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High schooler's death in Busan spotlights Korea's dearth of pediatric specialists

Published: 18 Nov. 2025, 18:24

An ambulance [JOONGANG ILBO]

A high school student in Busan died in an ambulance last month after paramedics were unable to find a hospital equipped to provide pediatric care — a case that has reignited concerns over a growing shortage of pediatric and adolescent specialists in Korea.

In Korea, pediatric care typically covers patients up to the age of 18.

According to Yonhap News Agency on Tuesday, a citizen found a student convulsing near a high school in Busan around 6:17 a.m. on Oct. 20 and called emergency services. Paramedics arrived at the scene 16 minutes later, at 6:33 a.m. The student was reportedly semi-conscious and able to respond to their name.

The critical issue was finding a hospital. Emergency responders contacted four major hospitals in Busan, but all declined to admit the patient, citing a lack of pediatric neurology support. The situation escalated as the regional emergency response center contacted an additional eight hospitals, also to no avail. With no facilities in Busan able to accept the case, responders reached out to hospitals in South Gyeongsang cities such as Changwon, but none were able to take the student.

Nearly an hour passed while the student remained in the ambulance. Around 7:30 a.m., the student went into cardiac arrest. In such cases, regulations require that the patient be taken to the nearest emergency room, regardless of specialty coverage. The ambulance arrived at a nearby hospital five minutes later, but the student had already died.

The incident has highlighted the deepening crisis in pediatric emergency care, even in a major city like Busan.

“We expanded the search to South Gyeongsang after failing to find a hospital in Busan, but no facilities were available,” said an official from the Busan Metropolitan City Fire and Disaster Headquarters. “The ambulance had no choice but to keep moving while trying to secure a hospital. It appears that the rejections were due to the lack of pediatric specialists on call.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JEONG JAE-HONG [[email protected]]