"Concerns Over Patient Inconvenience Due to Designation of Temporary Public Holidays"
Major hospitals in Seoul, including the 'Big 5' hospitals, will operate normally on the temporary holiday on the 1st of next month.
According to the medical community on the 23rd, the Big 5 hospitals?Seoul National University Hospital, Severance Hospital, Asan Medical Center, Samsung Medical Center, and Seoul St. Mary's Hospital?will proceed with outpatient consultations and scheduled surgeries as planned on the temporary holiday on the 1st of next month. Korea University Anam Hospital, Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital, Kyung Hee University Hospital, and Hanyang University Hospital will also operate normally.
Eulji University Medical Center also announced that it will provide normal medical services on October 1st to minimize medical service gaps. Uijeongbu Eulji Medical Center under Eulji University Medical Center will operate from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Daejeon and Nowon Eulji Medical Centers will operate from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM.
In principle, hospitals can close even on temporary holidays. However, each hospital decided to operate normally due to concerns about patient inconvenience caused by the sudden designation of the temporary holiday.
It was also considered that if additional closures occur amid the ongoing prolonged medical-government conflicts that have reduced consultations and surgeries, the medical service gap could worsen.
Earlier, the government deliberated and approved a proposal at the Cabinet meeting on the 3rd to designate October 1st, the 76th Armed Forces Day, as a temporary holiday.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
