The government has decided to increase the admission quota for medical schools by 2,000 students starting from this year’s college admission. After being fixed at 3,058 since 2006, the quota will be increased to 5,058, marking the first time in 19 years. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said the additional seats would be allocated primarily to medical schools in non-metropolitan areas.
Given the shortage of doctors and the crisis in regional and essential medical services, a significant increase in the admission quota is unavoidable. As of 2021, South Korea’s ratio of clinical doctors (including traditional Korean medicine doctors) was 2.6 per 1,000 people, the second lowest among OECD countries after Mexico (2.5), compared to the OECD average of 3.7. A shortage of doctors inevitably leads to suffering among the population. Regional medical services are on the brink of collapse, and essential fields such as pediatrics, surgery, and emergency medicine struggle due to a lack of applicants. Young parents are engaged in a “pediatric open-run” to find available pediatricians, and there are increasing cases of patients dying after being shuffled around emergency rooms. With the world’s fastest aging population, it is clear that the demand for medical personnel will skyrocket.
Simply increasing the number of medical school seats will not automatically revive regional and essential healthcare. Effective policies to attract doctors to these areas are necessary. The government on Feb. 1 announced measures including investing over 10 trillion won to raise fees for regional and essential medical services, introducing a “regional essential doctor system” for doctors who work in the provinces for a certain period, and establishing a safety net for medical accidents. First and foremost, increasing the fees for regional and essential medical fields is necessary to attract doctors to these areas while adjusting fees in overcrowded specialties such as cosmetic and plastic surgery. The current concentration of doctors in cosmetic and plastic surgery is due to the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s neglect of such adjustments.
Medical associations have strongly opposed the announcement of the medical school expansion by threatening to strike. The reality of the doctor shortage is best known by themselves. It is clear that more doctors are needed, and nearly all citizens desire this, but doctors refusing treatment and going on strike over concerns that it might impact their earnings tarnishes the noble professional spirit of patient care. It is said that European doctors ask, “Why do doctors not welcome the increase in their numbers and instead oppose it?”
The government must issue return-to-work orders if doctors take collective action, and respond decisively if they do not comply. Doctors are the top intellectuals in our society and economically more privileged than any other profession. It is hoped that doctors will not act out of collective egoism but instead take a more proactive stance than the government in alleviating public suffering.
With the increase in medical school admissions, the number of seats available for top-tier students will increase by 2,000. It marks a first in the history of entrance examinations. The number is similar to the number of students admitted to the natural sciences division (1,997) at Seoul National University. There are predictions that there will be a significant increase in “repeat applicants” who drop out of engineering and science divisions at top-tier universities like Seoul National University and KAIST to reapply for medical school. It is not desirable for society or the students’ futures. Measures and examinations are needed to prevent excessive occurrences.
