The government of South Korea offered the young physicians on strike four days to return to work. On Monday, the government said that those who don’t return by the deadline will face indictments and medical license suspensions, but if they comply, they won’t face any penalties.
Since early last week, nearly 9,000 medical interns and residents have absconded from work in protest of a government proposal to boost medical school enrollment by almost 65%. The hospitals’ operations have suffered greatly as a result of the walkouts, with several surgeries and other procedures being canceled.
According to government officials, the increasing aging population of South Korea requires the addition of additional physicians. The doctor-to-patient ratio in the nation is now among the lowest in the developed world.
Medical Strike Puts South Korea’s Healthcare System at Risk
The strikers contend that the proposal will not address the long-standing lack of physicians in certain important but low-paying fields, including pediatrics and emergency rooms, and that colleges cannot accommodate the influx of new students.
During a televised conference on Monday, Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo stated that if striking physicians return to work by Thursday, the government will not pursue any disciplinary action against them.
“By the end of this month, on February 29, we would like them back at work. We won’t hold them accountable” for any harm brought on by their walkouts if they go back to the hospitals they had left by then, Park stated.
However, he warned that failure to comply with the deadline would result in a minimum three-month suspension of medical licenses, as well as other legal actions including inquiries and even indictments.
The government of South Korea has the authority to order physicians and other medical professionals back to work when it determines that there are serious hazards to the public’s health. Medical licenses may be revoked and one faces fines of up to $22,480 or three years in jail for disobeying such an order.
In South Korea, there are over 13,000 medical interns and residents, the majority of whom work and get their training at 100 hospitals. They usually deal with inpatients and support senior physicians during surgery. At certain large hospitals, they make up between 30 and 40 percent of all physicians.
Though it hasn’t decided whether to join the trainee physicians’ walkouts, the Korea Medical Association, which represents over 140,000 doctors in South Korea, has stated that it supports the striking doctors. Senior physicians have protested the government’s proposal at several demonstrations.
The government declared earlier this month that colleges will take in 2,000 extra medical students beginning next year, up from the existing 3,058. By 2035, the government wants to hire up to 10,000 more physicians.
About 80% of South Koreans support the government proposal, according to a public study. Physicians are among the highest-paid professions in South Korea, so their opposition to the recruiting strategy may stem from concerns about more competition and reduced pay. Doctors on strike have expressed concern that if there was more competition among them, they might overtreat patients, driving up public health costs.
