Ministry of Health and Welfare Launches Support Center for Reporting Damages from Doctors' Collective Strike

On the 30th, the Emergency Response Committee of the Korean Intern Resident Association decided to continue the collective strike, and information about the medical staff strike was provided in front of the emergency room at Seoul National University Hospital in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] On the 31st, the Ministry of Health and Welfare held an inauguration ceremony for the 'Collective Strike Damage Report and Support Center (Support Center)' and announced the start of support for patient damages such as postponed treatments and surgery cancellations caused by the collective strike of medical associations.

The Ministry stated, "Due to concerns about patient damages arising from the ongoing collective strike by medical associations, we have established the center in a public-private partnership with patient organizations and other private institutions, and it will operate during the collective strike period."

The Support Center provides medical and legal assistance to patients affected by the collective strike. It offers general legal consultations on civil and criminal relief procedures related to damages and supports dispute mediation with medical institutions if necessary. Additionally, through cooperation with related organizations, the center plans to provide information on alternative medical institutions for patients who find it difficult to access medical services due to the strike.

The Support Center is composed of two teams (Medical Support Team and Legal Support Team) with a total of 14 members from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, related professional institutions, and private organizations. It will receive damage reports and provide consultations through a call center, and face-to-face consultations will be supported if needed. Ha Tae-gil, head of the Damage Report Support Team and the center director, stated, "We plan to provide prompt support to minimize public damages through cooperation with specialized institutions in the medical and legal fields, and we will consider strengthening functions depending on future damage report situations."

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