ABSTRACT
Modern psychiatry was first introduced to Korea largely by two streams during the colonial period. The first was through the missionary institutions that were based on the humanistic approach in the spirit of Christianity, and worked towards providing Korean people with medical services and educational training. The second was through colonial governmental institutions that were primarily built for the Japanese residents in Korea, and placed strict restrictions on access to them by Korean people. Lee Jung-Chul was considered to be the first legitimate Korean psychiatrist who evinced a clear distinction between psychiatry and internal medicine. He has great significance as the first mental health professional who as early as 1935, considered mental illness as the most critical health issue along with tuberculosis and leprosy. More seriously, the lack of a wider experience of psychiatrists in the field of mental health and insufficient understanding of the methods for treatment became problematic.
