[2022 National Audit] Number of Doctors per 1,000 People in Seoul 2.7 Times That of Sejong... "Medical Imbalance Must Be Addressed"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Young-won] Although the number of doctors and nurses has increased compared to four years ago, the distribution of medical personnel resources by region remains unbalanced.

According to data on domestic active medical personnel and hospital beds submitted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare to Shin Hyun-young, a member of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, as of July this year, the number of medical personnel increased compared to 2018, but there were regional disparities.

As of July this year, the number of personnel working in healthcare institutions was 112,293 doctors and 250,584 nurses, representing an increase of 9.59% in doctors and 28.30% in nurses compared to 2018. The number of hospital beds was 724,270 this year, showing a 6.68% increase over the same period.

Although the number of medical personnel showed an increasing trend, the number of doctors (2.18) and nurses (4.85) per 1,000 population was lower than the OECD average of 3.7 doctors and 9.7 nurses per 1,000 population. The number of hospital beds was 14.0 per 1,000 population, which is 3.3 times the OECD average (4.3).

By region, Seoul had the highest number of active doctors per 1,000 population at 3.37, followed by Daejeon (2.56) and Daegu (2.55). The region with the lowest number of doctors per 1,000 population was Sejong (1.23), which was 2.73 times less than Seoul. This was followed by Gyeongbuk (1.38) and Chungnam (1.54).

The number of active nurses per 1,000 population was highest in Gwangju at 6.88, followed by Seoul at 6.4 and Daegu at 6.34. Similar to doctors, Sejong had the lowest number of nurses at 2.56 per 1,000 population, showing a 2.68-fold difference compared to Gwangju.

Assembly member Shin Hyun-young stated, "Although the number of doctors and nurses, which is lower than the OECD average, is steadily increasing, the regional disparities are severe. Indiscriminate increases in medical personnel and resources could further deepen regional imbalances, so it is necessary to establish appropriate supply and demand forecasts and distribution standards to resolve regional disparities."