Shortage of doctors expected next year

Students enter the Korea Health Personnel Licensing Examination Institute in eastern Seoul to take the practical skills test section of the national medical license exam in this Sept. 8 photo. / Korea Times file

By Lee Hyo-jin

Concerns are growing over a possible shortage of new doctors next year after approximately 86 percent of eligible medical students refused to take the state-run medical licensing exam which ended Tuesday.

Over 2,700 of the total 3,172 final-year students did not participate in the practical skills test which was conducted for two months from Sept. 8, according to medical organizations.

The students refused to apply for the licensing exam in August to protest the government's medical workforce reform plans. They chose to boycott the exam even after the health authorities had postponed it by one week and extended the registration deadline.

Another 446 students who took the test will be allowed to take a written test scheduled for Jan. 7 and 8 next year, and those who pass will receive their licenses to practice medicine.

The absence of the majority of the potential test-takers for the annual exam has led to concerns that next year the country might experience a shortage of qualified medical personnel including interns at general hospitals, public health clinics and military facilities.

Although the students announced their intent to end their collective action in late September, the government remained firm on not accepting late applications, citing negative public opinion and fairness.

A petition posted on Cheong Wa Dae's website calling on the authorities not to give the students a second chance gained more than 570,000 signatures in October. Those who signed it agreed that the students should take responsibility for their "reckless and selfish" behavior.

Meanwhile, medical organizations have been urging the authorities to allow the students to apply for the exam.

"The students deserve another chance to take the exam not for their personal sake, but in order to ensure the stability of the country's medical system and public safety," read a statement issued by the Korean Medical Association (KMA), the country's largest doctors' organization with more than 130,000 members.

Earlier in October, directors of several major general hospitals also jointly issued a public apology on behalf of the students and asked for them to be given a second chance, voicing deep concerns that the country might suffer a shortage of personnel amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.

The students' boycott took place in August as part of the medical community's protest against the government's plan to increase the medical student quota by 4,000 over the next 10 years by establishing public medical schools.

Licensed doctors launched nationwide strikes for several weeks. They finally returned to work after reaching a settlement with the government Sept. 4. The two sides agreed to review the reform plans from square one, but the dispute over the licensing exam remains unresolved.

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