Draft:2024 Korean Medical Crisis

2024 Korean Medical Crisis started with medical interns/residents leaving their post in hospitals to protest South Korean government's decision to increase number of students admitted to medical schools, causing chaos and confusion in healthcare system starting February 20th, 2024. Korean government is firm on executing the new policy and general public in South Korea is approving this decision. Meanwhile Korean Medical Association(KMA), some medical school professors, medical interns/residents and medical communities that support Korean Medical Association are strongly opposing the decision and are responding by going on strike. Both sides show no sign of backing down and this is leading to postponement of surgeries, delay in medical treatment and death of patients.

Majority of public is supporting government's decision to increase medical students admissions and is blaming doctors for causing medical crisis. There are some views that government is pushing the policy too aggressively, resulting backlash from doctors' communities, but due to arrogant and haughty responses made by few members of KMA, most of public's opinion turned against doctors. Some also criticizes doctors for seeking only privilege and financial gain, abandoning their responsibilities as doctors as stated in Hippocratic Oath and Declaration of Geneva. Government and Media also criticized doctors' actions by comparing to similar cases in Germany and Japan, claiming "Doctors reacting in collective action is unprecedented." However, there is also an opinion that with 2024 presidential election approaching, Yoon Suk Yeol Administration is using doctors politically to overturn decreasing approval rate after news about Korea's First Lady's 'Dior Bag Scandal' broke out.

Background
To become medical specialists in South Korea, medical students need to go through 1 year of internship and 4 years of residency after graduation. Medical schools' admission numbers has been kept to 3058 students since 2006. Korean government tried to increase number of admissions previously but failed due to backlash from doctors. South Korean government, predicting shortage of doctors in 2035 and increase in demand for medical workers due to aging of general population, announced policy to increase medical schools' admissions by 2000 starting February 2024. Doctors' community opposed this plan arguing there is no shortage in doctors.

Doctors are claiming South Korean medical policies are lacking transparency, reactivity, economic viability, selectivity, quality and responsibility. They are also claiming South Korean media is promoting conflict between doctors and the public.

Statements
Statements made by doctors vs. Korean government are as follows.

Medical Interns/Residents on Strike
Yoon Suk Yeol administration announced they will increase number of medical schools' admissions by 2000 starting 2025.The doctors are opposing this decision claiming there are enough number of doctors. Despite of opposition, the current administration is firm on executing the plan. To protest this decision, doctors started labor strike starting February 20th, 2024 and many medical students boycotted classes and declared leave of absence. On February 26th, Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare stated that 10.034 medical interns/residents from 100 training hospitals handed in resignation letters and of these, 9,006 are retiring. The Ministry of Health and Welfare cancelled 2 of doctors who are the heads of Korean Medical Association and ordered 6228 of medical interns to return to work. The government stated that those who return to work by February 29th will not be penalized.

Government's Response
Government is utilizing national medical institutes and military hospitals to maximum capacity. They will allow use of telehealth if needed starting from February 23th to until doctors' strike is over. Doctors are minimizing number of surgical procedures and is prioritizing treating the critically ill. Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters had meeting for doctors' collective action decided National Police Agency will investigate any damages from treatment refusal, postponed surgery or treatment delay and will penalize anyone in charge of medical institutions where any of these damages occurred due to negligence.

Damages
As medical interns/residents were the major workforce in emergency and on-call medical system, the damage to patient population is increasing.


 * On February 21st, in Yangyang County from Gangwon Province, a patient with leg necrosis tried to get treated in GangNeung Asan Hospital, but due to absence of medical interns/residents, was not able to get treated and had to search for 3.5 hours and got finally treated at Wonju city.
 * In Daejeon, a patient was refused for treatment in 8 hospitals. Another patient in rehab was suffering bedsore due to paralysis and was transported as emergency to a university hospital, but was refused. In Ganjin County from Jeolla Province, there was a patient in critical condition who was vomiting blood, but did not receive proper treatment in time, worsening the symptoms. This patient was transported for 1.5 hours to Gwangju Chosun University Hospital Emergency room. Currently major hospitals in Gwangju Province are only receiving emergency patient but the waiting line is too long. Surgeries has been cancelled or postponed and even making appointments is not possible.
 * On February 22th, a story was posted on a college community describing how doctors' strike delayed the writer's grandmother's dialysis schedule, resulting in her death.