On-Duty Doctor Absent Despite Emergency Patient... Court Rules "Dismissal Justified"

Seoul Administrative Court, Seocho-gu, Seoul. / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] A doctor who was fired for not responding during an emergency while on duty filed an appeal lawsuit but lost. Despite the attending nurse's actions, the emergency patient ultimately died.

According to the legal community on the 21st, the Administrative Court of Seoul, Administrative Division 3 (Chief Judge Yoo Hwan-woo) recently ruled against the plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by Doctor A against the Central Labor Commission seeking cancellation of the unfair dismissal reconsideration decision.

In May 2019, while on duty, Doctor A did not respond for over an hour despite an emergency patient occurring. Doctor A appeared in the ward only 2 hours and 30 minutes after the emergency patient appeared.

At the time of the incident, Doctor A was still in the probation period, having been employed at the hospital for less than a month. The hospital dismissed him in June of the same year citing "poor work performance and gross negligence."

Doctor A filed for relief with the Labor Commission claiming the dismissal was unfair, but it was rejected, leading him to file a lawsuit. In court, he argued, "The time of the incident was the on-duty doctor's break time."

The court stated, "It is difficult to accept the claim that a separate break time is given to the on-duty doctor, and even if break time is recognized, it is reasonable to see it as being given within a range where job performance is possible."

Furthermore, the court ruled that "The plaintiff's actions cannot be seen as simple negligence or a condition that can be easily improved, and there is considerable doubt about whether it is appropriate to perform important duties directly related to the patient's health and life as a doctor," concluding that the dismissal was justified.

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