Despite government’s efforts, only 2.2% of resigned trainee doctors apply to return

Only 199 interns and residents, or 2.2 percent of the total 9,220 junior doctors who left training hospitals, have applied to return as of last Sunday’s deadline. The government will receive additional applications next month.

On Monday, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced the status of applications for the recruitment of resigned trainee doctors.

As a result of receiving applications from Wednesday to Sunday, 199 people, or 2.2 percent of the 9,220 trainee doctors who resigned (gave up their appointment) as of March 2024, applied for the government’s recruitment. Of the 199 applicants, 98 were cadets for medical officers (eligible for special enlistment).

The government has paved the way for the return of resigned trainee doctors who had left the hospital for nearly a year protesting the medical school enrollment increase, but most junior doctors wouldn’t budge an inch, medical sources said.

In the Seoul metro region, 135 resigned trainee doctors, or 2.3 percent of the total 5,913, applied to return. In the rest of the country, 64, or 1.9 percent of the total 3,307 resigned junior doctors, applied to return, according to the ministry.

In the second round of recruitment for the first year of residency, held for those who have completed their internship, 37 applied, including 23 from the Seoul metro region and 14 from the rest of the country.

Each training hospital will conduct interviews (practical tests) from Monday and announce successful applicants on Thursday.

On Jan. 10, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced “measures to support the return of resigned trainee doctors,” saying that it would help resigned medical residents to resume training so they can return and continue practicing normally.

To provide maximum opportunities for resigned specialists who wish to return, the ministry plans to apply special training and military enlistment exceptions for those who pass its recruitment of resigned trainee doctors, accepting recommendations from six medical organizations, including the Korean Medical Association.

It will also hold additional recruitment in February, as it did in previous years, for vacancies in the 2025 trainee doctor quota. It will also announce additional recruitment targets and qualifications separately.

However, the ministry said it is difficult to apply special enlistment exceptions to those announced as conscripts by the Military Manpower Administration next month due to MMA’s administrative schedule.

“The government will continue to promote emergency medical treatment measures to minimize public inconvenience and actively engage in dialogue with the medical community to normalize medical care,” said Kim Kook-il, a healthcare policy officer at the Ministry of Health and Welfare.