Concerns rise over mass resignations of medical professors

The mass walkout of trainee doctors (interns and residents) from hospitals has turned into a cascade of resignations by hospital professors. Professors at medical schools across the nation also held an emergency meeting, agreeing that "March 14 is the deadline," and decided to devise a joint response. However, even if the professors submit their resignations, it is unlikely that they will be accepted.

According to sources in medical and educational circles last Sunday, the emergency committee of professors at Seoul National University's medical school and hospitals will convene a general meeting at Seoul National University Hospital and Seoul National University Bundang Hospital on Monday to discuss responses. "During our open discussion, the possibility of collective action may be raised," stated an official from the committee. Seoul National University Bundang Hospital had already conducted its own survey at the end of last month, revealing that 84.6 percent of respondents expressed readiness to take collective action, such as submitting resignations and stepping down from concurrent positions, to protect doctors and students. Earlier, on March 8, the emergency committee of the Ulsan National University College of Medicine's professor association, comprising professors from three hospitals - Seoul Asan Medical Center, Ulsan National University Hospital, and Gangneung Asan Medical Center - held an emergency general meeting and resolved to resign collectively.

In addition, the Medical Professors Association of Korea convened a closed-door emergency meeting for approximately three hours last Saturday to discuss measures in response to the departure of trainee doctors and students. "Professors are currently maintaining their practice at hospitals from which residents and fellows have departed, and there have been discussions regarding the sustainability of this arrangement," stated Kim Chang-soo, a professor of preventive medicine at Yonsei University and vice chairman of the Medical Professors Association of Korea. "While professors will not resign collectively, voluntary resignations will not be prevented." Thus far, professors from Ajou University, Kyungpook National University, Chungbuk National University, and others have individually announced their intention to voluntarily resign.

“For medical students who have taken a leave of absence, March 14 is the deadline to avoid being retained in their current grade. Therefore, let us coordinate our response accordingly." The Medical Professors Association of Korea stated. "If students fail to apply for a leave of absence by March 13, they will be retained in their current grade,” a professor at a private medical school in Seoul said. “We are planning to commence classes on March 12, focusing primarily on online lectures. Medical schools typically assign F grades to students who miss more than one-third or one-fourth of their classes, with even a single F resulting in grade retention.

However, the Ministry of Education stated that no collective resignations from professors have been submitted to the university headquarters. “Even if there were, we would not process them because university professors, both public and private, are subject to the same public service regulations as government employees,” the ministry said.

Some medical school professors and fellows are also signing an online petition calling on “the government and representatives of the medical community to come up with reasonable solutions.”


최훈진 choigiza@donga.com