"Medical School Professor's Resignation, a Sincere Final Card"
"If It Passes April, Major Hospitals Will Face Chain Bankruptcies and Failures"
On the 12th, medical staff are moving at Seoul National University Hospital in Jongno-gu, Seoul. The Emergency Response Committee of the Seoul National University College of Medicine Professors' Council announced that if the government does not come up with a reasonable plan regarding the increase in medical school quotas, they will submit their resignation letters starting from the 18th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@
As medical school professors set the deadline for submitting resignation letters on the 25th, making 'chaos' in the medical field inevitable, Bang Jae-seung, chairman of the Seoul National University College of Medicine Emergency Committee, issued a public apology.
On the 18th, Chairman Bang appeared on CBS Radio's "Kim Hyun-jung's News Show" and delivered a public apology starting with, "I am deeply sorry for causing inconvenience in medical services. I sincerely apologize for making people anxiously watch the direction of this situation." He also said, "I apologize to the residents as well. They have suffered from excessive labor under the name of education, and since I also trained in such an environment, I did not have a proper awareness of the problem." He added, "Although the residents had many concerns before choosing to resign, I am sorry for failing to communicate properly."
He continued, "Our group of professors also made serious mistakes. We forgot that without the people, there are no doctors like us," and bowed his head, saying, "We want to communicate with the public about the shortcomings so far. We will listen to the public’s difficulties and what needs to be improved." Regarding the professors’ expression of intent to resign, he said, "It means we hope for a solution to break the deadlock with the government and expect a resolution." He explained, "If the situation is not resolved by March and extends into April, it will lead to medical students repeating a year, administrative sanctions on residents, and the bankruptcy and collapse of large hospitals."
Regarding the government’s stance that even professors’ licenses could be suspended as with residents, Chairman Bang said, "Which professor wouldn’t be scared? I am really scared too," and raised his voice, saying, "Professors are using their last card to show their sincerity. Please come to the negotiation table. Residents, please come back. This is a kind of appeal."
Jang Sang-yoon, Senior Secretary for Social Affairs at the Presidential Office, reiterated the government’s position, saying, "If they leave the medical field, we have no choice but to respond according to law and principles." He added, "The government officially announced the policy to increase medical school admissions in January last year and proposed coordinating opinions on the scale and method of increase, but the doctors’ stance was an absolute refusal to increase. There was no response afterward."
The controversy began with issues of avoidance of certain medical specialties and lack of medical resources in rural areas. Chairman Bang said, "Normalizing the concentration phenomenon basically requires an increase in admissions. Considering the aging society in the future, it is even more necessary." He questioned, "But since patients concentrate in the metropolitan area, doctors inevitably concentrate there too. How can training be done in rural areas without patients?"
Senior Secretary Jang stated, "There needs to be a structure that revitalizes regional base medical schools, general hospitals under them, and clinics," and expressed his position, "Admissions should be increased by allocating fees centered on essential medical care. If patients in the region come with trust, an ecosystem will naturally form."
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