Gov't warns striking doctors that suspensions could delay careers by a year

Medical professionals walk in front of a parked ambulance in a hospital in downtown Seoul on Sunday. [NEWS1]

The government warned striking trainee doctors Monday that the inevitable three-month-long license suspension could delay their careers to become professional doctors by a year if they do not return to work.

“Doctors facing the license suspension cannot fulfill their training requirements to earn the license of board-certified subspecialties,” Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo said during a briefing on Monday.

A license of board-certified subspecialties supersedes the licenses held by junior doctors.

“Starting Monday, the government will conduct a probe to check who has returned to their duties and execute measures based on the rule of law,” Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong said during a Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meeting on the same day, noting its “uncompromising” stance.

The minister also warned doctors of possible consequences that might jeopardize their careers.

“No matter what has caused such a collective action, doctors leaving patients behind cannot be tolerated. The government will pursue legal measures without hesitation to protect people’s lives,” Cho said.

The authorities said they will go easy on doctors who return to work.

“Despite the government’s multiple calls urging them to return by Feb. 29, a handful of doctors have not yet returned. The authorities call for the doctors’ swift return to the medical front line.”

Cho expressed regret over the mass strike that left patients’ health and treatment in limbo. He also said various industrial and social groups and entities — including labor unions, religious groups, organizations for patients and disabled people — have urged the doctors to halt their collective actions immediately.

Monday is a day when fellow doctors renew their employment contracts with hospitals.

“The government is asking the fellow doctors to stay on their duties" by signing their contracts as initially planned, Cho said.

The minister also addressed a Korean Medical Association (KMA)-led rally staged in Yeouido, western Seoul on Sunday. The demonstration opposed the governmental plan to hike medical schools’ enrollment quota.

“The government is deeply concerned that the doctors walked off from the patients and participated in collective actions. There is an allegation that employees from pharmaceutical companies were mobilized. If it turns out to be true, such actions account for coercion in exchange for purchasing their medicine.”

Cho also called universities with medical colleges to submit their 2025 academic year enrollment quotas by Monday.

“The government anticipates receiving colleges’ admission plan that can nurture future medical professionals and build sustainable medical infrastructure,” the minister said.

A total of four Emergency Operations Centers — functioning as a control tower by letting emergency patients receive timely treatment — will be fully operational starting Monday.

“The country will finalize medical reform by prioritizing Korean nationals,” Cho said. “The authority will duly inform the public of its legalizing progress of law that strengthens compensation for victims of medical accidents and reduces the legal burden on medical professionals.”

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