Seoul’s plan to use foreign doctors to fill medical void gets cold response

The government's decision to allow foreign doctors to practice in Korea to fill the healthcare void has sparked controversy, raising questions about its practicability.

The plan is to expand the scope of foreign doctors allowed to practice medicine in Korea under the Medical Service Act. Still, many in and outside the medical community say it is an attempt to import doctors from underdeveloped countries or suspect that it is a policy for Koreans who graduated from foreign medical schools.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare recently said it would amend the enforcement rules of the Medical Service Act to allow doctors with a medical license, regardless of country or school of graduation, to practice in Korea without obtaining a Korean license during the severe stage of a health disaster alert.

Korea has been on a severe crisis alert since Feb. 23, when interns and residents began resigning to protest the government’s plan to increase the number of medical students so the revised rules could be applied immediately.

As expected, the medical community is pushing back vehemently. Physicians said it is unlikely that the move will lead to an influx of doctors from medically advanced countries into the country. Instead, they were concerned that foreign doctors with unproven skills could treat patients in Korea.

Others pointed out that it is impractical to assign supervising specialists to manage foreign doctors to put them into practice when even senior professors leave the hospital following their junior colleagues.

Yet others criticized the program as a "bailout” for the Korean graduates of foreign medical schools."

They say the latest move is intended to benefit Koreans who graduated from a foreign medical school recognized by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and obtained a medical license in that country but did not obtain a Korean license.

As of June 2023, 159 foreign medical schools in 38 countries are recognized by the Korean health authorities, and students are eligible to take the National Medical Examination in Korea.

According to data submitted by the Health and Welfare Ministry to Rep. Shin Hyun-yung of the Democratic Party of Korea, the final pass rate for foreign medical graduates is in the 40 percent range. Before taking the main examination, foreign medical graduates must pass a preliminary examination, divided into a written and practical test. The pass rate for Korean medical graduates is in the 90s.

Foreign medical school graduates view the idea as ‘ineffective armchair theory’

However, Koreans attending or graduating from foreign medical schools are skeptical of the government's policy. They pointed out that it is possible to practice medicine in Korea without taking the preliminary and national examinations. Still, the period is limited, and the status is unstable.

"I'll just focus on preparing for the preliminary exam," said a major Hungarian medical school graduate.

Another graduate of the Hungarian medical school also said, "It's an ineffective policy that seems to be nothing more than rhetoric. I don't see the benefits the new policy can give foreign medical license holders who want to work as doctors in Korea.”

He continued, "If the government gives them some points for obtaining a Korean medical license by, for instance, exempting them from the practical exam, it would be of some help. Still, I don't think they want to take a position when they don't know when their contract will end. What will I do after my contract ends due to the downgrade of the crisis alert? It might help me with the practical exam, but I would rather focus on studying for the National Medical Examination.”

Yet another government-recognized foreign medical school graduate who also obtained a Korean medical license and a specialist qualification said, "It would be safer to make the most of PA nurses who know the medical field well and are skilled. Suppose newly arriving doctors are not those who graduated from a medical school in a medically advanced country, such as the U.S., U.K., or Germany. In that case, it is also difficult to determine their medical competency based on documents alone. It is too dangerous to allow doctors to practice in Korea without passing the preliminary and medical board examinations."

‘I don't want to be treated by Chinese doctors’

Some even criticized the new policy for expanding the employment permit system for foreign workers to the medical profession. The government said that it was not importing foreign doctors. Still, critics said, "Are you saying we should seek medical care from Chinese or Southeast Asian doctors?"

On the public announcement website run by the Anti-corruption and Civil Rights Commission, a bill to amend the enforcement rules of the Medical Service Act to allow foreign doctors to practice in Korea was posted as an agenda for an online public hearing on Wednesday. The legislative preview period is until May 20.

Most people opposed the amendment. As of midnight Thursday, 556 people opposed the amendment, with only four in favor and 25 uncertain.

Opponents said, "Why should we pay health insurance premiums to unverified foreign doctors?" "They are openly telling us to go to Southeast Asian and Chinese doctors," "Are you trying to hand over our healthcare to China?" "I don't want to go to Filipino, Vietnamese, or Chinese doctors."

Still, some patient organizations, including the Korean Lung Cancer Patient Association, supported using foreign doctors to fill medical gaps.