South Korea’s healthcare system is facing a significant crisis as doctors, particularly junior physicians and medical students, have initiated a prolonged strike. This action stems from the government’s proposal to dramatically increase medical school admissions, aiming to address a perceived doctor shortage in the country. However, the medical community argues that this measure fails to tackle the fundamental issues within the healthcare system, leading to a protracted standoff with serious implications for patient care.
On February 20, 2024, junior doctors commenced a major walkout, a move that has severely strained South Korea’s medical services. This protest is a direct response to the government’s plan to augment medical school enrollment by 2,000 students annually for the next decade. Despite eight months of impasse, a resolution remains elusive, highlighting a deep rift between the government and medical professionals.
The government defends its policy as a necessary step to counter the nation’s doctor shortage, especially as South Korea grapples with a rapidly aging population. Data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) indicates that South Korea has a relatively low number of doctors per capita, with only 2.6 physicians per 1,000 people, placing it among the lower ranks of developed nations.
However, Korean doctors and medical students contend that simply increasing the number of medical graduates will not resolve the core problems plaguing the healthcare sector. Their primary arguments revolve around the following critical points:
Firstly, a significant issue is the uneven distribution of doctors across different regions and medical specialties. Many doctors are concentrated in urban centers and gravitate towards specific, often more lucrative, fields. This leaves rural areas and essential medical disciplines understaffed and underserved.
Secondly, doctors in crucial but demanding fields like emergency medicine, pediatrics, and obstetrics face challenging working conditions. These include excessively long hours, sometimes exceeding 36-hour shifts for junior doctors compared to the 24-hour shifts common in the United States, and inadequate compensation relative to the intensity and responsibility of their roles. This disparity pushes medical professionals towards less critical but financially rewarding specialties such as dermatology and cosmetic surgery.
Thirdly, South Korean doctors are exposed to high litigation risks. Statistics show that approximately one in three doctors has faced a malpractice lawsuit since 2019. This legal vulnerability adds another layer of stress and discouragement, further contributing to the reluctance to enter or remain in high-risk medical fields.
Despite the ongoing and vocal opposition from the medical community, the government has remained steadfast in its policy implementation. Historically, a similar proposal to increase medical school admissions in 2020 was retracted due to widespread strikes and the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. For over two decades, since 1998, the medical school quota had been fixed. However, in May, the Korean Council for University Education finalized a revised increase of 1,509 for the 2025 academic year, signaling the government’s resolve.
In response to these developments, over 12,000 junior doctors have participated in job actions, and medical professors have joined in solidarity, amplifying the disruption. Reports indicate that more than 95% of medical students slated to graduate in 2025 are refusing to take the mandatory licensing exam, potentially exacerbating the future doctor shortage.
The South Korean Ministry of Health has attempted various measures to persuade striking doctors to return to work. Initially, a return-to-work order was issued in February, accompanied by threats of license suspension for non-compliance. However, by June, the government softened its stance, aiming to incentivize doctors to resume their duties. The threat of license suspension was withdrawn, and new guidelines were introduced to facilitate medical students’ return to their education programs. Subsequently, the government urged hospitals to process resignations, a move intended to either encourage doctors to return to work or enable them to seek employment elsewhere, possibly easing tensions.
Currently, a mere 8% of junior doctors are reportedly staffing the nation’s 211 general hospitals, painting a stark picture of the operational challenges within the healthcare system.
The patients are bearing the brunt of this protracted standoff. Widespread frustration is growing due to difficulties in accessing emergency medical care and indefinite postponements of scheduled surgeries and treatments. Emergency rooms are reportedly functioning at reduced capacity, forcing individuals to travel considerable distances to receive urgent medical attention.
Public sentiment appears divided, with growing calls for both the government and the striking doctors to reach a compromise. President Yoon Suk-yeol’s approval ratings plummeted to a record low of 21% in June, following his party’s electoral setback in the National Assembly elections in April, indicating public dissatisfaction with the handling of the situation.
With a significant portion of junior doctors absent from hospitals and the healthcare system under increasing strain, the prospects for integrating new trainee doctors into the workforce appear bleak. The government is exploring alternative strategies to mitigate the crisis, including designating specific major hospitals to handle critically ill patients. Furthermore, new legislation was enacted in August to expand the legal scope of practice for nurses, enabling them to undertake tasks traditionally performed by junior doctors, aiming to alleviate some of the workload. This strike is part of a broader global trend of unrest within medical communities, mirroring similar protests in countries like India and Germany demanding improved working conditions.
The government’s urgency is underscored by the projection that South Korea is rapidly becoming a ‘super-aged’ society, with senior citizens expected to constitute 30% of the population by 2035. By 2044, South Korea is projected to be the world’s oldest nation. This demographic shift will inevitably lead to a surge in demand for complex medical care, intensifying concerns about the adequacy of the doctor supply.
While the Korea Doctor Strike shows no immediate signs of abating, the government’s initial strategy of simply increasing medical school admissions seems to have backfired, exacerbating rather than resolving the healthcare crisis. Addressing the deeper systemic issues within the Korean healthcare system is crucial, but progress remains hampered by the ongoing strain on the medical workforce caused by the strike.
