South Korean medical professors announced they would cut the hours spent in practice, with some resigning amid an expanding doctors’ strike in the country, The Guardian informed.
The action will be launched on Monday in support of trainee doctors who have been striking for more than a month over the government’s plan to increase medical school admissions. The president of the Korean Medical Professors Association, Kim Chang-soo, stated that professors would start reducing outpatient care to focus on emergency and gravely ill patients, while others would submit their resignations.
It is clear that increasing medical school admissions will not only ruin medical school education but cause our country’s healthcare system to collapse.
Trainee doctors have been on strike since 20 February over a plan to increase the number of students admitted to medical schools annually from 2025. The government intends to address the shortage of medical services in rural areas and the increasing demand for services, caused by South Korea’s rapidly aging population, with increased admission.
The strikers make up 93 per cent of the trainee workforce. They argue that recruiting 2,000 extra students a year from 2025 will jeopardise the quality of services. Critics claim the authorities should focus first on improving salaries and working conditions for trainee doctors.
The strike forced several hospitals to refuse treatment to patients and postpone procedures. However, President Yoon Suk Yeol vowed not to deviate from implementing the admission plan, making healthcare reform one of his top policy initiatives despite nationwide protests.
The government threatened to suspend the licences of resigning doctors, but Yoon urged Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to look for “flexible measures.” The president’s office also instructed the prime minister to form a “constructive consultative body” to establish a constructive dialogue with medical workers.
