Korean Missionaries set up health clinic for poor people in Cambodia

Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler of Cambodia inaugurated “KOMISO CLINIC” in Trapang Seila village, Dankor District, Phnom Penh city on February 8.

Korean Missionaries Society will run the KOMISO clinic for low-income families with no resources to pay medical bills.

Father Ji Hoon Kim, director of the health project, told RVA News that this clinic was built to help poor people, especially families who can’t pay for their treatment.

The priest said that Korean doctors have been coming to Cambodian missions to cater to health care needs like the dentist, general checkup, and giving medicine to the poor people free of cost.  

With many years of health service, the Korean missionaries established relationships with Cambodian people, and since 2020 started to rent a small space to provide ongoing medical service.

Bishop Olivier Schmitthaeusler of Cambodia reminded the people that people always brought sick people to Jesus.

“We need to heal both physically and spiritually. This clinic is not the place only healing the physical body but finding the need of sick people and understanding their situation to give them peace,” Bishop Olivier said.

The prelate reminded that Pope Francis invites to participate in the synodal church, walking together in the diocese of Phnom Penh.

"This is where we preach the Gospel as Catholics. And it is an opportunity for us to rethink through various programs to become witnesses of God, guiding the little ones, especially the hopeless, to find a new light and move forward," Bishop Olivier said.

Bishop encourages to use these opportunities to "reconsider building a community on Cambodian soil."

Cambodia has missionaries from different countries. Bishop Olivier says that these missionary institutions are journeying together to share experiences and need cooperation from other religious institutions in the parish.

“The health sector can only move forward if we work together under the light of Jesus who always guides us and support us to have good health, physical strength, mental strength to proclaim the gospel in Cambodia,” Bishop Olivier said.

Komiso Clinic has two parts; one is for the dentist. It has an x-ray room, a cleaning teeth room with five chairs, consulting room, and a sterile room. The other one for general treatment which has six rooms such as patient room (for under 24 hours), office room, operation room (for mild illness), sterile room, pharmacist room, X-ray room and laboratory room, stock room, and office for Komiso Co.LTD company to manage the clinic’s land.

Ea titi, a Health Manager of Komiso Clinic Titi, says that two doctors and three staff will provide service for sick people after Khmer New Year in April 2022 without cost.

With inputs from Soun Sreyhouch Dalys