The conflict between the government and the medical community, which began when the government increased the quota for medical schools for the first time in 27 years, has shaken our society as a whole this year. After the government announced a plan to increase the number of medical students by 2,000 annually, residents collectively left hospitals, and medical students submitted leave of absence requests to confront the government. With all discussions currently losing momentum due to the state of emergency, the conflict is expected to continue into next year.
The issue is the aftermath of the conflict that will increasingly become apparent starting in 2025. The number of medical research papers jointly conducted by professors and residents in medical schools and hospitals has already started to decline, which may bring it close to zero next year. The medical community fears that the decline in research capacity and the restrictions on new admissions to hospitals could undermine Korea's international standing in leading clinical trials worldwide.
①Conflict between the government and the medical community continues next year
The medical community continues to demand a halt to the recruitment of first-year medical students for the 2025 academic year. The concern is that the quality of medical education may deteriorate due to the large-scale increase. However, the government confirmed in May that the increase for the 2025 academic year would be set at 1,509 students, tailored to the educational conditions of individual universities, and proceeded with the admissions process. Each university will finalize and announce the recruitment numbers for the regular admissions period in 2025, reflecting the unfilled quota from early admissions, before the upcoming dates of 28th to 30th.
The Ministry of Education has made it clear that it is difficult to change the quota unless there is a natural disaster, so demands from the medical community are also focused on adjusting the medical school quotas for the 2026 academic year. The Emergency Response Committee of the Korean Medical Association stated in a resolution on the 23rd that "If the government pushes ahead with the increase for the 2025 academic year, recruitment for the 2026 academic year should be halted."
The impact of the mass departure of residents has been directly transferred to the medical staff remaining in hospitals. As medical school professors took on the duties of residents such as overnight shifts and patient care, clinical services and surgeries have significantly decreased, with the bed occupancy rate in major hospitals at one point falling to half.
②Research output falls..."medical level may regress"
Another aspect that has declined is the research output of physicians. Before the conflict, professors devoted time to research and writing papers mainly when they had no outpatient consultations or surgeries. However, the medical community is now raising concerns about the lack of capacity. A professor from a metropolitan university hospital, who requested anonymity, noted, "As the gap in medical care continues, we cannot even think about establishing research plans for next year."
The Journal of the Korean Medical Association (JKMS), a leading academic journal in the domestic medical community published by the Korean Medical Association, published approximately 900 papers this year. This is more than 200 fewer than the same period last year (813 papers). Additionally, the expected number of papers to be published by the end of the year is 305, down more than 100 from last year (408 papers). This represents a decrease of about 25.2%.
Medical papers primarily deal with the effects of new treatments or pharmaceuticals. Such research output is considered an indicator of the medical level of a country. There are concerns that when research is halted, and the number of papers sharply declines, the medical level could regress relative to other countries.
Yoo Jin-hong, editor-in-chief of JKMS (professor of infectious medicine at Catholic University of Korea Bucheon St. Mary’s Hospital), stated, "It takes at least a year to write a single research paper, and since medical school professors have not had the capacity to conduct research throughout this year, I am worried that it might suddenly drop to zero next year or the year after," and added, "If the number of submitted papers decreases, the publication standards will gradually lower, ultimately diminishing the quality of the journal."
Although JKMS has managed to limit the reduction in the number of papers to around 20%, other journals have suffered more. According to data from the Health and Welfare Committee of the National Assembly presented by Democratic Party lawmaker Kang Sun-woo in October, the number of abstracts submitted to the Korean Society of Internal Medicine's fall academic conference this year was 101, down 86.5% from the previous year’s conference (748). The number of abstracts for the Korean Neurological Association's fall conference decreased from 527 last year to 267 this year, halved, and the Korean Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology saw a decrease of 45.4% during the same period.
③Crisis of South Korea's passing...end of role as a clinical trial hub?
South Korea occupies a crucial position in the field of clinical trials globally. Patients are concentrated in large hospitals in the metropolitan area, creating an optimal environment for conducting clinical trials. The processes from patient registration to the execution of clinical trials are swift, and the quality of data is high, making it an essential clinical trial hub sought after by various multinational pharmaceutical companies for new drug development.
According to the National Clinical Trial Support Foundation, South Korea ranked 4th in the world in pharmaceutical clinical trials last year, surpassing Australia, which had shared 5th place the previous year, achieving the highest ranking ever. However, there are concerns that this international standing may gradually diminish due to the conflict with the medical community and the medical crisis.
Editor Yoo Jin-hong remarked, "In the Asia region, we have been leading global clinical trials as the second after China, but there is a risk of being excluded due to this situation," and he added, "Ultimately, not only the medical community but the entire South Korean scientific community will suffer." With each hospital restricting new admissions and research personnel reduced, it means that the conflict could also affect foreign evaluations of domestic clinical trial capabilities.
In fact, a representative from a domestic anti-cancer new drug development company stated, "I understand that recently, a major global pharmaceutical company canceled Korea from its multinational clinical trial plan and included Singapore instead," emphasizing that recent domestic medical conditions likely influenced this decision.