Minister Jeong Eun-kyeong of the Ministry of Health and Welfare said, "Emergency care is the most urgent task," and "We will strengthen back-end clinical capacity so that severe patients can receive treatment when they go to the emergency room." Jeong, a former physician, answered this way to a reporter's question, "What is the most urgent medical task?" at a policy roundtable held in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 22nd.
The Minister said, "Emergency care is not an (in-house) emergency room issue but, at its core, about strengthening back-end capacity so that severe patients can receive treatment when they go to the emergency room, and providing an appropriate compensation system."
When a patient goes to the emergency room, an emergency medicine specialist provides initial care, and if the condition is serious, departments such as surgery or orthopedics perform an operation. That is precisely back-end care. The idea is to strengthen back-end care because if there are not enough physicians to handle it, it becomes difficult to properly look after patients in the emergency room.
The Minister said, "It is difficult for every medical institution nationwide to be on 24-hour standby," adding, "For example, there are a limited number of physicians who can perform thoracic aortic surgery, and they cannot be on call 365 days." She continued, "It is also important to build regional networks to transfer and transport patients so they receive appropriate treatment," and said, "We will divide roles with the fire authorities and do a good job of real-time matching between patients and medical (institutions)."
The Minister said, "We will build a safety net for medical accidents so that essential care is not shunned." She said, "Recently, there was a case where the medical staff who assisted delivery in an obstetrics and gynecology department were indicted (on charges of occupational negligence causing injury) after a child developed cerebral palsy, and I am concerned this could dismantle the obstetrics and gynecology infrastructure in essential care." The Health and Welfare Ministry plans to strengthen state responsibility when accidents occur in essential care fields. The Minister said, "We will also provide appropriate compensation for essential care fees (the money the National Health Insurance Service pays hospitals)."
The Minister said, "When I visited Chungbuk National University Hospital, there was exactly one pediatrics resident, and I was shocked to hear that this person was the (only) resident in North Chungcheong," and added, "It was before residents returned in Sep., but I thought there was a need to strengthen investment in Jipilgong (regional, essential, and public care)."
The Minister said she would support various facilities and equipment at national university hospitals to strengthen clinical capacity so that, at least in their respective regions, they can treat the most severe patients. She also said she plans to transfer jurisdiction over national university hospitals to the Health and Welfare Ministry and foster them as key institutions to solve regional medical issues.
The Health and Welfare Ministry plans to launch a public-participation Medical Innovation Committee in Oct. The innovation committee will draw up a medical innovation roadmap and normalize the medical field.