Following the government-doctor conflict, it has been estimated that approximately 4,000 medical students have opted to enlist as active-duty soldiers or social service personnel instead of pursuing careers as public health doctors or military doctors.

The Korean Association of Public Health Doctors (KAPHD) stated on Monday that, according to information obtained through a public records request to the Military Manpower Administration, 592 medical students enlisted in June of this year, bringing the total number of medical students who have enlisted since the government-doctor conflict began in February last year to 3,967.

The KAPH estimates that the number of medical students choosing to enlist as active-duty soldiers or social service personnel instead of pursuing careers in public health or military medicine could reach 7,000 due to the conflict between the medical community and the government.

Of the 592 enlistees in June, 577 were active-duty soldiers and 15 were social service personnel. The cumulative number of enrollees this year has reached 2,430, which is 1.6 times the total number of enrollees last year (1,537).

The KAPHD maintains that the current 38-month service period for public health doctors should be shortened and that active improvements in their treatment are necessary.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare has also stated that Minister Jeong Eun-kyeong will consult with the Ministry of National Defense to push for a reduction in the service period during her confirmation hearing. A bill to shorten the mandatory service period for public health officers and military doctors to two years has also been proposed.

In addition, the KAPHD has requested that the continuity of training be guaranteed for public health officers and military doctors who enlisted this year after resigning from their positions as trainee doctors. It has been pointed out that many of them interrupted their third or fourth year of residency training to enlist, but were excluded from related discussions.

“We must establish reasonable institutional measures to ensure that those who have dedicated themselves to regional medical care for the next three years can fully utilize their abilities as doctors after completing their service,” KAPHD President Lee Sung-hwan said. “We are not demanding special privileges for a specific group. We are requesting measures that are absolutely necessary to ensure a stable supply of specialized medical personnel to the nation and regional communities.”

Lee continued, “Public health doctors have stood by patients in remote areas during the national crises of Covid-19 pandemic and the government-doctor conflict. They did their best to ensure that there were no gaps in medical care, even in the most vulnerable medical settings during the recent conflict. This time, we ask the state to protect them. Please support them so that their path as doctors is not cut short by military service.”

The KMA will actively work to ensure the continuity of training for senior medical residents who have been excluded from medical policy discussions, Lee added.