"Prolonged Medical Gaps, Need to Seek Health Rights Guarantee"…Human Rights Commission Holds Forum

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) will hold a forum to explore ways to guarantee the right to health and strengthen medical publicness amid the ongoing medical service gaps caused by the increase in medical school quotas.

The NHRCK announced that on the 15th at 2 p.m., it will hold a forum titled "A Forum to Explore Measures to Guarantee the Right to Health and Strengthen Medical Publicness in the Prolonged Medical Service Gap Situation" at the Human Rights Education Center of the National Human Rights Commission in Jung-gu, Seoul.

The NHRCK explained the purpose of the forum, stating, "As the collective resignation of resident doctors has prolonged the medical service gap, situations have arisen where patients' lives are threatened due to inadequate treatment. We have decided to create a platform for social public discussion to guarantee the right to health, a fundamental right that everyone should enjoy, and to devise improvement measures for the Korean healthcare system."

At this forum, starting with a presentation by a preventive medicine specialist who is a social rights expert at the NHRCK, opinions from various sectors including patient groups, consumer organizations, and civic groups will follow.

From the medical community, Ryu Okhada, former representative of interns at the Catholic Central Medical Center, Choi Bokjun, Policy Director of the National Health and Medical Industry Labor Union, and Cho Seungyeon, President of the National Association of Local Medical Centers, will attend. Additionally, Ahn Gijong, President of the Korea Patient Organization Federation, and Nam Eungyeong, Director of Social Policy at the Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice, will participate to discuss issues arising in essential medical fields including regional healthcare in Korea and ways to strengthen publicness.

The NHRCK stated, "Based on the discussions at the forum, we plan to proceed with policy reviews."