Mayor Park Hyungdeok Proposes Three Key Healthcare Issues Including 'Establishment of Northern Gyeonggi Public Medical School' to Vice Minister of Health and Welfare

Proposal Delivered to Vice Minister Lee Seuran During Dongducheon Visit

On October 21, Park Hyungdeok, mayor of Dongducheon, officially presented key proposals for improving the local healthcare system to Lee Seuran, vice minister of health and welfare, who visited the city hall.

Park Hyungdeok, mayor of Dongducheon City, handed over a petition containing key issues for improving the local healthcare system to Lee Seuran, vice minister of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, who visited the city hall on the 21st. Provided by Dongducheon City

This visit was part of the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s schedule for attending a regional cooperation sisterhood agreement ceremony. The city used this opportunity to request the inclusion of practical policies to address healthcare imbalances.

Mayor Park stated, "Dongducheon is a border area in northern Gyeonggi Province, and residents are experiencing severe inconvenience due to a critical lack of medical infrastructure and regional healthcare disparities. Since strengthening public healthcare is a core national policy, it is urgent for the government to prepare responsible measures at the national level."

He specifically proposed three main items: the designation and establishment of a public medical school in northern Gyeonggi, improving the supply of physicians for stable public health services, and maintaining the designation of medically underserved areas in the field of emergency medicine.

In particular, the city proposed establishing the 'Northern Gyeonggi Public Medical School' by designating Daejin University as the affiliated university and connecting Dongducheon and Bundang Jaesaeng Hospitals as teaching hospitals. Based on a medical infrastructure of around 1,900 beds, this proposal represents a long-standing goal of the city and a key strategy for resolving healthcare imbalances in northern Gyeonggi. The city hopes that this will lead to substantive discussions at the national level.

Additionally, Dongducheon Public Health Center currently has only one supervising physician and one public health doctor. With the aging of the supervising physician and uncertainty regarding the assignment of public health doctors after their service is lifted in 2026, there are concerns about potential medical service gaps. In response, the city also requested improvements such as expanding national funding for public health centers, institutionalizing incentives for hiring supervising physicians, and ensuring stable placement of public health doctors in areas with declining populations.

Proposals regarding emergency medical services were also raised. Dongducheon Jungang St. Mary's Hospital operates the only emergency room in the city and is currently designated as a regional base medical institution in Gyeonggi Province, receiving support for operating and equipment costs. However, with the criteria for designating medically underserved areas set to change in 2025, there is a possibility this designation may be lifted. The city stressed the need to ensure continuity in emergency room operations and to revise the criteria to reflect the unique circumstances of border regions.

Mayor Park emphasized, "The medical issues in Dongducheon are not merely local public health matters, but should be addressed in the context of the area's border location and its contribution to national security. I hope the government will protect the lives and health of all citizens equally by taking a precise approach to underserved areas within the metropolitan region through its healthcare policies."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.