Even Seoul's 'Big 5' Hospitals Fell Short... Pediatric and Adolescent Departments Face Accelerated Collapse

Seoul National University Hospital, Samsung Seoul Hospital, and Others Fail to Fill Residency Positions
Zero Applicants for Pediatric and Obstetrics-Gynecology at Severance
Despite New "Policy Fee," Response Is "Extremely Grateful" but Lukewarm

As the government is introducing measures to prevent the collapse of essential medical services such as pediatrics, even the 'Big 5' hospitals in Seoul failed to fill most of their residency quotas.

Seoul Major University Hospitals' Residency Recruitment 'Under Quota'

A child patient came to a pediatric clinic in Seoul to receive a flu vaccination. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

According to the medical community on the 6th, major tertiary hospitals in Seoul, known as the 'Big 5,' including Seoul National University Hospital, Severance Hospital, and Samsung Medical Center, experienced under-enrollment in the recruitment of first-year pediatric residents for the first half of next year, which closed on this day.

According to the tally on this day, the average competition rate for residents across all departments at Seoul National University Hospital was 1.2 to 1, but departments such as pediatrics, cardiovascular thoracic surgery, emergency medicine, and family medicine failed to fill their quotas.

Pediatrics recruited 17 residents but only 15 applied. Cardiovascular thoracic surgery recruited 4 but had only 1 applicant, emergency medicine recruited 8 with 6 applicants, and family medicine recruited 20 with 14 applicants.

In the case of Severance Hospital, 10 residents were recruited each for pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology, but it was confirmed that no one applied for either department.

Dermatology, Ophthalmology, and Plastic Surgery Exceed Quotas

Samsung Medical Center recruited 9 pediatric residents but only 7 applied. This contrasts with the popular departments known as PiAnSeong (Dermatology, Ophthalmology, Plastic Surgery), which attracted many applicants. Dermatology had 4 applicants for 1 position, ophthalmology had 4 applicants for 2 positions, and plastic surgery had 5 applicants for 2 positions.

The Catholic Central Medical Center recruited 10 pediatric residents but only 4 applied. These 4 applicants are expected to be assigned to Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, so other hospitals such as Eunpyeong, Uijeongbu, and Bucheon St. Mary's Hospital are likely to face difficulties in resident supply.

On the other hand, Asan Medical Center's pediatrics department received 12 applications for 10 positions, exceeding the quota, making it the only one among the 'Big 5' to do so. However, obstetrics and gynecology recruited 9 but had 4 applicants, family medicine recruited 5 but had 1 applicant, and emergency medicine recruited 6 but had 3 applicants, all falling short.

'Pediatric Open Run' Measures Announced, but Field Response is...

This is a pediatric department at a university hospital in Daegu and is not related to the specific content of the article. [Image source=Yonhap News]

As the avoidance of pediatrics continues, essential medical gaps such as the so-called 'pediatric open run' (the phenomenon of lining up from early morning to see pediatric care) are expected to persist.

In October, the government announced it would invest about 30 billion KRW annually by introducing a 'pediatric care policy incentive' to prevent such phenomena. This policy incentive strengthens compensation by providing additional payments when specialists in pediatric hospitals and clinics see pediatric patients under 6 years old for the first time.

However, criticism arose on the ground that this is a 'mere formality.' Im Hyun-taek, president of the Korean Pediatric Society, said, "The Ministry of Health and Welfare introduced a policy fee that gives an additional 3,500 KRW only for the first pediatric visit, increasing monthly post-tax income by about 400,000 KRW, and presented it as a pediatric measure. I am very grateful," but added sarcastically, "Interns, since pediatrics is so lucrative, please apply a lot."

Increase in Pediatric Department Closures and Transfers to Other Departments

On March 29, a press conference titled 'Farewell to the Pediatric Pulmonology Department and the Public' was held at the Korea Medical Association Hall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The Korean Pediatric Society declared the 'closure of pediatrics departments' in March, stating that "over the past 10 years, doctors' incomes have decreased by 28%, reaching a point where running a hospital is impossible." According to the society, 617 pediatric hospitals and clinics opened in the past 5 years, while 662 closed.

Consequently, it has been reported that recently, pediatric specialists are showing a trend of switching to other departments by learning high-fee specialties such as dermatology, cosmetic surgery, plastic surgery, hair loss treatment, and obesity management.