Military doctors paid 2 million won per month for 37 months? Medical students say "We'll just serve active duty"

89.5% "Burdened by Service Period"

Among young prospective doctors such as medical students and residents, as well as three out of four doctors, it was revealed that they intend to enlist as active-duty soldiers rather than as military doctors or public health doctors (Gongbo-ui). This is analyzed to be because the military service period has been shortened to 18 months (based on the Army), making it less burdensome compared to the approximately three years of service required for military doctors or Gongbo-ui.

The Korean Association of Public Health Doctors (Daegonghyeop) and the Korean Intern and Resident Association conducted a survey from the 18th to the 31st of last month targeting 1,395 nationwide medical school and medical graduate school students, interns, and residents who have not fulfilled their military service obligations.

Among respondents who expressed their intention to enlist as active-duty soldiers, 89.5% answered that they "feel a great burden regarding the service period as military doctors or Gongbo-ui." 92.2% responded that "there are medical personnel around them who enlisted as active-duty soldiers."

Three out of four young prospective doctors, including medical students and residents, and doctors surveyed expressed their intention to enlist as active-duty soldiers rather than as military doctors or public health doctors (Gongbo-ui). [Photo by Pixabay]

Also, when asked whether they would recommend active-duty service to their juniors, 85.6% answered "yes." When asked the reasons for preferring active-duty enlistment, the responses included ▲burden of long service period (98.2%) ▲unchanged treatment conditions (65.4%) ▲unreasonable military service classification (30.7%).

While the service period for regular soldiers has been reduced to 18 months, Gongbo-ui have had to serve 37 months without change for 44 years since 1979. A Daegonghyeop official stated, "This time, we confirmed that the preference for regular soldier service is rapidly spreading among young medical personnel."

Salary issues also appear to be one of the factors deterring Gongbo-ui. While the treatment of regular soldiers has improved since the previous administration, the environment for Gongbo-ui has not significantly improved. The monthly salary for regular soldiers is 1.3 million KRW (based on an Army sergeant), whereas Gongbo-ui receive 2.06 million KRW (based on a general physician’s basic salary). According to the Yoon Seok-yeol administration’s pledge, if soldiers’ monthly salary rises to 2.05 million KRW by 2025, the difference will effectively disappear.

Due to these issues, the number of Gongbo-ui continues to decline. This year, 1,290 completed their service, but only 1,106 newly joined, resulting in a decrease of 184. In response, Daegonghyeop pointed out, "To increase the number of Gongbo-ui and military doctors who fill the medical blind spots, it is urgent to expedite shortening the service period and improving treatment conditions."