Posted 3/5/2024, 5:50:21 AM
South Korean Medical Residents Strike Over Medical School Enrollment Plan, Face License Suspensions
- Thousands of South Korean medical interns and residents have been on strike for 2 weeks to protest a plan to increase medical school enrollment
- The government has ordered them back to work by Feb. 29 or face license suspensions and prosecution of strike leaders
- Nearly 9,000 striking doctors are facing proceedings to suspend licenses for at least 3 months for being absent from hospitals
- The doctors say increased enrollment will overwhelm universities and hurt overall medical care, but officials say more doctors are needed for an aging population
- A small number of senior doctors support the strike but haven't joined the walkouts themselves