'Operating Room CCTV Installation Law' Passed by National Assembly Welfare Committee

by Park Joonyi

Published 23 Aug.2021 16:06(KST)

On the 23rd, Kang Ki-yoon, the subcommittee chairman, presided over the meeting of the 1st Bill Review Subcommittee of the Health and Welfare Committee held at the National Assembly.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] The method of installing closed-circuit television (CCTV) in operating rooms has passed the National Assembly hurdle after nine months of discussion.

On the 23rd, the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee convened a full meeting in the afternoon following a subcommittee meeting in the morning to review and approve the amendment to the Medical Service Act, which includes mandatory installation of CCTV in operating rooms.

The amendment includes provisions to install and operate CCTV inside operating rooms that are not connected to external networks. Filming can be done without audio recording upon the patient's request.

Viewing is allowed only upon request from public institutions related to investigations or trials, or with mutual consent between the patient and medical personnel. The law will be enforced after a two-year grace period following its promulgation.

However, considering opposition from the medical community, an exception clause was included allowing medical staff to refuse filming for justifiable reasons. These include cases where surgery delay could endanger the patient's life, emergency surgeries, high-risk surgeries performed to save the patient's life, or situations where filming would significantly hinder the training of residents.

Additionally, the government may support the costs of installing CCTV, while the requester of viewing bears the viewing costs. Medical institutions must store CCTV footage for at least 30 days and take measures to prevent data leakage or damage.