Outraged by 'special treatment,' doctors condemn DP chief's helicopter transfer to Seoul

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Outraged by 'special treatment,' doctors condemn DP chief's helicopter transfer to Seoul

Published: 09 Jan. 2024, 18:09

Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung being moved from an emergency helicopter to an ambulance at Nodeul Island, Yongsan, Seoul, on Jan. 2. On the far left, DP Rep. Cheon Jun-ho, who is the secretary to Lee, receives a greeting from an emergency respondent. [YONHAP]

Doctors across the country are expressing outrage over the Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung's helicopter transfer to a hospital in Seoul.

Doctor advocacy groups nationwide issued statements accusing the DP of undermining regional medical institutions and leveling allegations against the DP chief for receiving special treatment based on his political status.

On Monday, Lim Hyun-taek, president of the Korean Pediatric Association, and Byun Sung-yoon, head of the Pyeongtaek Medical Association, filed a complaint at the Seoul District Prosecutors’ Office against DP chief Lee, accusing him of abusing the emergency helicopter for the transfer from Busan to Seoul.

The doctors alleged that the DP and its leader, along with his close confidants, Rep. Jung Chung-rae and Cheon Jun-ho, obstructed business by exerting political influence on Busan National University Hospital and Seoul National University Hospital, where the DP chief underwent surgery.

The doctors claimed that the injury Lee suffered was not critical enough to warrant transportation from Busan National University Hospital, which has more experience in treating trauma patients.

They accused the DP chief and DP lawmakers of depriving other patients of opportunities by cutting in line and prioritizing political figures over those with more urgent medical needs.

“Some 120,000 trauma patients arrive at emergency rooms annually,” Lim said. “Some 30,000 of them do not survive.”

“The DP leader could have been treated at Busan National University Hospital if he were in a life-or-death situation,” Lim added. “Mobilizing lawmakers to request a transfer to Seoul National University is an abuse of power and a demand for special treatment.”

As of Monday, 14 doctor's advocacy groups across the country had released statements.

A medical association in Busan was the first to criticize the DP.

In a statement released on Jan. 4, the Busan Medical Association (BMA) accused the DP of being hypocrites.

While expressing wishes for a swift recovery for Lee, the BMA accused the leadership of the nation's biggest political party of being duplicitous by transferring the DP chief to Seoul instead of seeking treatment in Busan.

“If the patient's condition was critical, he should have had the surgery at the regional general hospital, which is Busan National University Hospital,” the advocacy group said. “If not, he should have been transferred to his local general hospital using general transportation and not in an emergency helicopter.”

“This is the healthcare delivery system that everyone abides by,” the BMA said. “Despite having the best emergency medical team in the country prepared for surgery, [the DP] transferred Lee to a tertiary hospital in the greater Seoul area, citing nursing needs even when time was being wasted.”

The BMA argued that the DP opted to use medical services in Seoul, contradicting its past claims of supporting the improvement of regional medical institutions.

“They live-streamed the truth about our nation's regional medical problems,” the BMA said. “In particular, DP Supreme Council member Jung Chung-rae's comment that [the DP chief] needed to be operated by a more advanced hospital created a hierarchy among medical institutions and created a division between regional medical institutions and those in the greater Seoul area.”

Since Busan, others have joined the criticism, including Gwangju, a DP stronghold, and even Seongnam, the political base of the DP chief, who was the city's mayor for eight years.

On Monday, the Korea Medical Association (KMA) released its own statement criticizing the DP.

“A particular politician with a sense of being above others has distorted the national emergency patient treatment and transportation system,” the KMA said. “This incident has unequivocally highlighted the disparity between a legislator and the people, who are compelled to follow the rules.”

Lim Hyun-taek, president of the Korean Pediatric Association, left, and Byun Sung-yoon, head of the Pyeongtaek Medical Association holds a complaint against the Democratic Party and its leader Lee Jae-myung in front of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office on Monday in Seoul. [YONHAP]

Lee Hyun-min, who heads the Korean Emergency Medical Association, told local media that since the DP chief was transferred to Seoul by helicopter, there has been an increase in other patients demanding the same treatment.

Busan National University Hospital is the nation's top-notch trauma center, receiving the top grade from the Ministry of Health and Welfare for four consecutive years.

Additionally, the hospital has 17 specialists, a contrast to Seoul National University Hospital's six.

Last year, the Busan hospital treated nearly 1,600 patients, compared to Seoul National University Hospital's 235.

The trauma center in Busan receives a budget of 5 billion won ($3.8 million) from the health ministry, while the Seoul city government provides 6 million won.

The hospital in Busan offers 124 beds for trauma patients, whereas the hospital in Seoul has only five.

The DP denied the accusation.

“What obstruction of business did we commit?” spokesperson Kwon Chil-seung said Monday when questioned about the complaint filed at the Seoul District Court.

“It was an agreement between the hospitals.”

The DP further accused the government of spreading misinformation.

DP spokesman Kwon accused the government of attempting to downplay the severity of Lee's injury on the first day he was attacked on Jan. 2.

Kwon said that the National Counter Terrorism Center, in its initial report on Lee's injury, described it as a light injury with a 1-centimeter (0.4-inch) laceration instead of reporting it as a stab wound.

“It was an attempt to distort the severity by minimizing the size of the injury,” Kwon said.

Stating that the counterterrorism center operates under the prime minister's office, he accused the government of initiating misinformation about Lee.

“What were your intentions to spread misinformation?” Kwon questioned.

The prime minister's office promptly denied the accusation, emphasizing that the counterterrorism center's report was based on information from the firefighters and police at the scene.

The controversy erupted when the DP and even Seoul National University Hospital claimed that Lee's transfer to Seoul was at the request of Busan National University Hospital.

DP Rep. Jung stressed that Lee was in critical condition and required a specialized surgeon.

However, Busan National University Hospital denied ever making such a request and told the local media they were prepared to operate on Lee.

The hospital said that it was the DP that demanded Lee be airlifted to Seoul at the family's request.

Reportedly, the medical staff at the Busan hospital advised against the move, considering that Lee could have suffered complications during the two-hour trip.

BY LEE HO-JEONG [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]