Even insiders say, “The emergency room crisis has already become a reality.”
Yoon visited the emergency room in Uijeongbu last night
The presidential office and the opposition party are clashing head-on over the prolonged medical vacuum and the disruption of emergency room operations. The presidential office claimed, “The collapse of emergency medical services is a lie,” and “They are misleading the public by believing only what doctors say and saying that the medical system has collapsed,” while the opposition party countered, “Is the medical crisis the fault of doctors?”
Amid growing concerns over a possible emergency room chaos during the Chuseok holiday, President Yoon Seok-yeol visited Uijeongbu St. Mary’s Hospital in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province, on the night of the 4th. This was six days after President Yoon said at a press conference on the 29th of last month, “There are many problems, but the emergency medical system is still operating smoothly.” A high-ranking official at the presidential office told the Dong-A Ilbo that day, “We are making up for the shortage of doctors due to the absence of residents by deploying military doctors and public health doctors,” adding, “It is a lie that the medical system of the Republic of Korea has completely collapsed because the emergency room has collapsed.”
On the other hand, Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, met with reporters after visiting the regional emergency medical center at Korea University Anam Hospital in Seoul with the Democratic Party’s special committee on medical crisis measures that afternoon and said, “Shouldn’t we comprehensively reexamine the scale of the increase in medical schools, how to distribute the period, and how to secure essential public medical personnel in the region?” He added, “The problem of the medical crisis is a problem that arose because we unilaterally pushed forward without sufficient dialogue or rational basis.” Before visiting the hospital, Lee said, “Are doctors the fault for the medical crisis? If that’s true, then the people are to blame for the collapse of the people’s livelihood, and corporations are to blame for the collapse of the economy.”
Even within the ruling party, there was criticism of the presidential office and the government. People Power Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo, a former doctor, said in a phone call, “(The theory of a Chuseok emergency medical gap crisis) is already becoming a reality,” and “I am afraid of the Chuseok holiday because there will be a gap in the emergency medical and surgical fields.”
The Presidential Office: “Emergency Room Rush is Not Due to Increased Medical Schools”… Opposition: “Government Arrogance”
[‘폭탄 돌리기’ 응급의료]
Emergency room medical gap conflict
Yoon, 9th field visit since announcing medical reform… Reveals intention to provide groundbreaking support for essential medical care
Democratic Party Visits Regional Emergency Medical Centers… Lee “If There Is No Fundamental Measure, Medical Services Will Collapse”
“The ‘emergency room swarm’ is not a problem caused by the increase in medical schools, but by the absolute lack of emergency medicine specialists. That’s why President Yoon Seok-yeol proposed medical reform.” (High-ranking official at the presidential office)
“The attitude of the Yongsan presidential office is so unwavering that it is making me feel ashamed. The direction of increasing the number of medical school students is desirable, but problems have arisen because it was pushed forward excessively and hastily without any rational basis in terms of scale or period.” (Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea)
As concerns grow over a possible emergency room crisis ahead of Chuseok, the presidential office and the opposition party clashed on the 4th over the medical vacuum and disruption to emergency room operations. The presidential office argued, “The essence of medical reform is to resolve the shortage of essential medical personnel. The frame that limits it to increasing medical schools is false,” while the Democratic Party argued, “The government’s unilateral policy of increasing medical schools, ignoring the process of dialogue and opinion gathering, has led to the medical crisis.”
● Yoon “I will resolve the issue of fairness in medical staff compensation”
President Yoon Seok-yeol is inspecting the emergency room situation at Uijeongbu St. Mary’s Hospital in Gyeonggi Province on the 4th. It has been 6 days since he said in a press conference on the 29th of last month, “There are many problems, but the emergency medical system is still operating smoothly.” Provided by the Office of the President
President Yoon visited Uijeongbu St. Mary’s Hospital in Gyeonggi Province at around 9 p.m. on the 4th to conduct an on-site inspection. This is the 9th medical institution he has visited since the announcement of the medical reform in February of this year. An official from the Blue House said that President Yoon encouraged emergency medical staff and said, “The government’s fee policy does not sufficiently reflect the difficulties of the medical field,” and that he would do so. An official from the Blue House said that President Yoon also expressed his intention to “dramatically strengthen support for essential medical personnel, including emergency, delivery, pediatric, and critical care personnel,” and to resolve issues such as legal risks and fair compensation for medical personnel.
The Office of the President plans to inform medical professionals of the sincerity of the medical reform through future on-site visits to hospitals. They plan to continuously publicize the plan to strengthen the medical conditions in vulnerable areas, such as Seoul, increase the base of essential personnel such as emergency medical personnel, and create a reasonable compensation system. Jang Sang-yoon, Senior Secretary to the President for Social Affairs, said, “Some people use terms such as collapse and paralysis, but this is not an extreme situation,” and “The government is also very concerned about the psychological anxiety of the people and considers these things important.” An official from the Office of the President also met with reporters that day and said, “We are ready to discuss with an open mind whenever the medical community brings a reasonable alternative.”
It has been reported that the Blue House judged that public opinion in favor of medical reform was strong and that there was still momentum to push for it.
● Lee “The unilateral increase in medical school enrollment should be reconsidered”
Lee Jae-myung (right), leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, shakes hands with Han Seung-beom, president of Korea University Anam Hospital, during his visit to the hospital with members of the Democratic Party’s special committee on medical crisis countermeasures on the afternoon of the 4th. Reporter Lee Hoon-goo [email protected]
The Democratic Party criticized, “The government’s arrogance and self-righteousness are threatening the lives of the people.” Representative Lee Jae-myung met with reporters after visiting Korea University Anam Hospital on the same day and said, “I thought that if we don’t quickly establish fundamental measures, we could end up in a more serious collapse situation than we think,” and “In order to fundamentally solve the problem, the government’s unilateral, excessive, and hasty push to increase the number of medical schools needs to be reconsidered.”
In his negotiation group representative speech at the National Assembly that day, Democratic Party floor leader Park Chan-dae said, “This is a desperate situation where the emergency medical system is virtually collapsing,” and “I propose an emergency consultative body of the ruling and opposition parties, the legislature, and the government to resolve the medical crisis.” Floor spokesperson Yoon Jong-gun said, “They are disparaging the public’s concerns as ghost stories. President Yoon and the Blue House are the very epicenter of the ghost stories,” and “The Blue House must answer how long it will turn a deaf ear to the public’s angry voices and close its eyes to the medical vacuum in emergency rooms.”
Even within the ruling party, there are voices pointing out that it is urgent to come up with emergency medical measures during the Chuseok holiday. People Power Party floor leader Choo Kyung-ho reportedly ordered at a meeting of the ruling party’s standing committee chairs and secretaries on the same day, “Each member of the National Assembly should visit the emergency room in their district, assess the situation, and express gratitude and encouragement to the medical staff.” People Power Party lawmaker Ahn Cheol-soo, who is a medical doctor, said, “President Yoon should make a decision on increasing the number of medical school admissions while considering the lives and safety of the people.” A prominent lawmaker from the Yeongnam region said, “Residents in the region are expressing concerns about emergency room hopping and the Chuseok emergency medical crisis,” and pointed out, “The sense of crisis felt by the people on the ground seems to be different from the explanations of the Blue House and the government.”
Reporter Shin Na-ri [email protected]
Reporter Seungwoo Lee [email protected]
Reporter Lee Sang-heon [email protected]
2024-09-04 20:29:36