Many surgeries were postponed and hospitals refused to accept patients because more than 1,600 doctors in South Korea went on strike on Tuesday.
The young doctors are not happy with the government’s plan to add more trained doctors to the system.
South Korea doesn’t have enough doctors for the number of patients. The government wants to increase the number of spaces in medical schools to have more doctors available.
However, doctors do not like the idea of more competition, according to experts.
South Korea has a healthcare system where most treatments are paid for by insurance, and over 90% of hospitals are owned privately.
The doctors at this hospital are paid a lot of money compared to other doctors around the world. The average specialist at a public hospital earns almost $200,000 a year, which is much more than what most people in the country make.
However, right now there are only 2. 5 doctors for every 1,000 people. This is the second lowest rate in the group of countries called OECD, with Mexico being the lowest.
“Having more doctors means they have to compete with each other, which can lead to them earning less money. ” Prof Kwon Soon-man, a health expert at Seoul National University, said they don’t agree with the idea of having more doctors.
The country doesn’t have enough doctors in far-away places, and also not enough in specialities like children’s health and childbirth. These specialities are not seen as profitable as some other types of medicine like skin and plastic surgery.
Almost 6,500 new doctors and trainees, which is about half of the total, handed in their resignation letters on Monday, according to the country’s health ministry.
About 1,600 doctors didn’t go to work from that group. The Korean Medical Association and Korea Interns and Residents Association asked their members to stop working completely on Tuesday.
The government told doctors to start working again, and President Yoon Suk-yeol criticized a campaign that he said was putting people’s lives and health at risk.
He said he knew of cases where cancer surgeries had been delayed because of the walk-outs. South Korean news said some patients had to leave or go to different hospitals.
Young doctors are a big part of the staff in the emergency rooms. According to Yonhap, almost 37% of doctors in the largest hospitals in Seoul could be impacted.
“We are very upset that trainee doctors are not willing to work,” said Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo to reporters earlier this week.
On Tuesday, he said the government will use the law to stop the strike. The government can take away a doctor’s license if their actions hurt national healthcare.
The country has taken legal action against doctors who went on strike before. The government said it was going to do something to two officials of the Korean Medical Association on Tuesday.
Almost 6,500 new doctors decided to quit their jobs on Monday, which is about half of all the new doctors in the country. This information came from the health ministry.
Out of the group, around 1,600 doctors didn’t come to work. The Korean Medical Association and Korea Interns and Residents Association asked their members to not work at all on Tuesday.
The government wants doctors to start working again. President Yoon Suk-yeol is angry at the campaign that is hurting people’s lives and health.
He said he knew of situations where cancer surgeries had been delayed because of the strikes. South Korean news say some patients have had to leave the hospital or go to a different one.
Young doctors are a big part of the staff in emergency rooms. A news report said that as many as 37% of doctors at the largest hospitals in Seoul could be affected.
“We are very unhappy that trainee doctors are not willing to work,” said Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo to reporters earlier this week.
On Tuesday, he said the government will use the law to end the strike. The government can take away a doctor’s license if they do something that harms the nation’s healthcare.
The country has charged doctors in the past for going on strike. The government said it was doing something about two officials from the Korean Medical Association on Tuesday.