4 weeks ago
By KIM TONG-HYUNG
Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year]
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Desperate to extremity a weeks-long onslaught by thousands of doctors, South Korea’s authorities said Friday it will slow down a scheme to admit much students to nan country’s aesculapian schools from adjacent year.
More than 90% of nan country’s 13,000 aesculapian interns and residents person been connected onslaught since precocious February, erstwhile nan authorities announced a scheme to enlistee 2,000 much students adjacent year. That would person accrued nan existent headdress of 3,058, which has been nan aforesaid since 2006, by astir two-thirds.
The authorities adopted a discuss connection put guardant by nan presidents of six state-run universities connected Thursday, nether which aesculapian schools will summation admissions complete respective years.
Doctors’ groups person claimed that nan universities would beryllium incapable to grip a steep summation successful students and that it would undermine nan value of nan country’s aesculapian services. Government officials opportunity nan state importantly needs much doctors to header pinch nan country’s fast-aging population.
Announcing nan discuss proposal, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo cited concerns that nan prolonged onslaught by inferior doctors is expanding nan strain connected hospitals.
Han said nan country’s 32 aesculapian schools will beryllium allowed to little their quotas for caller places by up to 50% of nan target group by nan authorities successful 2025, meaning nan number of caller places could extremity up person to 1,000 than 2,000.
Officials stressed that nan discuss is impermanent and that nan schools will beryllium required to finalize plans by April to summation their admissions by nan afloat 2,000 by 2026.
Doctors’ groups person called for nan authorities to scrap nan scheme entirely.
“The authorities decided that nan harm caused by nan vacuums successful healthcare services cannot beryllium near unchecked and that bold decisions are needed, considering nan demands by patients and broader nationalist to lick nan problem,” Han said successful a news conference, urging nan striking doctors to return to activity and discuss pinch nan government.
