Patient with Torn Forehead Dies After Hospital Transfers... Six Medical Staff Referred to Prosecutors

Visited Three Hospitals but Died Without Treatment
Police Investigate for 'Violation of Emergency Medical Service Act'

Six medical staff members have been referred to the prosecution in connection with the case of an emergency patient with a torn forehead who died without receiving treatment after being turned away from hospital emergency rooms. As the medical service gap caused by the conflict between the medical community and the government, triggered by the government's policy to increase the number of medical school students, continues for over a year, calls for practical government-level measures to prevent such medical service gaps are growing louder.

On the 19th, the Daegu Metropolitan Police Agency announced that it had sent six medical staff members from three regional tertiary hospitals to the prosecution without detention on charges of violating the Emergency Medical Service Act.

According to the police, the deceased, Mr. A, visited the emergency room of a tertiary hospital in Daegu last April with a torn forehead injury, but was transferred to another tertiary hospital based on the medical staff's judgment that plastic surgery treatment was necessary.

However, at the second tertiary hospital, Mr. A was advised to go to yet another tertiary hospital because treatment was not possible on the same day.

At the last hospital he arrived at, Mr. A was also unable to receive treatment, and while preparing to be transferred by ambulance to another hospital, his blood pressure and pulse dropped, leading to cardiac arrest. Although he received cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other treatments, he ultimately passed away.

Following a complaint from the bereaved family, the police concluded that none of the three hospitals Mr. A visited before his death provided proper emergency care at the time of the incident, and in January, referred six medical staff members, including doctors, to the prosecution without detention on charges of violating the Emergency Medical Service Act.

However, although Mr. A died after being turned away from emergency rooms, the medical staff involved were not charged with professional negligence resulting in death. This is because it is unclear where the responsibility lies among the hospitals regarding Mr. A's death, and there is insufficient evidence to prove the charges.

A police official stated, "It is true that Mr. A did not receive proper emergency treatment at the three hospitals before his death," adding, "While opinions may differ within the frontline medical community, we secured evidence independently, conducted an investigation, and after review by the investigation review committee, referred six medical staff members to the prosecution."