Tag: Korea

advocacy Tragic outcome for psychiatric patient seeking help for diet pill addiction

Tragic outcome for psychiatric patient seeking help for diet pill addiction

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When the news broke, I couldn’t ignore it. The deceased young woman was reportedly at the Korean hospital for treatment of a weight loss drug addiction. News portals showed CCTV (closed circuit TV) footage of the woman, where she was forcibly restrained on a bed by hospital staff whose large...

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advocacy Korea’s EDAW 2024 puts epistemic justice on the table

Korea’s EDAW 2024 puts epistemic justice on the table

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So, I quit my job again at the end of January. The healthcare company I worked for was one of those doctor-owned ventures not uncommon in Seoul, South Korea, where medical doctors generally belong to the highest income groups and are probably the most exclusive interest group. In a misogynistic...

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advocacy Epistemic Justice in Understanding Eating Disorders

Epistemic Justice in Understanding Eating Disorders

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Eating Disorder Awareness Week (EDAW) 2024 will take place in Korea from February 28 to March 5, with all seven sessions examining the theme of Epistemic Justice. The question of how to reflect the lived experiences of the eating disorder sufferers, and those of the mental health patients themselves into...

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advocacy Korea’s first Eating Disorder Awareness Week giving life to small miracles

Korea’s first Eating Disorder Awareness Week giving life to small miracles

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In February this year, I took unpaid leave from work to organize Korea’s first Eating Disorders Awareness Week (EDAW). Afterwards, I went straight back to work, but my employer was restructuring his business. This meant I could take a month’s paid rest before starting a new job. This period felt...

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Anorexia Speaking against cliched narratives about eating disorders – Korea’s powerful message

Speaking against cliched narratives about eating disorders – Korea’s powerful message

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Korea’s first Eating Disorder Awareness Week (EDAW) has exposed the serious issue of eating disorders within families and communities. The hard schedule of seven consecutive days to mark this EDAW concluded in front of a small audience in a dimly lit bookshop. People stood and applauded, and the engineer stopped...

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