MEDICAL PROFESSORS IN SOUTH KOREA JOIN TRAINEE DOCTORS ON STRIKE AGAINST GOVERNMENT PLANS

Mon 25 March 2024:

On Monday, March 25, medical professors in South Korea declared that they will cut back on their practice hours in support of medical students who have been on strike for more than a month.

The government’s plan to boost medical school admissions has been met with protests from the trainee doctors.

The head of the Medical Professors Association of Korea, Kim Chang-soo, voiced worries about the growing number of students being admitted to medical schools, predicting that this would have a detrimental effect on medical education and could cause the nation’s healthcare system to collapse.

“It is clear that increasing medical school admissions will not only ruin medical school education but cause our country’s healthcare system to collapse,” stated Kim Chang-soo.

He announced that professors will start scaling back outpatient treatment and will only focus on emergency and severely ill patients, while some may even submit their resignations.

“If the punishment against trainee doctors is implemented, the medical professors’ voluntary resignation will proceed forth, and our professors will inevitably be even more willing to resign,” said Kim Chang-soo.

The nation plans to increase the number of students admitted each year to medical school from 2025.

According to South Korean government increasing medical school admissions is necessary to address a shortage of doctors in one of the world’s fastest-ageing societies.

However, critics argue that the focus should be on improving the working conditions of trainee doctors first.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, who has prioritised healthcare reforms as his signature policy initiatives, has vowed to proceed with the admissions plan despite the strike.

The government has also threatened to suspend the licences of striking doctors. However, President Yoon has urged Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to consider more “flexible measures” in dealing with the situation.

Yoon has also instructed the prime minister to establish a “constructive consultative body” to engage with medical professionals.

According to the Reuters, the strike by trainee doctors, which began on February 20, has caused several hospitals to reject patients and delay procedures.

A Gallup poll released on March 15 revealed that public opinion is divided on the government’s handling of the situation. While 38 per cent approve of its response to the backlash from doctors and the medical void caused by the strike, 49 per cent disapprove and said “not a good job”.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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