SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Thousands of senior doctors gathered in the South Korean capital of Seoul on Sunday to show their support for young doctors who were on strike for almost two weeks because of the government’s plan to sharply increase the number of medical school admissions.
The rally came as the government said it would begin taking steps Monday to suspend the medical licenses of nearly 9,000 interns and residents for violating government orders to put an end to their walkout, which disrupted hospital operations.
“The government’s absurd medical policy has sparked huge resistance from trainee doctors and medical students, and we doctors have become one,” Park Sung-min, a senior member of the Korea Medical Association, said in a speech at the rally. “Please government: please stop the threats and repression now.”
Protesters chanted slogans, chanted and held placards criticizing the government’s plan. There were no reports of violence.
As of Thursday evening, 8,945 out of 13,000 in the country interns and residents were confirmed to have left their jobs, reported the Ministry of Health. The government said they would face a minimum of three months suspension of licenses and charges by prosecutors if they don’t return by Feb. 29.
The striking doctors are a small fraction of South Korea’s 140,000 doctors. But they represent 30-40% of the total number of doctors in some large hospitals, where they assist senior doctors during operations and other treatments while they are being trained. Their departures have subsequently caused numerous canceled surgeries and medical treatments at hospitals.
Senior doctors organized a series of rallies in support of the junior doctors, but did not join the protests. If strikes also begin, observers say it would be a major blow to South Korea’s medical care. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Sunday urged senior doctors to persuade striking junior doctors to return to work.
Police said they were investigating five high-ranking Korean Medical Association officials accused of inciting and aiding the departure of junior doctors. Seoul Police Chief Cho Ji-ho told reporters on Sunday that police raided the KMA offices as part of the investigation.
The government wants to increase South Korea’s medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 starting next year from the current 3,058 to better cope with the country’s rapidly aging population. Authorities say South Korea’s doctor-to-population ratio is one of the lowest among developed countries.
But many doctors vehemently protested the plan, saying medical schools could not handle such a sharp increase in student numbers. They say the hiring plan also doesn’t address the chronic shortage of doctors in essential but low-paying specialties like pediatrics and emergency departments. Doctors say adding too many new doctors would also increase public medical spending, as more competition would lead to unnecessary treatments.
Without concrete plans on how to educate the newly added students, “the quality of medical education will decline endlessly, leading to unsafe, low-quality medical care and the eventual collapse of the Republic of Korea’s medical care,” Lee Jong-Gun, Acting leader of the Korean Medical Association, said at the rally.
The doctors’ protests have not won public support, with a poll showing a majority of South Koreans support the government’s plan. Some critics say that doctors – one of the best-paid professions in South Korea – are simply worried about lower incomes due to the growing number of doctors.
