Trainee pediatricians who have left hospitals have come forward to demand a fundamental package to resuscitate essential medicine. They say they could not help but quit to block the government's wrong policies.

Interns and residents who walked off their jobs at pediatrics departments at 18 major hospitals made these and other points in a statement Wednesday, saying, "As doctors in the field, we will courageously tell the public about the current situation and problems.”

The statement was signed by junior doctors from 18 hospitals, including Seoul National University Hospital, Asan Medical Center, Severance Hospital, Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, and Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital.

The trainee doctors noted that before they chose pediatrics, they were aware that low medical fees forced specialists to give up their practice and that even tertiary hospitals reduced the employment of pediatric specialists.

However, the trainee doctors emphasized that they selected pediatrics with a sense of mission for treating children.

They went on to say that they had hoped for the government's recent essential medical care policy but were frustrated by the government's push to increase the medical school enrollment quota by 2,000.

"The overcrowding at the opening hours of pediatric clinics was predictable, as pediatric clinics closed business due to low fees and few patients, but the government did not actively seek a solution," they said. "We had a glimmer of hope that things would improve with the policies announced afterward, but the 2,000 medical student increase and the belittling of essential medical care made us lose hope and pride.”

The shortage of pediatricians is due to policies designed to discourage them from practicing pediatrics, they pointed out. Pediatric care requires long hours and a lot of manpower and skill, and the current reimbursement system does not reflect this, the statement added.

Pointing out that the shortage of doctors cannot be solved by expanding medical school students and the essential care policy package, they reiterated that frustration with misguided government policies led them to leave hospitals.

"We tried to raise the issue of the government's policies hastening the collapse of essential medicine, but the government is misleading the public by painting doctors as' a group afraid of losing their rice bowls,'" they said. "If things continue like now, the pediatric department will be irreparable, so we decided to resign after deep consideration out of frustration and disappointment in Korean healthcare."

Even if some of the 2,000 medical students become specialists, it is meaningless if the environment is not improved, they said. Rather than waiting for a small percentage of them (to apply to the specialty), a more efficient solution would be to improve the undervalued fees and try to attract specialists with policies that recognize their specialty, they added.

"The essential care package perpetuates the problems of a broken system. It is a pipe dream to resolve the problem within a year with huge tax spending without a mature consultation process on the issue," they said. "A serious issue that involves life-saving healthcare expenditures should be discussed in depth, regardless of politics and ideology."

They urged the government to develop a sincere policy to resuscitate pediatrics and essential care while apologizing to patients, their guardians, professors, nurses, and others who remain on the ground.

"Rather than sticking to the 2,000-student increase, the government should completely review the need for the increase and prevent further medical collapse," they said. "Instead of a one-time policy, they must discuss a way to revive essential medical care through policies and compensation tailored to the specifics of minor medical departments and other essential medical departments that are about to collapse."

They continued, "We feel helpless about our values and future, and we apologize to the patients and caregivers who are anxious because of the resignations. We would like to express our gratitude and apologies to our hospital family, including the professors, seniors, and nurses filling the vacant positions."

"We hope the government will make a sincere move to protect our children," they added.