"Protect Students' Right to Survival" Plea from Some Nursing and Medical School Students

A petition titled "Please stop the nursing practice at **** University" was posted on the Blue House National Petition Board on the 23rd. Photo by Blue House National Petition Board capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] As the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis continues for a prolonged period, some students enrolled in nursing and medical schools at certain universities have appealed to stop their clinical practice.

On the 23rd, a petition titled "Please stop the clinical practice of the nursing department at **** University" was posted on the Blue House National Petition Board.

The petitioner, who introduced themselves as a parent of a student in the nursing department at the university, stated, "I understand that many universities are delaying the start of the semester or conducting online lectures due to COVID-19," and added, "However, the nursing department at a certain university notified students on the 19th to go for clinical practice in the Gyeongbuk and Daegu regions starting April 27."

The petitioner said, "As a parent, I cannot understand this and am posting this petition," and explained, "They tried to change the clinical practice (field training) to on-campus practice, but after the hospital accepted it, there was another notice telling students to re-register for clinical practice."

They continued, "Putting aside that this is my child, I believe we must prevent the spread of COVID-19," and said, "Universities gather and disperse students from various regions. If anyone gets confirmed positive while doing clinical practice at hospitals, the virus will spread again. I am posting this to prevent such a situation."

They added, "Students naturally have no choice but to follow since they received the school notice," but pointed out, "I think it is wrong to send students for practice to Daegu, where the virus is severe, even if the hospital is not severely affected by COVID-19."

On the 21st, a petition titled "Please Prohibit Early Start of Medical School That Threatens the Survival Rights of Medical School Interns" was posted on the Blue House National Petition Board. Photo by Blue House National Petition Board capture.

Additionally, on the 21st, a petition titled "Please prohibit the early start of medical school that threatens the survival rights of medical school interns" was also posted.

The petitioner stated, "While elementary, middle, and high school openings have been officially postponed and many universities nationwide are conducting non-face-to-face lectures, some medical schools require their 3rd and 4th-year students to start clinical practice at hospitals, which are considered the least safe from COVID-19, starting from the 23rd," and claimed this.

They continued, "Even those in their 10s to 30s are no longer considered safe, so such measures infringe on the students' right to survival," and said, "Some medical schools are forcibly pushing clinical practice while ignoring the opinions of students and parents."

The petitioner emphasized, "Please officially postpone the start of clinical practice at medical schools nationwide," and urged, "Protect the students' right to survival."

Meanwhile, according to the Central Disease Control Headquarters on the 23rd, as of 12 PM, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases increased by 64, totaling 8,961. The daily new confirmed cases recorded 98 on the 22nd, falling below 100 for the second consecutive day. The number of recovered and released patients increased by 257, totaling 3,166.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.