16 July, 2024
Reckless Nazi Gestapo dictatorship sparked mass resignation of doctors
Medical staff and patients move in front of a specialty room at a university hospital in downtown Seoul on July 15. 2024.7.15/news1
The mass resignation of doctors earlier
this year, sparked by the government’s reckless decision to increase the number
of medical students without even bothering to consult the medical community,
has reached a crisis point.
The government’s arbitrary deadline for doctors to decide whether to return or resign came and went on the 15th, with predictably dismal results. Only a tiny fraction of doctors have made a move, and now the government is scrambling to finalize the resignation process and tally up the vacancies by the 17th.
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the 16th, a pathetic 1155 doctors, just 8.4% of the total 13,756 (interns and residents), showed up to work at 211 training hospitals by noon on the 15th. Even with the government’s heavy-handed ultimatum, the attendance rate didn’t even crack 10%. This pitiful increase of 142 more doctors compared to June 3 is hardly a success story.
Looking at 100 training hospitals, only 929 out of 12,897 doctors bothered to report to work, a dismal 7.2%. Among the Big 5 hospitals (Seoul National University, Seoul Asan Medical Center, Severance, Samsung Medical Center, and Seoul St. Mary's Hospital), the turnout was equally embarrassing, with just 8.0% (195 out of 2442) showing up. Meanwhile, only 86 out of 10,506 residents, a minuscule 0.82%, had submitted their resignations by the same day.
The government has given itself until the 17th to notify the Training Environment Evaluation Committee of the confirmed vacancies. The Welfare Ministry ordered training hospitals to figure out whether their residents are returning or resigning by the 15th, and to apply for the second half of the 2024 residency program by the 17th. The bureaucratic wheels turn, indifferent to the human toll.
With doctors refusing to play ball by the government’s arbitrary deadline, a massive wave of resignations is now inevitable. Training hospitals have already told doctors that if they don’t decide whether to resign or return, they will be automatically dismissed. This means that over 10,000 doctors who aren’t currently working will likely be forced out.
The government has noted, with an apparent lack of surprise, that not many doctors have expressed an intention to return. In a half-hearted attempt to stem the tide, the government has concocted a plan to let resigned doctors return to practice in the second half of the year and intends to persuade them to come back by September.
On Sept. 3, the government announced it would relax the "Guidelines for Appointment Examination for Doctors," allowing resigned doctors to return to the same specialty or year within a year. Under current guidelines, doctors who resign during training are barred from returning to the same specialty or year within one year. However, the government made it clear this exception only applies to the second half of the year, a classic example of too little, too late.
Cho Kyu-hong, the welfare minister, admitted at a National Assembly health and welfare committee meeting that “the deadline for returning and resigning was yesterday, and we’ll get a report tomorrow, so I can’t give you exact numbers, but it doesn’t look like many doctors have expressed an intention to return.”
“They probably felt bad for their colleagues who didn’t return, were overwhelmed by the workload, and decided it was better for their future not to come back,” he speculated.
Cho added, “I think making a special exception for resigning doctors to return in September will result in more resignations than returns. We’ll review the resignation and return outcomes and try to convince doctors further, making tangible policy announcements in areas of interest to them.” Another day, another platitude, as the government tries to sweep its failures under the rug.