"The Limit Reached" The Disheartened Professor Lee Guk-jong May Eventually Leave

Ajou University Medical Center Director Swearing Controversy
Conflict Erupted After Remarks "Hospital Does Not Use Budget Properly" at Last Year's National Assembly Audit

Lee Guk-jong, Director of the Regional Trauma Center at Ajou University Hospital, is delivering the keynote speech at the '2019 Asia Women Leaders Forum' hosted by Asia Economy in October last year. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] "The pressure from the hospital side has intensified. I even think I might have to leave the hospital next month. We've fought and endured through many big and small issues, but I wonder if this is the limit of our society..." Professor Lee Guk-jong of Ajou University Hospital confessed with a sense of resignation. This was on his hurried way back to the hospital after delivering the keynote speech at the Asia Women Leaders Forum hosted by Asia Economy last October.

About two weeks earlier, during the Gyeonggi Province National Assembly inspection, Professor Lee pointed out many problems in the trauma center's operation, including the hospital not properly using the budget allocated to increase nursing staff. Professor Lee leads the Southern Gyeonggi Regional Trauma Center. He expressed frustration, saying, "(The hospital) is embezzling the government-provided budget, not providing beds for patients, and deliberately obstructing medical treatment."

Although controversy has escalated since it was revealed on the 14th that Ajou University Medical Center Director Yoo Hee-seok verbally abused Professor Lee, the conflict between both sides over the trauma center's operation has persisted for years. The Southern Gyeonggi Regional Trauma Center treats severe trauma patients from southern Gyeonggi areas such as Seongnam and Gwacheon, and handles many emergency cases. Professor Lee has consistently pointed out the limitations and problems of Korea's trauma center system, saying, "At least severe trauma patients come to the hospital for treatment, and if they die, that's fortunate. The reality is that many die on the streets without even reaching the hospital."

While acknowledging that he belongs to a private university hospital organization, Professor Lee has been frustrated whenever he pointed out that the hospital's emphasis on efficiency and profitability makes trauma center operation difficult. He became widely known for treating Captain Seok Hae-gyun during the Aden Bay Dawn Operation in 2011, which rescued a Korean ship hijacked by Somali pirates. However, even before that, after the government's 2010 policy on establishing severe trauma centers faltered, he frequently hinted at his intention to resign.

He did not hesitate to say that if the hospital was dissatisfied with the trauma center, it should shut down the center. The Southern Gyeonggi Regional Trauma Center, the largest among national trauma centers, reportedly had about 60 bypasses (patient refusals) last year alone. Considering the nature of trauma centers that must accept life-or-death emergency patients, the inability to accept patients itself is problematic. A hospital official said, "Due to construction of the integrated nursing care ward, 100 beds were closed, leading to an overall shortage of beds, and it was not only the trauma center that was unable to provide treatment."

After accumulating various conflicts, the tension exploded when Professor Lee spoke out decisively at last year's Gyeonggi Province National Assembly inspection. At the time, he said, "Saving severe trauma patients is extremely important nationally, but the failure to fulfill such a core value reflects the limitations of Korean society." He also criticized the hospital for diverting the government-funded budget intended to increase nursing staff at the trauma center, resulting in only about half the planned number of staff being hired.

A Ministry of Health and Welfare official responded, "In the case of Ajou University Hospital, they had already hired 28 more nurses than the initial standard at their own expense, so the budget was only provided for the additional hires afterward. The hospital also bore some costs and operated relatively more nursing staff compared to other hospitals, but there seems to be some misunderstanding between Professor Lee and the hospital."