Telemedicine services to be expanded as 'golden hour' of medical crisis looms

Social Affairs

Published: 23 Feb. 2024, 16:00 Updated: 23 Feb. 2024, 16:04

Telemedicine services to be expanded as 'golden hour' of medical crisis looms

A doctor massages his shoulder as he stands at a university hospital in Seoul on Friday. The government on the same day raised its national health crisis warning to the highest ″serious″ level as mass resignations of trainee doctors continued. [YONHAP]

The government announced on Friday that telemedicine services would be expanded to all hospitals as trainee doctors continued walking off the job to protest the medical school enrollment quota hike.

“Telemedicine services will be expanded from today to ensure that the public can conveniently have medical appointments,” Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said during the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters’ meeting held Friday morning.

On the same day, the government raised its national health crisis warning by one notch to “serious,” the highest level of the four-tier system.

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, this marks the first time the country has raised the crisis warning to the highest level for health and medical crises.

With the issuance of the highest warning, the command center responding to the crisis will be elevated to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters led by the prime minister.

“The government takes a stern view of doctors’ collective action and the medical crisis against people’s lives and health, and will exert all necessary capacities and resources to minimize the absence of medical professionals with related authorities,” Second Health Vice Minister Park Min-soo said during a regular briefing Friday morning.

As of 10 p.m. Thursday, a total of 8,897 interns and residents at 94 major hospitals nationwide submitted their resignation letters, Park said. This accounts for nearly 80 percent of trainee doctors at these hospitals.

The figure on Friday is lower than that from Thursday as six hospitals have not submitted their data to the government.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, right, on Friday speaks during the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters' meeting held at the government complex in downtown Seoul. [YONHAP]

An additional 40 cases affected by the medical walkout were reported to the government as of 6 p.m. Thursday, which includes 27 surgery postponements and six appointment cancellations.

So far, a total of 189 cases have been reported to the Health Ministry’s support center set up to respond to collective action by doctors.

Starting Friday, all hospitals in the country, regardless of their size, will be allowed to offer telemedicine services without reporting to the government.

Before Friday's announcement, telemedicine services were only available at smaller hospitals like local clinics and restricted to returning patients.

The Health Ministry said such restrictions are being lifted, adding that specific guidelines will be announced separately in the future.

The government on Friday warned that strict consequences will follow if medical students continue to not show up in class.

According to the Ministry of Education, over 11,000 medical students across 40 schools applied for leaves of absence as of 6 p.m. Thursday, accounting for around 60 percent of such students. The ministry said that none of the applications filed to participate in the collective action were approved.

Students at 11 schools refused to take classes.

Some 346 students at one medical school withdrew their applications.

Meanwhile, the emergency committee consisting of professors at Seoul National University’s College of Medicine and Hospital said the coming weekend will be the “golden hour” of the crisis in a statement on Friday.

“We are concerned that a disaster will occur if there is no progress [between the government and the trainee doctors] over the weekend,” the statement read.

“But we can only side with the trainee doctors if the government does not draw up any understandable responses.”

The committee asked the government for a thorough discussion "to draw up the best resolution for public health and the medical system together."

Interns and residents in Korea have been submitting resignation letters since last week to protest the government’s decision to increase the medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 starting next year. The measure was announced to address the shortage of medical services in essential fields, especially in rural areas.

The Education Ministry sent out official documents to 40 medical schools asking for their applications to increase the enrollment quota on Thursday. The government plans to receive such applications through March 4 and finalize the enrollment quota hike for each university.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]