The French Colonial Healthcare System in Cochinchina (Indochina) During the Colonial Period: Modernization or a Colonial Tool?

Abstract

This article analyzes the healthcare system established by the French government in Cochinchina from the latter half of the 19th century to 1945. Based on colonial sources such as Annuaire de la Cochinchine française, French military medical reports, and research on the history of colonial medicine, this study examines the formation of hospitals, health centers, and urban sanitation policies in Cochinchina. The article argues that the colonial healthcare system both contributed to introducing elements of modern Western medicine into Cochinchina society and served as a tool for the French government's colonial rule and exploitation. From a socio-historical and colonial perspective, the study shows that colonial medicine in Cochinchina was characterized by “modernization within a colonial framework” reflecting the close relationship between medical science, power, and colonial structure.