Senior doctors at SNU hospitals to begin strike on June 17

Senior doctors at four hospitals afiiliated with Seoul National University (SNU) decided to suspend all medical services, except for emergency and critical care, from June 17 unless the government completely nullify its punitive measures against resigned junior physicians, hospital officials said on Thursday. 

The four hospitals are SNU Hospital, SNU Bundang Hospital, Seoul Metropolitan Government SNU Boramae Medical Center, and SNU Hospital Healthcare System Gangnam Center.

The emergency committee of the faculty association of SNU College of Medicine and Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH) announced that medical professors at SNUH and its affiliated hospitals will take a leave of absence starting June 17, following the results of a general faculty meeting and a survey.

“If the government does not cancel the administrative penalties against doctors and implement reasonable measures to normalize the medical situation, we will stop practicing medicine from June 17,” the emergency committee said in a statement.

The committee noted that in a survey of 1,475 professors working at the four hospitals conducted on June 3-6, 63.4 percent of the 939 professors who voted said professors should take a hard line stance in response to the government’s notice of administrative actions against trainee doctors.

When asked if they would participate in a “total furlough except for vital care such as emergency rooms and intensive care units,” 68.4 percent of the 750 professors polled said they would.

“We will continue the shutdown until the government completely revokes the previous stay-at-work and return-to-work orders issued to all trainee physicians, accepts responsibility for the worsening of the situation, and takes tangible steps to resolve it,” the emergency committee at SNU College of Medicine said.

Professors at the four hospitals have apologized to patients for the inconvenience caused by their leave of absence, expressing their "sincere apologies." They requested patients to reschedule their appointments after June 17. "We will maintain a stronger presence than before for emergency and critical care," the professors stated, asking that patients with serious illnesses be given priority.

In response to the professors’ statement, patients vehemently condemned the action, labeling it as “selfish behavior” and even demanding the professors' dismissal. 

The Korean Federation of Patients with Severe Illnesses issued a statement on Friday, criticizing the professors for abandoning their patients and highlighting the critical and dangerous consequences for those who miss timely treatments.

Representing six advocacy groups for patients with cancer, multiple myeloma, lung cancer, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and pancreatic cancer, the federation strongly condemned medical professors’ indefinite collective leave, describing it as an irresponsible act that prioritizes the professors' self-interest over public health. 

They argued that the decision undermines the authenticity and legitimacy of the doctors' claims and stressed the severe impact on patients left unattended for an extended period.