No repercussions if you return by Thursday, gov’t tells trainee doctors

A medical professional walks into an emergency room at Asan Medical Center in southern Seoul on Monday. [NEWS1]

The government on Monday said that trainee doctors returning to hospitals by Thursday will not be held accountable for their mass resignations and walkouts.

“The government acknowledges the gravity of the current situation [caused by the mass strike] and hereby makes the last call, promising that doctors coming back to work by Feb. 29 will not be liable for their actions,” said Interior Minister Lee Sang-min during the meeting at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters on the same day.

A majority of trainee doctors have been protesting the government’s decision to hike the medical school enrollment quota since last week.

According to the Health Ministry on Monday, a total of 9,006 trainee doctors from the 100 major hospitals — accounting for 72.3 percent of all trainee doctors — left their hospitals after submitting their resignations.

“Trainee doctors’ collective actions heightened chaos on the medical front line, risking patients' health and lives," Lee said.

Lee said that securing an additional 15,000 medical professionals by 2035 is essential to improve primary medical services and health care access across the country.

“I believe that trainee doctors will make the right decision and remember their voices can carry more impact when they stand by the patients,” Lee said.

"The government hopes that the trainee doctors will return and engage in talks with authorities for a better medical environment.”

Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong said that approximately less than 20 percent of junior doctors who went on strike have returned to their work.

BY LEE SOO-JUNG [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]