SEOUL, Medical services at the five biggest general hospitals in Seoul suffered partial disruptions Tuesday after interns and resident doctors did not show up for work following collective resignations protesting the planned increase in the medical school admission quota.

More than 6,400 trainee doctors nationwide, including interns and residents, have submitted their resignations en masse so far in protest of the government’s plan to raise the medical school admission quota by 2,000 seats next year.

Of them, about 1,600 did not show up for work Tuesday, raising concerns the situation could develop into a nationwide healthcare crisis unless a breakthrough is found at an early date, as hospital operations rely heavily on trainee doctors.

The main lobby of Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH), usually one of the busiest general hospitals in Seoul, remained quiet Tuesday as many hospitals postponed or rescheduled surgeries and other operations in anticipation of the walkout.

Those visiting hospitals fo
r urgent medical attention had to wait in long lines.

A 74-year-old private caregiver, surnamed Jeon, said she had difficulties finding a job at SNUH due to the doctors’ collective action.

“I heard that patients who do not urgently need surgeries or treatment have cancelled or put off their appointments at the news,” Jeon said. “Normally I could find one job after another very quickly … I am worried that the number of patients will grow ever fewer.”

St. Mary’s Hospital and Severance Hospital in southern and western Seoul, respectively, also saw operations slow down at the departure of some trainee doctors.

The ophthalmic department at Severance, in particular, suspended its first-stage diagnosis service for patients referred from neighborhood clinics as resident doctors in charge left en masse.

In St. Mary’s, a patient’s family member, surnamed Byon, vented frustration at long waiting lines for patients.

“My husband’s younger sibling urgently came to Seoul after receiving a cancer diagnosis in Pohang
and has been endlessly waiting in line since 3 p.m. yesterday,” she said, complaining about the slow pace of medical services.

At Asan Medical Center in eastern Seoul, a lung cancer patient was told to move to another general hospital in the aftermath of the strike.

“We were told to come back next month after being hospitalized at another general hospital because normal medical services were unavailable due to the strike,” the patient’s family member told Yonhap News Agency while checking the patient out of the hospital.

No critical medical service disturbance has been complained of, but many patients questioned the legitimacy of the trainee doctors’ collective action.

“Doctors may have their own valid reasons, but from the perspective of a patient, I am convinced about the need to expand the medical school quota. I don’t know the reasons why doctors oppose it,” said a patient who has been hospitalized at SNUH for a month for rehabilitation treatment.

Source: Yonhap News Agency