Medical professors at two Seoul hospitals suspend clinics, surgeries

Seoul: Amidst the ongoing protests by junior doctors against the government's medical reform measures, two major general hospitals in Seoul are planning to suspend outpatient clinics and surgeries on Tuesday  as senior doctors opt to take a weekly day.

Emergency rooms and inpatient care will remain in place at the two hospitals -- Seoul National University Hospital and Severance Hospital -- while the health ministry expected no major disruptions despite the one-day labour action by the medical professors, Yonhap news agency reported.

In the surrounding areas of Seoul, a significant number of senior doctors at hospitals such as Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Yongin Severance Hospital, and Korea University Ansan Hospital are also expected to join the protest.

Second Vice Health Minister Park Min-soo said Monday that the government will deploy more military doctors to cope with the weekly breaks by medical professors.

"There will be no major disruptions," Park told reporters.

Since February 20, approximately 12,000 trainee doctors have abstained from their duties to oppose the government's proposal to increase the number of medical students by 2,000. This ongoing protest has led to delays in medical treatments, with some emergency rooms partially limiting their services for critically ill patients.

The government's policy, meanwhile, was perceived as gaining traction after President Yoon Suk Yeol and Lee Jae-myung, the head of the main opposition Democratic Party, agreed on the need for medical reform the previous day.

Lee promised the party's active cooperation on the government's medical reform plans, including its decision to increase admissions to medical schools, the report said.

Prospects for an agreement between the government and the medical community shortly, however, are also seen as slim as Lim Hyun-taek, the hawkish president-elect of the Korean Medical Association, begins his term Wednesday.

Lim has claimed that the medical community will not engage in any dialogue until the government completely scraps the medical reform plan.