By Kim Se-jeong
Local rights groups claim that a city-run hospital in Seoul has discriminated against people infected with HIV.
The civic groups HIV/AIDS Human Rights Nanuri and the Korean Network of People Living With HIV/AIDS Plus filed a petition with the National Human Rights Commission, Thursday, demanding that it investigate SMG-SNU Boramae Medical Center which allegedly rejected HIV carriers or made them feel humiliated while being treated.
The center is a public hospital jointly run by the Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) and Seoul National University (SNU).
The petition was filed after two separate incidents involving Boramae’s dental clinic.
The first HIV carrier visited the clinic in May for scaling of her teeth but the hospital refused to treat the woman despite her having a reservation, according to the civic groups.
The dental clinic’s excuse was that the equipment to be used in scaling would be exposed to the HIV virus.
After the first incident, the rights groups filed complaints with Boramae and the SMG demanding the hospital stop discriminating against such people. They said the hospital pledged not to discriminate against HIV carriers at that time.
When another HIV carrier visited the dental clinic earlier this month, he had the scaling done, but said the atmosphere was intimidating.
“All the equipment was covered with plastic, including a trash can. The trash can even had a sign on it that said HIV. The dentist was wearing special protective glasses. I realized I could scare people,” the person was quoted as saying in the petition.
The groups claimed that the dental clinic should stop taking extra precautions when receiving HIV carriers or AIDS patients, saying such extra measures go beyond standard precautions and amount to discrimination.
They also urged the city government to establishing a system so that discrimination will not happen in any of 13 city-run hospitals.
“AIDS patients have equal rights to medical treatment,” Kwon Mi-ran, one of the activists said. “We want the dental clinic to improve its practice.”
According to the Korean Center for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 7,000 HIV carriers and AIDS patients are registered with it. The actual number of carriers is expected to be higher because many people with the virus hide their medical condition.
The rights groups made two similar petitions in the past to fight discrimination against AIDS patients in medical facilities.
In the case of Sudong Yonsei Sanitarium Hospital, a long-term nursing home which was the only facility authorized to receive AIDS patients for constant attention, AIDS patients there suffered from abuse from medical caregivers and other patients. After a series of scandals, the government shut the facility down last year.