The number of all crimes committed by doctors has decreased from 2017 to 2021, but the number of violent felonies has increased, according to a lawmaker’s report.
Rep. Shin Hyun-young of the opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) released the report after analyzing the current status of crimes committed by doctors, including Oriental medicine practitioners and dentists, using the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's crime analysis data.
In 2021, there were 4,336 criminal prosecutions involving doctors, a 29.9 percent decrease from the 6,194 cases reported in 2017.
However, there was a 23.9 percent rise in violent felonies, from 142 in 2017 to 176 in 2021.
For 2021, property crimes accounted for the most cases with 15.6 percent (677), followed by negligence crimes at 15.1 percent (654), and violent felonies at 10 percent (432).
When comparing the crime rate of physicians to that of the general population aged 19 and over, the crime rate of physicians was 2.3 percent, about 0.7 percentage points lower than the crime rate of the general population of 2.9 percent.
However, in some categories, physician crime rates were higher than those of the general population, including felonies, forgery, and negligence.
The high rate of negligent crimes among doctors was due to the subcategory of manslaughter, which accounted for 0.336 percent.
"Although the Medical Service Act with tougher criteria for revoking a medical practitioner's license passed the plenary session, there is still a tense debate over whether the criteria for revoking a license should cover all crimes or only violent and sexual crimes," lawmaker Shin said. Under these circumstances, analyzing the status of physician crimes is an essential basis for judgment."
Shin stressed that the National Assembly needs to discuss the appropriate level of licensing management for doctors that the public expects.
"As the rate of doctors being criminally prosecuted for manslaughter is high, it is necessary to take measures that address both the increase in malpractice crimes and the collapse of essential medical care in Korea," Shin said.