The government has announced plans to prevent the suspension of trauma specialist training centers by allocating a budget for this purpose. It has urged medical students to return to their studies while emphasizing that any illegal actions obstructing their return will be dealt with strictly.
Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyuhong, during a meeting at the government complex in Seoul, stated that a budget of 868 million won has been secured to support the training of trauma medical personnel. He mentioned plans to expand the support from the existing 5 centers to 17 and to include two additional essential subjects for training eligibility.
The trauma specialist training center at Korea University Guro Hospital was reported to be on the verge of closure due to the cessation of government funding. However, the government is committed to enlarging the training capacity to ensure smooth operation and alleviate the crisis in regional and essential medical services.
Furthermore, the government has set the medical student admission number back to the previous total of 3,058 for the next year and urged students to return to campus, encouraging parents and medical professionals to support this.
Minister Cho also addressed concerns regarding potential setbacks in healthcare reform, asserting the commitment to addressing long-standing structural issues such as inefficient delivery systems and medical malpractice disputes. A second-phase plan for healthcare reform, including strengthening secondary hospitals and revising insurance systems, is to be announced soon.
He called for active participation from the medical community in the reform discussions, stating that unlawful activities, such as personal information leaks, would exacerbate conflicts and will be firmly addressed.