Doctor shortage fears grow as medical students boycott licensing exam

Social Affairs

Published: 11 Jul. 2024, 18:23

Doctor shortage fears grow as medical students boycott licensing exam

White medical gowns are placed on a cabinet inside a medical school's building in Seoul on Thursday. [YONHAP]

Over 95 percent of medical students in a recent survey said they refused to take the annual doctors’ license exam, a decision that could worsen the health care vacuum by yielding fewer doctors.

According to the Korea Association of Medical Colleges on Wednesday, 3,015 students were eligible to take the test this year. Of 2,903 respondents to a survey of students in their fourth year of medical school, 2,773 answered that they did not submit a consent form to provide their personal information to take the exam.

In Korea, medical students who complete a two-year pre-med and four-year medical school course should take the general doctors' license exam.

Medical schools were due to submit the list of graduate candidates to the Korea Health Personnel Licensing Examination Institute by June 20 to verify whether the test-takers were qualified for the exam. The test-takers’ consent forms are required for this.

The state-run institute that conducts the exam said medical students who do not consent to provide their personal information cannot register for it.

The exam boycott means that training hospitals may be unable to recruit a sufficient number of medical interns — junior doctors in their first year of training — the following year. In this scenario, the hospital workforce shortage will likely be exacerbated when incumbent junior doctors do not return to hospitals.

“A majority of medical students in their final school year expressed their intent not to take the national medical license exam,” said Sohn Jung-ho, co-chair of an emergency response committee of the Korea Association of Medical Colleges. He also asked the government to make a “swift decision if it wishes to solve the problem.”

On Wednesday, Park Dan, head of the Korean Intern Resident Association, stated that he "supports and endorses the medical students’ decision" not to take the doctors' license exam.

He added that he would not return to his training hospital despite the government’s concession to drop penalties, noting that junior doctors' demands are “resolute and clear.”

His remarks suggest that despite the government’s sweetener, junior doctors will not return to their hospitals unless the government fully accepts their seven demands, which include scrapping the admissions quota hike in medical schools.

Medical professionals walk inside Korea University Anam Hospital in Seongbuk District, central Seoul, on Thursday, a day before the hospital's medical professors go on an indefinite strike. [NEWS1]

On Thursday, the government reaffirmed its policy of granting “special exceptions” to junior doctors who return to hospitals by September.

Yi Han-kyung, vice minister for disaster and safety management, said junior doctors “who do not come back to hospitals by September will not be able to receive remedies" in a briefing at Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters on the same day.

The remedies are likely to include shortening their training period.

Lee also said the government’s decision aims to “protect public and patients’ health and lives.”

The government also declined requests from training hospitals to extend the deadline for processing junior doctors’ resignations, maintaining its original schedule.

Training hospitals are required to confirm the number of vacant spots by Monday and start the recruitment process for the fall semester on July 22.

With just four days left before the deadline expires, training hospitals are rushing to process their resignations because failure to do so will result in them receiving just a few slots to hire junior doctors.

A chief at one Seoul-based hospital told the JoongAng Ilbo that “the hospital will send an email or text message to junior doctors telling them they will be dismissed if they do not state their stance about returning [by Monday].”

BY LEE SOO-JUNG, SHIN SUNG-SIK [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]