Starting July 1, a 24-hour medical system will be implemented for five essential medical fields: burn treatment, hand surgery, pediatrics, obstetrics, and cerebrovascular care. This is to ensure rapid response to emergencies not only at large hospitals but also at secondary medical institutions within the region.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare noted on the 30th that it will implement a support project called "Essential Specialized Function Strengthening Program." This program aims to foster and support hospitals with capabilities for specific fields and nighttime holiday treatment systems.
Currently, there are about 1,700 secondary medical institutions across the country, but each hospital has varying treatment capabilities and functions, leading to confusion among local residents about which hospital to seek during emergencies. In response, the government has decided to foster "strong hospitals" specialized in certain fields to fill essential medical gaps in the region.
The core of this project is to support hospitals that maintain a 24-hour treatment system without distinction between nighttime and holidays in five fields where securing the golden time is crucial: burn treatment, hand surgery, pediatric patients, obstetrics, and cerebrovascular care.
Selected hospitals will receive funding based on their performance. The government plans to provide performance-based incentives for these hospitals based on treatment performance, emergency response, collaboration in treatment (referrals to higher-level hospitals), and patient satisfaction.
This project will be piloted for three years from 2026 to 2028 following a preparation period in the second half of this year. Initially, a total of 30 hospitals (five for burn treatment, eight for hand surgery, 15 for obstetrics and pediatrics, and two for cerebrovascular care) will participate, with plans to select new hospitals each year.
Lee Joong-kyu, director of the Health Insurance Policy Division, said, "The Essential Specialized Function Strengthening Program aims to foster hospital-level medical institutions that serve as a backbone to strengthen local healthcare," adding, "This will enhance the quality of local health care by enabling immediate response in emergencies and providing appropriate medical care to patients around the clock."