il Jong failed to keep the balance of his body due to musculoskeletal disorder caused by congenital illness and had a serious speech impediment at that time. The doctor had had rich experience as she had treated a large number of children with disabilities, but she could hardly make a decision of curing him, for such a case as him was so unfamiliar.

On her way home after a day’s work, she could not forget the pathetic looks of Kim Yun Hui, Il Jong’s mother, earnestly asking her to help her son run properly just like ordinary children and the letter Il Jong’s father wrote to his wife inquiring about the child’s health at his faraway military post.

Finally, she got determined to take charge of curing the child.

Maeng Yu Gyong, researcher of the clinical genetics laboratory of the medical genetics institute of Pyongyang University of Medical Sciences, and physiatrist Ri Song Hak and nurse Ho Un Song of the university hospital joined the treatment.

The medical workers mapped out a phased plan for treating motor skill and speech disorders at the same time and buckled down to treatment.

The most laborious was to build up his muscular strength aimed at improving his motor skill.

For his poor muscular strength accompanied by dystonia, it took a great deal of time and efforts for the patient to perform a mere leg-lifting action. The doctor was soaked with sweat even in winter as she herself repeated the movements to help the boy do them.

Meanwhile, the researcher devoted herself to relieving his speech disorder.

The child found it hard even to take a sip of water and came to pronounce simple labial sound only after undergoing a long period of training as he had never produced a vocal sound for a long time.

While applying pharmacotherapy, Maeng Yu Gyong analysed again the rules on Korean pronunciation to work out a scientific phased plan according to a guide for developing articulation.

After certain progress was made in treating speech disorder she provided him with a computer and a TV set needed for practising sentences.

During hospitalization, Il Jong attended intellectual development classes at nearby Tonghung Kindergarten in Central District.

Thanks to such devoted efforts of the medical workers, he finally became able to walk and improved in speech remarkably enough to communicate his thoughts.

He took part in an art performance together with other children at the yard before Tonghung Kindergarten on June 1 International Children’s Day and sang a song in praise of the respected fatherly Marshal Kim Jong Un.

It was the first time for him to sing a song in his life. That day, his mother shed tears of joy.

“My son was born once again thanks to the devoted efforts of medical workers and the benefit of the socialist public health system. I’ll bring him up to be a reliable pillar of the country,” said Kim Yun Hui before leaving the hospital.