Teen with Brain Hemorrhage Faces Treatment Delay Due to 'ER Refusal'... Ultimately Dies

Suffering from Moyamoya Disease Causing Partial Cerebral Blood Vessel Blockage

A teenage patient suffering from 'Moyamoya disease,' a condition where some brain blood vessels are blocked, reportedly died due to delayed emergency treatment.

According to a YTN report on the 3rd, A (16), who lives in Umandong, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi Province, collapsed from a cerebral hemorrhage around 12:30 a.m. on the 15th of last month. Although an ambulance was dispatched urgently and transported A, the treatment was delayed as no emergency room capable of providing care was found. A was barely connected to an emergency room at a hospital about 9 km from his home.

Some hospital services are being disrupted as the conflict between the government and the legislature remains unresolved. Yonhap News Agency

A arrived at the emergency room 70 minutes after the initial report. However, the hospital reportedly said that surgery was difficult and directed him to another hospital. This was because A was diagnosed with cerebral hemorrhage and required a hospital facility capable of performing the surgery. However, four university hospitals responded that there were no available intensive care unit beds or that it would take time due to staffing issues.

During this process, more time passed, and A finally underwent surgery around 6:30 a.m., six hours after the initial report. A passed away after a week.

The bereaved family claims that the delay in initial emergency treatment was the cause of death. However, the university hospitals that refused to admit A explained to YTN that "there were no available intensive care unit beds, making treatment impossible, or there was no medical staff, making follow-up care difficult."

A had been suffering from Moyamoya disease, which causes some brain blood vessels to be blocked. When symptoms manifest, insufficient blood supply to the brain can cause serious brain damage such as stroke or cerebral hemorrhage.

Meanwhile, medical vacancies continue as some residents resigned en masse in February in protest against the government's policy to increase medical school quotas. Earlier, a bipartisan parliamentary consultative body was launched to open dialogue with the medical community, but it broke down after the government rejected all four adjustment plans for the 2025 medical school quotas proposed by the medical community. Regarding this, Han Jia, the senior spokesperson for the People Power Party, explained the reason for rejection, saying, "(The medical community's adjustment plans) have many legal issues."