Duong Te So (the Nursing Home Department) of the Nguyen Dynasty after 1884

Abstract

In 1884, the Nguyen court officially recognized French protection over Vietnam, marking a new phase of both the dynasty and Vietnamese history. As an agency established by the Nguyen Dynasty, the Nursing Home Department was also placed under a great challenge. Did the Nguyen Dynasty want to maintain the agency? How to deal with those who were living in the Sanatorium under the management of the colonial regime? Based on the examination of various sources, this article points out the changes of the Nguyen Dynasty nursing home system after 1884 (in Tonkin), especially during the first decade of the 20th century. Along with the establishment of a medical relief agency, the colonial government advocated researching and applying many sanitary measures to prevent epidemics. Because most of the sanatoriums established by the Nguyen Dynasty had people with leprosy, they were reorganized into “leprosy villages” and became part of the colonial medical system.