Nam Hyun-woo has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2013, mostly covering business and politics. He currently belongs to the Business Desk where he covers topics such as emerging tech, AI, ICT and Korea's chaebol community. Prior to joining the team, he was the paper's correspondent for the presidential office of Korea during the Yoon Suk Yeol and Moon Jae-in administrations.
Yoon urges professors to persuade trainee doctors to end walkout
President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a Cabinet meeting at his office in central Seoul's Yongsan District, Tuesday. Yonhap
By Nam Hyun-woo
President calls for dialogue but maintains stance on medical school enrollment quota hike
President Yoon Suk Yeol urged professors at medical schools to persuade trainee doctors to end their walkout and is continuing calls for dialogue to resolve the month-long standoff between the government and doctors over the enrollment quota of medical schools, Tuesday.
However, he reiterated his commitment to medical reform, to which the quota hike is key.
“Medical professionals, including professors, should engage in dialogue with the government for medical reform and persuade trainee doctors to return to work as soon as possible,” Yoon said during a televised Cabinet meeting, Tuesday.
“Our government's health care reform is aimed at protecting the lives and health of our citizens. We will minimize public inconvenience with a meticulous review of measures, and prevent any gaps in critical and emergency care systems.”
The comments came as professors at most of the nation's 40 medical schools began offering their resignations in protest of Yoon’s push to add 2,000 slots next year to the current 3,058 annual admissions quota. Trainee doctors have been staging a mass walkout since last month, and the government has not taken back its threats to suspend the doctors’ medical licenses.
Since last weekend, the government has been sending signals to doctors for talks, with Yoon calling for a “flexible” approach in suspending the licenses of trainee doctors. In line with this stance, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo had talks with some representatives of doctors on Tuesday afternoon but did not reach an agreement, as the doctors held onto their position of scrapping the quota expansion plan.
Yoon said that the quota expansion is “the minimum necessary condition” and “the starting point” for his medical reform, because the government has assigned 1,639 out of the 2,000 new slots to schools outside of Seoul and surrounding Gyeonggi Province to improve access to medical services for people living in areas other than Seoul.
Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo said in a press briefing after the Cabinet meeting that the government has completed distributing the slots to medical schools and follow-up measures will be completed by May.
A professor at Chonnam National University Medical School attends a faculty meeting at the school's campus in Gwangju's Dong District, Monday. Yonhap
“The government will use the quota expansion as a catalyst to grow capable regional hospitals,” Yoon said. “By establishing a structure where local residents can trust regional hospitals (outside of Seoul), we will create a health care system that provides comprehensive medical services within the region.”
Yoon emphasized the government will support national university hospitals in non-capital areas as the central institutions for health care schemes, so that their level of medical treatment, education and research capabilities can reach those of the nation's so-called top five hospitals — Seoul National University Hospital, Asan Medical Center, Samsung Medical Center, Severance Hospital and Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital.
He added that the government will come up with plans to improve the environments for medical education based on research, in order to ensure sufficient facilities and equipment to uphold the quality of medical education, even with the increased number of students.
“The government will not stop at just expanding medical school quotas but will swiftly proceed with the four major tasks of health care reform,” Yoon said. The four pillars he mentioned are bolstering the health care workforce, strengthening regional medical services, establishing a medical accident safety net and implementing a fair compensation system for doctors.
While Yoon was promoting the necessity of his medical reform policy, the government also increased its pressure on professors who are joining the trainee doctors.
The vice minister cited reports that some professors are criticizing and coercing other professors who are refusing to offer their resignations. He said the government will look thoroughly into whether such actions constitute workplace harassment.