South Korean Medical Professors Participate In Protests Starting Today, Demands Reduction Of Practice Hours

Hospital illustration in Seoul, South Korea. (Wikimedia Commons/parkyongjoo)

JAKARTA - Medical professors in South Korea said they would reduce their hours of practice starting Monday, in order to support doctors who have been on strike for more than a month, in protest of the government's plans to increase admission of medical schools.

"It is clear that increasing medical school admissions will not only damage medical school education, but also cause our country's health care system to collapse," Kim Chang-soo, president of the Association of Korean Medical Professors, told reporters.

He further said the professors would begin reducing outpatient treatment to focus on emergency patients and seriously ill, while some would submit their resignations.

It is known that the strike carried out by an intern related to plans to increase the number of students received in medical schools every year starting in 2025, has forced several hospitals to refuse patients and postpone medical procedures. Interns have been strike since February 20

The government says the plan is critical to overcoming the shortage of doctors in one of the countries with the fastest aging rates in the world, but critics say authorities should focus on improving the working condition of doctors who are still in training first.

Meanwhile, President Yoon Suk-yeol, who has made health service reform one of his main policy initiatives, has promised not to back down in implementing the patient admission plan.

Earlier, the Government threatened to suspend permission for doctors who resigned, but on Sunday, President Yoon appeared to be seeking a more peaceful approach, urging Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to take "flexible measures" in handling the suspension.

President Yoon's office said he also ordered the prime minister to form a "constructive consulatory body" to speak with all medical professionals.