'Operating Room CCTV Installation' Passed by National Assembly... Gyeonggi-do's 3-Year Effort to Protect Patients Bears Fruit

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province welcomed the passage of the "Medical Act Amendment" mandating the installation of closed-circuit television (CCTV) in operating rooms, which passed the National Assembly plenary session on the 31st of last month, stating that the three years of efforts to protect patients have borne fruit.

On the 1st, Gyeonggi Province said in a press release, "The 'Operating Room CCTV Installation Act (Medical Act Amendment)' was first proposed in the 19th National Assembly in 2015 but failed to pass the standing committee each time and was discarded." It added, "However, with the passage of the related law in this National Assembly, Gyeonggi Province's efforts to prevent illegal medical practices and violations of patient rights, including the operation of operating room CCTV in public medical institutions for the first time nationwide, have come to fruition."

The province previously held the "Gyeonggi Provincial Medical Center Operating Room CCTV Pilot Operation Public Forum" with the Gyeonggi Medical Association, the Korea Patient Organization Federation, and others to gather opinions on the "installation and operation of operating room CCTV" to create an environment where patients can undergo surgery with peace of mind and to restore trust between patients and doctors.

Based on this, in March 2019, the province submitted a Medical Act amendment to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and in May of the same year, expanded the installation and operation of operating room CCTV to all six hospitals of the Gyeonggi Provincial Medical Center.

In addition, the province made efforts to spread public consensus on the installation of operating room CCTV through ▲ hosting a National Assembly forum ("Operating Room CCTV, National Assembly Please Respond") ▲ supporting the installation of CCTV in private medical institutions ▲ delivering a letter to the National Assembly from Governor Lee Jae-myung of Gyeonggi Province ▲ and holding legislative support meetings presided over by Governor Lee Jae-myung.

A provincial official explained, "The Medical Act amendment reflects the issues raised in forums and meetings led by Gyeonggi Province." He added, "The medical community had voiced concerns about the external leakage of videos, but the amendment requires the installation and operation of CCTV that is not connected to external networks within the operating room to prevent surgical videos from leaking outside. Filming is done without audio recording only upon patient request, and 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 amendment emphasizes the 'installation obligation' rather than a 'filming obligation,' thereby guaranteeing the choice of the parties involved in the surgery."

Meanwhile, Governor Lee Jae-myung said on Facebook on the 31st of last month, "The installation of operating room CCTV will not only protect patients but also greatly help enhance trust in medical personnel by securing transparency in the surgical process." He added, "There may be those who feel it is insufficient, but since this is the first step, it would be good to improve it together going forward."

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