Even Large Hospitals Face Pediatric Department Undersubscription
Essential Medical Care Avoidance Worsens Gradually
The pediatric and adolescent medicine department, often labeled as a 'least preferred specialty' in the medical field, is facing difficulties in recruiting residents. It is known that even prestigious hospitals frequently experience a shortage of applicants relative to their quotas.
Recently, Samsung Seoul Hospital released an official promotional video on YouTube ahead of its resident recruitment for the first half of next year. In this video, a pediatric resident affiliated with the hospital emphasized the 'work-life balance' in pediatrics and encouraged applications to the department.
Since the enactment of the "Act on Improvement of Training Environment and Status of Residents" (Resident Act) in 2015, which limits working hours to no more than 80 hours per week, compliance has reportedly been lacking in practice. However, pediatrics is said to be an exception where work-life balance is well maintained.
Residents repeatedly emphasized, "It is possible to start work at 7 a.m. and leave promptly at 5 p.m." Nevertheless, the number of applicants for pediatrics was only 7 out of 9 available positions, resulting in an undersupply.
Pediatrics is considered an essential medical specialty, but being stigmatized as a least preferred specialty has caused disruptions in resident supply. This reality is clearly reflected in the "2024 First Half Resident Year 1 Early Recruitment Support Results," conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare from the 4th to the 6th of this month, surveying 140 training hospitals.
In the early recruitment results, 3,588 applicants applied for 3,345 positions, recording an overall application rate of 107.3%. However, pediatrics had only 53 applicants for 205 positions, with an application rate of 25.9%, ranking last among all specialties.
The situation is not much different for other essential medical specialties. Emergency medicine (79.6%) and obstetrics and gynecology (67.4%) also saw declining applicants and failed to fill their quotas.
On the other hand, popular specialties such as psychiatry (178.9%), ophthalmology (172.6%), plastic surgery (165.8%), rehabilitation medicine (158.8%), orthopedic surgery (150.7%), dermatology (143.1%), and radiology (141.8%) all showed application rates well over 100%.
On the 8th, at a children's hospital in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, where influenza continues to spread mainly among children and adolescents, the number of patients is more than three times higher compared to the same period last year. Although it is still early, each doctor has an average of about 50 patients waiting. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@
On the 8th, a children's hospital in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul was crowded with children and parents. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@
The collapse of essential medical fields, including pediatrics, is becoming increasingly severe. As related infrastructure rapidly declines, the issue of 'medical gaps' is emerging. It is difficult to receive care late at night or on holidays, and a phenomenon known as the 'pediatric open run' has appeared, where parents line up outside hospitals from early morning to get pediatric care for their children.
The government is implementing various measures to prevent the outflow of related personnel, such as significantly increasing compensation for pediatric residents, specialists, and medical institutions.
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