A survey has found that more than half of the residents who left their training hospitals due to conflicts with the medical community are re-employed as general practitioners. Most of these individuals were employed in clinic-level institutions, with a concentration in the metropolitan area.
According to data received from the Ministry of Health and Welfare by Kim Seon-min, a member of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee, 56.1% of the residents who resigned or gave up their appointments at training hospitals due to conflicts with the medical community are re-employed in medical institutions as general practitioners.
Residents submitted their resignations and left their training hospitals on February 6 last year when the government announced an increase in the quota for medical school admissions. The government issued an order prohibiting the acceptance of these resignations and took measures to prevent re-employment, but the order was revoked in July of last year, opening the pathway for the residents to re-employ as general practitioners.
The number of residents who left the training hospitals has been tallied at 9,222 to date. Among them, 5,176 are currently working as general practitioners in local clinics rather than large hospitals. The remaining approximately 4,000 residents have not yet returned to the medical field.
Among these, a total of 3,023 are working in clinic-level institutions, which represents the largest proportion. Of these, 998 are working in Seoul, 827 in Gyeonggi Province, and 205 in Incheon, indicating a concentration of employment in the metropolitan area.
In addition, 815 are in hospitals, 763 in general hospitals, and 383 in nursing hospitals. In contrast, only 88 have found re-employment in advanced general hospitals. Excluding 58 who re-employed in traditional Korean medicine hospitals, there was the lowest employment rate in advanced general hospitals.
As the residents leave their training hospitals and re-employ in clinics and hospitals, the number of trainees has sharply decreased. Interns have decreased by 96.4% compared to the end of 2023, and residents by 88.7%. Although the training hospitals are conducting additional recruitment for residents in the first half of this year, the residents are showing no signs of returning, demanding a repeal of the increase in medical school admissions for next year. The number of successful candidates in the specialist exam last year fell to around 18% of the average, and it is expected that the number of domestic specialists will remain at last year's level this year.
Member of the National Assembly Kim Seon-min noted, "The policy to increase essential medical doctors is actually reducing the number of doctors," and urged the government to quickly consult with the medical community to resolve the prolonged medical crisis lasting a year.