PM pleads mild-symptom patients to choose clinics over large hospitals amid service disruption

▲ A notice at the entrance of the emergency room (ER) inside Jeju National University Hospital in the city of Jeju on South Korea's largest island of the same name on Feb. 20, 2024, informs people that the ER is being operated in emergency mode due to the absence of many trainee doctors. (Yonhap)

PM-doctors walkout

PM pleads mild-symptom patients to choose clinics over large hospitals amid service disruption

By Kim Han-joo

SEOUL, Feb. 20 (Yonhap) -- Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday appealed to patients with mild symptoms to visit nearby clinics rather than general hospitals where trainee doctors walked off their jobs in a collective resignation campaign to protest the government's plan to increase medical school admissions.

Medical services at general hospitals across the country, including the country's five biggest hospitals in Seoul, experienced partial disruptions after interns and resident doctors failed to report for work after turning in resignations en masse.

"I urge people with a condition that is relatively mild to utilize well-operating clinics instead of general hospitals that are experiencing disruption due to the absence of trainee doctors," Han said in a Facebook post.

The collective action is part of a protest against the government's decision to add 2,000 slots to the country's medical school enrollment quota next year, a significant increase from the current 3,058 seats.

More than 6,400 trainee doctors nationwide, including interns and residents, have submitted their resignations en masse, according to the health ministry. Of them, about 1,600 did not report for work Tuesday and more trainee doctors are expected to follow suit.

Han again expressed regret over the collective action, stating that the government has placed public medical services in emergency mode to mitigate potential damage.

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